ACCREDITATION MANUAL • SECTION I GENERAL INFORMATION • SECTION II POLICIES • SECTION III STANDARDS AND CRITERIA • GLOSSARY
ACEN Accreditation Manual – Section II Policies
POLICY #5
Notification of Commission Decisions
A nursing program seeking ACEN initial or continuing accreditation explicitly agrees that information pertaining to the program shall be made available within 30 calendar days of the accreditation decisions made at the Board of Commissioners’ meetings. Per the table below, the ACEN will provide written notification to:
- The nurse administrator of the nursing program1, 5
- The Chief Executive Officer of the governing organization1, 5
- U.S. Department of Education Secretary1, 2, 4, 5
- U.S. Department of Education Case Management Teams1, 2, 5
- State regulatory agencies for nursing1, 2, 5
- State Departments/Ministries of Education (as applicable)1, 2, 5
- Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA)1, 2, 5
- Institutional accrediting agencies recognized by the ACEN for governing organizations1, 2, 5
- Peer evaluators that reviewed the program1
- Higher Education Publications, Inc.1, 2, 5
- The public (through posting on the ACEN website)1, 2, 3, 4, 5
The reporting of the following information applies to all governing organizations/nursing programs seeking initial or continuing accreditation.
| Report Category | Time for Submission | |
| Other | Annually | |
ACEN Board of Commissioners’ accreditation decision1
|
Within 30 calendar days of decision
Posted on ACEN
website within
one business day
of sending
written
notification to
governing
organization/nurs
ing program
|
June
(aggregated – Report to Constituents) |
| Outcome of appeal process and reason(s) following outcome of appeal5 | Within 30 calendar days of receiving Appeal Committee decision
Posted on ACEN
website within
one business day
of sending
written
notification to
governing
organization/nurs
ing program
|
June
(aggregated – Report to Constituents) |
| Outcome of arbitration process and reason(s) following outcome of arbitration5 | Within 30 calendar days of receiving Arbitration Panel award
Posted on ACEN
website within
one business day
of sending
written
notification to
governing
organization/nurs
ing program
|
June
(aggregated – Report to Constituents) |
| Voluntary withdrawal of a governing organization/nursing program from ACEN accreditation2 | Within 10 business days of receiving voluntary withdrawal letter
Posted on ACEN
website within
one business day
of sending
written
notification to
governing
organization/nurs
ing program
|
Available
Online |
| Summary of major accreditation activities3, 4 | June
(aggregated – current Report to Constituents) |
|
| Directory of accredited programs3, 4 | Available
Online |
|
| Directory of candidate programs3 | Available
Online |
|
| ACEN Board of Commissioners’ or ACEN Chief Executive Officer substantive change decision1 | Within 30 calendar days of decision
Posted on ACEN
website within
one business day
of sending
written
notification to
governing
organization/nurs
ing program
|
|
Proposed changes within the ACEN that alter the scope of recognition or compliance with requirements3, 4
|
As necessary | As necessary |
The ACEN will submit to the U.S. Department of Education Secretary information regarding a program’s compliance with federal student aid program requirements if the Secretary requests such information, or if the ACEN believes that the program is failing to meet its Title IV responsibilities or is involved in fraud and abuse with respect to its activities. If circumstances permit and to the extent feasible, prior to submission of information, the program will be provided an opportunity to comment on findings.
Policy #5 History
Revised July 2015
Revised March 2019
Revised July 2020