Good afternoon and Happy December! 

Just 30 more days, and we’ll have cleared the hurdle that is 2020! 

As a reminder from my October email—it’s SARA Renewal time! The person responsible for filing the renewal application should have received a notification either yesterday or today from NC-SARA with information on the renewal process and a link to the application. Please note that the person responsible for completing this form has 30 days from the receipt of the Renewal Notification to submit it to our State Portal Entity (SPE). 

I spoke this morning with Heather DeLange, our SPE at the CDHE, who will be reviewing our renewal applications. She asked me to pass along a few reminders and tips: 

• While it’s tempting to copy and paste from previous renewal applications, ensure that the Provost or Chancellor only initials on the left-hand side of the first two pages. SPE completes the checks on the right-hand side. 
   
• Make sure the link you provide for student complaints is active. 
   
• If your disclosures for professional licensure are ready, please include examples of both your direct and indirect/general disclosures with your application. If you don’t submit these with the renewal application, you will be asked to provide them soon after. 

Additional tips & reminders for the renewal:  

As noted earlier, the System will once again cover the membership costs for NC-SARA. When you receive your invoice (approximately 30 days after submitting the renewal application), Kelly Maden at the System office will ensure that funds are available for your institution. 

Additionally, your Provost (or Chancellor, if that has been the practice on your campus) will need to initial and sign different parts of the renewal application. If possible, I recommend scheduling a brief meeting with them to review the form so they fully understand what they’re agreeing to on behalf of the university and how these issues and actions impact the university as a whole. This is also an excellent opportunity to emphasize the importance of complying with the reciprocity agreement and associated federal regulations—especially for those who have encountered challenges getting their university’s state authorization and licensure needs addressed. 

In one of my October emails, I also mentioned the potential revision to the NC-SARA Manual* that could significantly impact us regarding program closures. Based on the latest communication from NC-SARA, it appears that should your institution close an online program, you are required to inform SARA (via our SPE) and may need to issue refunds to students if a reasonable alternative for receiving their education cannot be provided (see the language below). Given the financial challenges due to COVID and the potential for closing programs on a larger scale than usual in future years, this is an important obligation to be aware of. 

As always, if you have any questions or need assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I hope you have a great rest of your week, a wonderful end of the year, and an amazing holiday season! 

Sincerely,
Erika 

*Changes in the NC-SARA Manual 3.1.b.6 - closing of programs and the requirements
3.1 Eligibility

b. In order to be eligible to participate in SARA, an Institution must: 

6.  Agree that, in cases where the institution cannot fully deliver the instruction for which a student has contracted, it will provide a reasonable alternative for delivering the instruction or reasonable financial compensation for the education the student did not receive. (p.22) 

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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o: (303) 735-8184
c: (518) 637-9785