Hello and Happy SARA Renewal Season! 

By now, all three campuses should have received the reminder to complete and submit our SARA renewal (I received Boulder’s on 12/1). Don’t forget, you have 30 days from the sent date to submit the form to Heather DeLange, our State Portal Entity, at CDHE. For me, 30 days lands right in the middle of my vacation, so I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on the calendar. You may need information from others on your campus to complete the renewal, so plan accordingly. 

There was an interesting conversation on the WCET listserv earlier this week about an article discussing DACA recipients and the challenges they face in finding employment post-graduation. One section, in particular, caught the attention of several people: 

"While federal law restricts states from extending licensure to unauthorized immigrants, five states have passed legislation opting out of these restrictions. Another 12 have statutes extending licensure in specific professions to immigrants with DACA protection.” 

Personally, I didn’t encounter language like this when researching professional licensure disclosures—though I wasn’t specifically looking for it either—but that doesn’t make it any less concerning. Are we required to disclose this information if we come across it during our research? Technically, no. We’re not required by any regulatory body, but it does raise an interesting ethical question. I’m not sure how many students at Boulder are both undocumented and enrolled in a professional licensure program (I can say—thanks, Rob!—that it's fewer than 50). I’m also not sure how I’ll handle this for Boulder, but I know people in higher positions than mine are looking into it (WCET has even added it to their research priorities). It might be worth spot-checking a few programs and states to see if anything like this comes up. 

Part II of the WCET SAN Virtual Member Policy Series was today, and the topic was Professional Licensure Disclosures. Once they post the slides and a link to the webcast, I’ll be sure to share it with you all! If you’re curious, you can find the slides and transcript from my session on Regular and Substantive Interaction (shameless plug) here. 

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season! I hope you get a chance to disconnect from work and enjoy time with family, friends, and loved ones. 

But please don’t forget to submit your SARA renewal first! 

Sincerely,
Erika 

Erika G. Swain
Interim Assistant Director for State Authorization
Office of Academic Affairs
University of Colorado System
e: swaine@cu.edu
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Assistant Director for Compliance and Authorization
Office of Data Analytics | Office of Institutional Research
University of Colorado Boulder
e: Erika.Swain@colorado.edu
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