Higher Education Opportunity Act, Legislation

TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS

SEC. 101. GENERAL DEFINITION OF INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.
(a) AMENDMENTS.—Section 101 (20 U.S.C. 1001) is amended—

(1) in subsection (a)—
(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the semicolon the following: ‘‘, or persons who meet the requirements of section 484(d)(3)’’; and
(B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘, or awards a degree that is acceptable for admission to a graduate or professional degree program, subject to review and approval by the Secretary’’ after ‘‘such a degree’’; and

(2) by striking paragraph (2) of subsection (b) and inserting the following:
‘‘(2) a public or nonprofit private educational institution in any State that, in lieu of the requirement in subsection (a)(1), admits as regular students individuals—
‘‘(A) who are beyond the age of compulsory school attendance in the State in which the institution is located; or
‘‘(B) who will be dually or concurrently enrolled in the institution and a secondary school.’’.

(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this section shall take effect on July 1, 2010.

SEC. 102. DEFINITION OF INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION FOR PURPOSES OF TITLE IV PROGRAMS.
(a) INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL SCHOOLS AND NURSING SCHOOLS.—Section 102(a)(2) (20 U.S.C. 1002(a)(2)) is amended—

(1) in subparagraph (A)—
(A) in the first sentence of the matter preceding clause (i), by inserting ‘‘nursing school,’’ after ‘‘graduate medical school,’’;
(B) in clause (i)— (i) in the matter preceding subclause (I), by inserting ‘‘except as provided in subparagraph (B)(iii)(IV),’’ before ‘‘in the case’’; and (ii) by striking subclause (II) and inserting the following new subclause:

‘‘(II) the institution—
‘‘(aa) has or had a clinical training program that was approved by a State as of January 1, 1992; and ‘‘(bb) continues to operate a clinical training program in at least one State that is approved by that State;’’;

(C) in clause (ii), by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and
(D) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘(iii) in the case of a nursing school located outside of the United States—

‘‘(I) the nursing school has an agreement with a hospital, or accredited school of nursing (as such terms are defined in section 801 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296)), located in the United States that requires the students of the nursing school to complete the students’ clinical training at such hospital or accredited school of nursing;
‘‘(II) the nursing school has an agreement with an accredited school of nursing located in the United States providing that the students graduating from the nursing school located outside of the United States also receive a degree from the accredited school of nursing located in the United States;
‘‘(III) the nursing school certifies only Federal Stafford Loans under section 428, unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans under section 428H, or Federal PLUS loans under section 428B for students attending the institution;
‘‘(IV) the nursing school reimburses the Secretary for the cost of any loan defaults for current and former students included in the calculation of the institution’s cohort default rate during the previous fiscal year; and
‘‘(V) not less than 75 percent of the individuals who were students or graduates of the nursing school, and who took the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses in the year preceding the year for which the institution is certifying a Federal Stafford Loan under section 428, an unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan under section 428H, or a Federal PLUS loan under section 428B, received a passing score on such examination.’’; and

(2) in subparagraph (B), by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(iii) REPORT.—

‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the advisory panel described in clause (i) shall submit a report to the Secretary and to the authorizing committees recommending eligibility criteria for participation in the loan programs under part B of title IV for graduate medical schools that—
‘‘(aa) are located outside of the United States;
‘‘(bb) do not meet the requirements of subparagraph (A)(i); and
‘‘(cc) have a clinical training program approved by a State prior to January 1, 2008.

‘‘(II) RECOMMENDATIONS.—In the report described in subclause (I), the advisory panel’s eligibility criteria shall include recommendations regarding the appropriate levels of performance for graduate medical schools described in such subclause in the following areas:
‘‘(aa) Entrance requirements.
‘‘(bb) Retention and graduation rates.
‘‘(cc) Successful placement of students in United States medical residency programs.
‘‘(dd) Passage rate of students on the United States Medical Licensing Examination.
‘‘(ee) The extent to which State medical boards have assessed the quality of such school’s program of instruction, including
through on-site reviews.
‘‘(ff) The extent to which graduates of such schools would be unable to practice medicine in 1 or more States, based on the judgment of a State medical board.
‘‘(gg) Any areas recommended by the Comptroller General of the United States under section 1101 of the Higher Education Opportunity Act.
‘‘(hh) Any additional areas the Secretary may require.