Outdated rule

Why is the federal Department of Education citing Baker University for not adhering to rules that the department knows are outdated and is planning to change?

It is unfortunate Baker University has become caught up in a questionable interpretation of a U.S. Department of Education guideline on financial aid and student recruitment. The dispute centers on how Baker reported attendance at the university’s program for adult education.

Government officials have acknowledged that the rules and guidelines are confusing and sometimes contradictory. Nevertheless, Education Department inspectors studied the financial aid program at Baker’s School of Professional and Graduate Studies for the years 1996-99 and claimed the school was in error in not reporting specific attendance records of students who received federal aid and were required to spend at least 360 hours a year in class, in study groups or in independent study.

According to Baker officials, the report claims the school did not comply with the so-called “12-hour” rule because it did not retain records for every study group meeting. The university estimates that during the review period, 600 study groups enrolled in approximately 2,100 courses and would have met more than 50,000 times.

“If the inspector general’s interpretations were allowed to stand and applied to every college and university in America, the incursion of the government into their internal academic affairs would be devastating,” said Donald Clardy, executive vice president and dean of the Baker program.

Baker officials point out those at universities throughout the country are confused by the policy because there is no way to accurately monitor new and widely used educational programs such as distance learning and Internet courses, all of which have become quite prevalent and popular.

It is interesting to note that new proposed Department of Education policies would do away entirely with the “12-hour” rule for non-traditional courses such as Baker has offered. The yet-to-be approved policy also supports Baker’s recruiting compensation practice by clarifying the regulation’s intent.

Baker President Dan Lambert has done a superior job in guiding, strengthening and building Baker University. It is difficult to imagine any college or university president more determined to oversee a clean, proper rules-abiding educational institution. He makes every effort to have Baker associated with excellence, and it is difficult to believe he would knowingly allow anything that would reflect unfavorably on Baker.

The proposed new policy for monitoring distance learning and adult education programs indicates Education Department officials realize the current, but old, policy is outdated and needs to be changed.

As noted above, it is unfortunate the Education Department is suggesting that Baker was doing something wrong and might face a hefty financial fine, while, at the same time, federal officials acknowledge the policy is out of date and needs to be revised.

Baker remains an excellent university, and Lambert is a top-flight president.