State Authorization

INTRODUCTION

All states govern the physical presence (post-secondary education and access) of institutions from out-of-state.

Many states including Pennsylvania are voluntary members of the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), which provides a baseline for standards of practice and allows for ease of student access to education.

However each state's physical presence laws remain unique regarding licensing processes and may include extra steps prior to providing clinical/internship/field experience-type placements.

Clarion University offers academic courses, programs, and clinical/internship/field experience-type placements by meeting each state's requirements for authorization.

The status of Clarion University's state authorizations are listed within the State Authorization Chart (below).

If you are a prospective or current student and do not find the program or state you are interested in, please contact Clarion Online for guidance. 

PROFESSIONAL Licensure

Applicants who are applying to programs leading to licensure in states other than Pennsylvania must be aware of the various state professional licensure requirements. Please check licensure requirements by state at CareerOneStop or please use the link below:

https://www.careeronestop.org/toolkit/training/find-licenses.aspx

Or, use these discipline-specific CareerOneStop links:

• Athletic Coaching Licensure Requirements by State
• Athletic Trainer Licensure Requirements by State
• Communication Sciences and Disorders (Speech Pathology, Audiology) Licensure Requirements by State
• Counseling Licensure Requirements by State
• Education Licensure Requirements by State
• Human Resource Licensure Requirements by State
• Library Professionals Licensure Requirements by State
• Medical Imaging Licensure Requirements by State
• Nursing Licensure Requirements by State
• Rehabiliation Care Licensure Requirements by State
• Respiratory Care Licensure Requirements by State
• Social Work Licensure Requirements by State

 

State AUTHORIZation chart

 NOTE:  Bolded states on the chart are hyperlinked to SPECIAL NOTES.

Program	State Exemptions
Online education exemption, per compliance with individual state processes.	All 50 States (CO) *Some professional programs are subject to additional regulations prior to field experience-type placement or licensing (see below). **Field experience-type placements arelimited to 10 students, per site, per year. KS and NJ have stricter limits.
Communication Sciences and Disorders field experience exemption, per compliance with individual state processes.	AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, MD, MN, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SD, VA, WV *For unlisted states, contact Clarion Online  **Field experience-type placements are limited to 10 students per site, per year. KS and NJ have stricter limits.
Library Science field experience exemption, per compliance with individual state processes.	All 50 States (CO) **Field experience-type placements are limited to 10 studentsper site, per year. KS and NJ have stricter limits.
Nonmedical/Nonclinical/Nonteaching Programs (Rehabilitation, Political Science, Engineering, Communication) field experience exemption, per compliance with individual state processes.	All 50 States (CO) **Field experience-type placements are limited to 10 students per site, per year. KS and NJ have stricter limits.
Nursing clinical placement exemption assumes the student and preceptor hold a valid state license, and that compliance with unique state processes is met.	AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, NC, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, SC, TX, VA, WA, WI, WV *For unlisted states contact Clarion Online.  **Field experience-type placements are limited to 10 students per site, per year. KS and NJ have stricter limits.
Student Teacher (Office of Field Services) placement exemption, per compliance with individual state processes.	AR, AZ CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, KS, MA, MD, ME, MI, NH, NJ, NY, PA, UT, VA *For unlisted states, contact Clarion Online. **Field experience-type placements are limited to 10 students per site, per year. KS and NJ have stricter limits.

 

SPECIAL NOTES:

Alabama, AL – Post (RN) licensure programs are OK. Notification must be made to the state 30 days in advance of any clinical placement.

California, CA - For RN to BSN, MSN-FNP, and DNP clinical placements, students/clinical faculty must be licensed in CA.

Colorado, CO - Colorado and Pennsylvania state laws conflict over the issue of worker's compensation related to field placements. CO is OK for placements in teaching and any paid placement in other programs, including medical/clinical, where the employer carries workers compensation and licensing requirements are met. Placements may also be completed at a federal facility, like a VA Hospital, where federal employers are not subject to state law. If these criteria cannot be met, please consider these options: work with your program to see if a non-field experience option is available; plan to do your field experience virtually; or plan to do your field experience in a different state.  

Clarion University’s legal explanation of the inability to purchase insurance for students in field placements:

"Clarion University of Pennsylvania, is a part of the State System of Higher Education, a body corporate and politic constituting of a public corporation and government entity.  The University does not have the statutory authority to purchase insurance and it does not possess insurance documentation per se (i.e., certificates of insurance).  Instead, it participates in the Commonwealth’s Tort Claims Self-Insurance Program administered by the Bureau of Risk Management of the Pennsylvania Department of General Services.  The program covers Commonwealth/University-owned property, employees, and officials acting within the scope of their employment, and claims arising out of the University’s performance under this agreement, subject to provisions of the Tort Claims Act, 42 Pa.C.S.A. §8521, et seq.  As such, the University cannot extend worker’s compensation insurance to students for site participation purposes because, it is self-insured and the self-insurance program is mainly intended to cover claims related to the University’s property, performance, employees, and officials acting within the scope of their employment."

Connecticut, CT- CSD, Speech and Pathologist Licensure requires an application and fee per student. Nursing, Post (RN) licensure programs are OK.

District of Columbia, DC- the nursing program must complete a simple application at time of need.

Illinois, IL - MSN-FNP and DNP program clinical placement is OK.  The institution will have to apply for approval for any prelicensure programs.

Kansas, KS - Further restrictions on the number of students from any one institution. Student teachers must complete a simple certificate and submit to the KS Department of Education.

Maryland, MD- Must alert Board of Nursing of program/student presence.

Minnesota, MN- CSD, clinical students need to apply for a temporary license (2 wk process) and pay a fee through health.slpa@state.mn.us.

New Jersey, NJ - Limited to five students per institution. Post (RN) licensure programs are OK, however the institution must notify 'askconsumeraffairs@dca.lps.state.nj.us' with student name, license details prior to placement for verification.   

New York, NY- RN-BSN OK. 

North Carolina, NC- Post (RN) licensure programs are OK. Notification must be made to the state 30 days in advance of any clinical placement.

Oregon, OR—RN-BSN and DNP programs are OK. MSN-FNP must complete a program approval.

Utah, UT - Student teachers must have a background check and need to pay a fee for a provisional UT license.

Washington, WA- RN-BSN is OK. Nursing programs with clinical components must complete a program application.

ACCREDITATIONS, APPROVALS and CERTIFICATES

• Clarion University
• All Academic Programs
• National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (NC-SARA)

WHAT IS STATE AUTHORIZATION AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

What is State Authorization?

The U.S. Department of Education, Higher Education Act of 1965, amendment §600.9(c) State authorization says:

If an institution is offering post-secondary 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 post-secondary distance or correspondence education in that State. An institution must be able to document to the Secretary the State’s approval upon request.

What is Clarion University doing to stay compliant with state authorization? 

1. Clarion University stays abreast of state authorization requirements, and is working toward achieving authorization for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US Territories.  
2. Clarion University monitors:

• • Prospective and current students’ programs, online and off-campus classes, field experiences (clinical experience, internship, student teaching, practicum, field placement, service learning), state of residence.
  • Marketing and recruiting efforts.

Why is state authorization important to students?

1. Clarion University is located in Pennsylvania and must have authorization to provide education to students who want to study outside of PA. 
2. Please check the State Authorization Chart if:

• • You reside in a state other than Pennsylvania and want to take one or more Clarion University classes online.
  • You want to participate in a field experience (clinical experience, internship, student teaching, practicum, field placement, service learning) in a state other than Pennsylvania.

       3. Clarion University’s state authorization work is ongoing.  If the state or US territory of your interest is not listed              on the chart, please contact Clarion Online. 

COMPLAINT PROCESS

In compliance with 34 CFR 668.43(b) Code of Federal Regulation and U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) rules, an institution offering distance education must "provide its students or prospective students with contact information for filing complaints with its accreditor and with its State approval or licensing entity and any other relevant State official or agency that would appropriately handle a student's complaint." 

Clarion University of Pennsylvania encourages all current, former, and prospective students, regardless of their residency, to FIRST submit any grievances, complaints, or concerns directly to Clarion University as follows. For complaints or concerns,

1. Related to a particular class students should follow, in accordance with the procedures and policies outlined in Clarion University's undergraduate and graduate catalogs and the Rights, Regulations, and Procedures Online handbook. The student should first discuss the problem with the faculty member who issued the grade. If not resolved to the student's satisfaction, they should then discuss the matter with the appropriate department chairperson.
2. Unrelated to a particular class complete the Online Educational Complaint Form
3. If the student feels the issue cannot be resolved by the university, please contact the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education or its accreditor, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.