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Lower Columbia College 1600 Maple P.O. Box 3010 Longview WA, 98632 360.442.2311 info@lowercolumbia.edu
Complaint Resolution for Out of State Students
OverviewIn compliance with the language passed in the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA), the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) conducted a Negotiated Rule Making Process in 2010. Institutions offering distance education must provide enrolled and prospective students with contact information for filing complaints with its accrediting agency, and with the appropriate state agency for handling complaints in the student's state.
Accrediting AgencyLower Columbia College is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.
Complaint Resolution Contacts by StateFull list in pdf - provided courtesy of Tacoma Community College
BackgroundeLearning is an important part of Lower Columbia College, with many students participating in federal financial aid. Recent amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 include changes in regulation that may impact online, distance, and correspondence education providers. Specifically:
If an institution is offering postsecondary education through distance or correspondence education to students in a State in which it is not physically located, or in which it is otherwise subject to State jurisdiction as determined by the State, the institution must meet any State requirements for it to be legally offering postsecondary distance or correspondence education in that State. An institution must be able to document to the Secretary the State's approval upon request. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1001 and 1002).