Must states make institutional reports public after receiving them next April?
Whether states must make the IHE reports they receive in April of each year public — and the process and timelines they must follow when required to do so — are matters governed by each state’s “open records” laws, not federal law. While Title II requires IHEs to publicize in school catalogs or other promotional material the pass rates and other information they include in these institutional reports, neither Title II nor other federal law speaks to what states must do with the IHE reports they receive.Having said this, the overall scope of Title II plainly favors public disclosure. In establishing the Title II reporting system, Congress focused on the public’s lack of basic information on whether those who complete teacher preparation programs are prepared to teach, and how state licensing and certification requirements may affect who teaches in our Nation’s classrooms. Congress insisted that institutions and states quickly become more accountable to the public in these areas. Hence
