Family & Community Alternative Education
Massachusetts Proprietary Schools

Proprietary School Advisory Council Meeting Summary
6/25/09

The council was provided updates on the status of the Division of Professional Licensure's progress on the oversight of several items that impact schools licensed by the Department. The Board of Registration of Massage Therapists continues to discuss draft regulations for massage therapy schools. A newly formed Board of Registration of Sheet Metal Workers is developing regulations for the licensing of sheet metal workers. The Board of Registration for Dentists is developing regulations for the registration of dental assistants.

The council was informed that state budget cuts will result in the loss of one staff person in the proprietary school unit. The council was apprised of possible actions the Department may take to offset the workload and that any changes to Department policies or procedures will be posted on the Department's website.

The council was informed that the Department is investigating whether certain national certifications tests may be used by prospective teachers in lieu of a formal training program. While 603 CMR 3.15(2) requires prospective teachers to have a combination of education and occupational experience, the Department will ascertain whether passing a national certification test (e.g. DANB, AMT) from an NCCA/NOCA certified entity provides sufficient breadth and depth of knowledge for prospective teachers and if so, whether those tests meet accepted psychometric principles.

Following the council's discussion of the draft policy regarding the terms certificate v. certification, the council discussed schools' usage of the terms "master" and "professional" and whether the terms may be potentially misleading to student consumers. The council did not identify issues with the term "professional"; however, they discussed how the term "master" may be misleading as it implies a higher level of training and it may be confused with terms used in the professional licensing in the trades. The Department will investigate further and draft a policy for the council to review at the next meeting.

Schools are seeking guidance from the Department about the use of electronic catalogues. Since the Department currently does not have a policy on this issue, the matter was brought to the council for discussion. The council discussed the pros and cons of electronic v. hard copy catalogues and that some accrediting agencies (e.g. ACCSCT) still require schools to provide students with bound copies of their catalogues. Emerging from the discussion were several positives (cost savings to schools, providing the most up to date information, many students are accustomed to using computers) and several negatives (lack of computer access, whether students will know when policies change, whether students will know what the policy was at the time they enrolled). The Department will investigate further and draft a policy for the council to review at the next meeting.

Council members were informed that several of their terms will expire in October and the Department will begin recruiting new representatives from schools.

The next meetings are scheduled for 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. on Friday, September 18, 2009 at Porter & Chester Institute in Westboro, and Friday, October 16, 2009 at the Hallmark Institute of Photography.

Absent: Don Anderson, Steve Nemmers