All institutions participating in federal financial aid programs are required to notify enrolled and potential students and current and prospective employees regarding available consumer information. This page provides access to required consumer information. Where applicable, each section lists specific locations where additional information is available.  Additionally, the right to request and receive this information in writing is available by contacting the Program Coordinator, Diana Petrizzo at (716)731-6800 x4446.

Accreditation
The Orleans/Niagara BOCES LPN program is accredited by the New York State Department of Education Office of the Professions. To obtain a copy of the accreditation and licensure documents, or information on how to contact the New York State Department of Education, contact Diana Pertizzo.  

Facility
Orleans/Niagara BOCES is a Drug Free campus that is handicapped-accessible and meets all requirements of New York State public buildings. This applies to the facilities associated with the PN Program, including the classroom and laboratory located at the Orleans and Niagara Career & Technical Centers. Our community-based clinical facilities are also handicapped accessible with individual anti-smoking and drug policies.

Academic Programs 
The Orleans/Niagara BOCES offers a certificate program in Practical Nursing. Detailed information regarding the academic program, including curriculum and course objectives, is available here.

Additional Education Opportunities
Contact the Continuing Education Department at 716-731-6800 ext. 4445 for additional Orleans/Niagara BOCES adult education opportunities.

Credit Transfer 
Information regarding criteria used to evaluate transfer of credits earned at other institutions is located here.

Disability Services

The Orleans/Niagara BOCES recognizes and accepts its obligation under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of a disability and requiring the University to provide reasonable accommodations to otherwise qualified disabled students in all  programs and activities.

Students with a temporary or permanent disability seeking disability services from O/N BOCES must:

(1) disclose their disability to the Program Coordinator
(2) request special accommodation from the Program Coordinator. Confirmation through documentation from a health care provider may be required prior to accommodations being determined and fulfilled.

General Contact Information 
Direct any questions regarding admissions, academics, financial options, facilities or general institutional issues to the following offices:

Practical Nursing Program
Program Coordinator- Diana Petrizzo, RN, BSN - University at Buffalo (ext. 4446)
Admissions & Clerical Support- Kathy Dix (ext. 4445)
Financial Aid Director - J'Dale Berner, MS (ext. 4006)
Nursing Instructor- Roxanne Smith,RN, BSN - Niagara University
Nursing Instructor- Debra Dittmer, RN, BSN - Daemen College

Drug and Alcohol Prevention Information 
The Orleans/Niagara BOCES campuses are designated Drug-free School Zones and Drug-free Workplaces. This is supported in the LPN Handbook which cites program termination as the penalty for attending class or a clinical clinic under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Further, a physical examination verifying that the LPN student fulfills the requirements is a pre-requisite to attending clinical. As part of this physical, the physician, or designated examiner, is required to verify that the symptoms, prevention and treatment are all components in the PN curriculum. Treatment referrals to local drug and alcohol programs (Alcoholism Council of Niagara County) will be made by the nursing faculty and case manager as needed.

To address substance abuse prevention at admission, the following Drug and Alcohol Prevention pamphlets will be available for distribution to prospective LPN students at the time of interview and as needed:

 Focus on Prevention:  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse And Mental Health Administration Center for Substance Abuse Prevention

• Questions and Answers about Alcohol and Drugs
• Tips for Teens
• Guide for Parents and College Students to Prevent Underage Drinking
• Alcohol and Drug Prevention Principles:  NYS Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Service

Graduation Rates 
In accordance with the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended, each postsecondary education institution must publish information regarding graduation rates as defined by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This graduation measure includes the cohort of full-time, first-time (FTFT) certification-seeking undergraduate students and tracks their completion status at 150% of the normal time to complete all requirements of their program of study. A first-time student is defined as a student who has no prior postsecondary experience attending any institution for the first time at the undergraduate level.

Data are collected on the number of students entering the institution as FTFT certificate-seeking undergraduate students in a particular cohort year. Graduation rates are disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender and federal financial aid grant or loan funds. Graduation rates are available at the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) website. Follow these steps to access this information:

• Go to the IPEDS College Navigator at http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
• In the "Name of School" box, type Orleans Niagara BOCES.
• Click on the school name when it appears.
• For graduation data, click on the Graduation Rates link to expand the selection.

Additional information regarding graduation and board pass rates is available in the attached documents at the bottom of this page.  
 Retention and Placement 
 Student retention rates are reported to the National Center for Education Statistics as required by federal regulation.

• Go to the IPEDS College Navigator at http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
• In the "Name of School" box, type Orleans Niagara BOCES.
• Click on the school name when it appears.
• Click Retention and Graduation

Federal Student Financial Aid Penalties for Drug Law Violations
Federal law provides that a student who has been convicted of an offense under any federal or state law involving the possession or sale of a controlled substance during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving financial aid shall not be eligible to receive any federal or institutional grant, loan, or work assistance. A copy of the complete notice is available on the attached documents at the bottom of this page.

Privacy of Student Records (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) limits the disclosure of personally identifiable information from school records and defines students’ rights to review their records and request a change to them. The BOCES FERPA policy may be viewed in its entirety in the Student Handbook.

Program Integrity- Complaints 
The school encourages students and prospective students initially to address complaints relating to institutional policies and consumer protection issues with personnel in the office or department that caused the alleged grievance. The Student Handbook outlines the recommended procedure for filing a grievance.

Pursuant to the state authorization provision of the Program Integrity Regulations (34 C.F.R. 668.43) established by the Department of Education on October 29, 2010, the following contact information is provided for filing complaints that remain unresolved after engaging in the above-referenced process. Complaints concerning broad institutional academic practices may be forwarded to the State Education Department:
Office of the Professions Professional Education Program Review Education Building , 2 West Albany, NY 12234.

Financial Aid
Information regarding the availability of financial assistance, application procedures and eligibility requirements, and methodology for determining awards is available on the BOCES website by clicking here.  

Students receiving federal student aid are subject to certain rights and responsibilities under the law. Students' Rights & Responsibilities are published in the Student Handbook.

Net Price Calculator
The Net Price Calculator (NPC) provides estimated net price information to current and prospective students and should be based, as much as possible, on their individual circumstances.
The O/N BOCES Net Price Calculator (NPC) can be accessed by clicking here.

Cost of Attendance
The cost of attendance is the estimated cost of attending the program for an academic year (not the entire program), including estimated amounts for tuition and fees, books and supplies, housing, transportation, plus a modest allowance for personal/miscellaneous expenses.The estimated cost of attendance is published on the BOCES website and can be reviewed by clicking here.

Refund Policy, Requirements for Withdrawal, and Return of Title IV, HEA Financial Aid
A student who wishes to withdraw from the PN program must contact the PN instructor or Program Coordinator to initiate the official withdrawal process. Students who withdraw from the PN program are subject to the Tuition Refund Policy and Return to Title IV Policy outlined in the Student Handbook. Whenever a student withdraws without completing the payment period, some or all of their financial aid awards may be returned to the Department of Education.

The law specifies how your school must determine the amount of Title IV program assistance that you earn if you withdraw from school. The Title IV programs that are covered by this law are Federal Pell Grants, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, TEACH Grants, Direct Loans, Direct PLUS Loans, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOGs), and Federal Perkins Loans.

Though your aid is posted to your account at the start of each period, you earn the funds as you complete the period. If you withdraw during your payment period or period of enrollment (your school can define these for you and tell you which one applies to you), the amount of Title IV program assistance that you have earned up to that point is determined by a specific formula. If you received (or your school or parent received on your behalf) less assistance than the amount that you earned, you may be able to receive those additional funds. If you received more assistance than you earned, the excess funds must be returned by the school and/or you.

The amount of assistance that you have earned is determined on a pro rata basis. For example, if you completed 30% of your payment period or period of enrollment, you earn 30% of the assistance you were originally scheduled to receive. Once you have completed more than 60% of the payment period or period of enrollment, you earn all the assistance that you were scheduled to receive for that period.

If you did not receive all of the funds that you earned, you may be due a post-withdrawal disbursement. If your post-withdrawal disbursement includes loan funds, your school must get your permission before it can disburse them. You may choose to decline some or all of the loan funds so that you don’t incur additional debt. Your school may automatically use all or a portion of your post-withdrawal disbursement of grant funds for tuition, fees, and room and board charges (as contracted with the school). The school needs your permission to use the post-withdrawal grant disbursement for all other school charges. If you do not give your permission (some schools ask for this when you enroll), you will be offered the funds. However, it may be in your best interest to allow the school to keep the funds to reduce your debt at the school.

There are some Title IV funds that you were scheduled to receive that cannot be disbursed to you once you withdraw because of other eligibility requirements. For example, if you are a first-time, first-year undergraduate student and you have not completed the first 30 days of your program before you withdraw, you will not receive any Direct Loan funds that you would have received had you remained enrolled past the 30th day.

If you receive (or your school or parent receive on your behalf) excess Title IV program funds that must be returned, your school must return a portion of the excess equal to the lesser of:

1. your institutional charges multiplied by the unearned percentage of your funds, or
2. the entire amount of excess funds.

The school must return this amount even if it doesn’t keep this amount of your Title IV program funds.

If your school is not required to return all of the excess funds, you must return the remaining amount.

For any loan funds that you must return, you (or your parent for a Direct PLUS Loan) repay in accordance with the terms of the promissory note. That is, you make scheduled payments to the holder of the loan over a period of time.

Any amount of unearned grant funds that you must return is called an overpayment. The maximum amount of a grant overpayment that you must repay is half of the grant funds you received or were scheduled to receive. You do not have to repay a grant overpayment if the original amount of the overpayment is $50 or less. You must make arrangements with  your school or the Department of Education to return the unearned grant funds.

The requirements for Title IV program funds when you withdraw are separate from any refund policy that your school may have. Therefore, you may still owe funds to the school to cover unpaid institutional charges.Your school may also charge you for any Title IV program funds that the school was required to return. If you don’t already know your school’s refund policy, you should ask your school for a copy.  Your school can also provide you with the requirements and procedures for officially withdrawing from school.

If you have questions about your Title IV program funds, you can call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FEDAID (1-800-433-3243). TTY users may call
1-800-730-8913.  Information is also available on Student Aid on the Web at https://studentaid.gov

Gainful Employment
The PN program at BOCES is considered a Gainful Employment program. 100% of 2020 graduates were employed following graduation.

Student Body Diversity
Student body diversity is reported to the National Center for Education Statistics as required by federal regulation.

• Go to the IPEDS College Navigator at http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
• In the "Name of School" box, type Orleans Niagara BOCES.
• Click on the school name when it appears.
• Click Enrollment

Textbook Information/Required Course Materials
Textbook information and required course materials are listed in the Student Handbook.

Vaccination Policies
Vaccination policies are listed in the Student Handbook.

Placement of Graduates
Graduation rates are listed in the Student Handbook and in the attached document at the bottom of this page.

Copyright Infringement Policies and Sanctions
Summary of Civil and Criminal Penalties for Violation of Federal Copyright Laws

Copyright infringement is the act of exercising, without permission or legal authority, one or more of the exclusive rights granted to the copyright owner under section 106 of the Copyright Act (Title 17 of the United States Code). These rights include the right to reproduce or distribute a copyrighted work. In the filesharing context, downloading or uploading substantial parts of a copyrighted work without authority constitutes an infringement.

Penalties for copyright infringement include civil and criminal penalties. In general, anyone found liable for civil copyright infringement may be ordered to pay either actual damages or “statutory” damages affixed at not less than $750 and not more than $30,000 per work infringed. For “willful” infringement, a court may award up to $150,000 per work infringed. A court can, in its discretion, also assess costs and attorneys’ fees. For details, see Title 17, United States Code, Sections 504, 505.

 Willful copyright infringement can also result in criminal penalties, including imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to $250,000 per offense. For more information, please see the website of the U.S. Copyright Office at (www.copyright.gov).