Advance

good practices and sound policies that accelerate the effective adoption and use of technologies in teaching and learning.

House Resolution 4535 was introduced early in 2010 by Reps. Timothy Bishop (D-NY) and Michael Castle (R-DE) to give the federal government more firepower in battling ‘diploma mills.’ The bill arose over concerns that some federal employees used fake credentials to progress up the federal salary ladder. Additionally, the lack of federal legislation created a ‘whack-a-mole’ game among the states. As one state increased its standards for regulating higher education, the diploma mills would move to another state with a low regulatory barrier.

• “cement in federal law definitions of "diploma mills" and "accreditation mills" (the unauthorized agencies from which the phony institutions claim to derive their authority to operate), bar federal agencies from using degrees from diploma mills to provide jobs or promotions that depend on candidates' educational credentials, and give the Federal Trade Commission more authority to define and crack down on deceptive practices by dubious institutions.”