P.R. Laws tit. 18, § 852a
The terms that are listed and defined hereinafter (and their [derivatives]) shall have the meaning indicated, unless a different meaning clearly arises from the context. The words, terms, phrases and other expressions used in this chapter and which are not defined in this section, shall have the usual meaning given to them in the academic community except when a different meaning clearly arises from the context.
(1) Council. — Shall mean the Council on Higher Education.
(2) Higher education institution. — Means a public or private educational institution, which has as a requirement for admission, a high school certificate or diploma, or its equivalent, and whose academic offerings lead to, at least, an associate degree.
(3) License of authorization. — Means the authorization issued by the Council on Higher Education to an institution to begin operations in Puerto Rico as a higher education institution, with the academic offerings and in the place or places indicated in the license, or the certification of the Council which complements it.
(4) Renewal license. — Means the authorization to continue operating higher education institutions in Puerto Rico as provided in the license of authorization.
(5) Accreditation. — Means the official recognition granted by an accrediting entity duly recognized by the Department of Education of the United States and the Council, or by the Council itself, recognizing an institution or any of its programs specifically, for operating on levels of performance, quality and integrity identified by the academic community as superior to the minimum required to hold the license.
(6) Substantial change. — Means any action of an institution which constitutes a modification or alteration to its structure, academic offerings, or the manner or scope of its operations that are not authorized, contemplated or foreseen in the license which allows it to operate as a higher education institution.
History —June 16, 1993, No. 17, § 3.