Complaints about the Delivery of Distance Education
Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act includes regulations regarding the delivery of distance education to out-of-state residents. The United States Department of Education (USDOE) requires that institutions comply with any applicable state approval or licensure requirements in each state to which distance education instruction is delivered.
Students may reference the NC-SARA website to verify that Heritage Bible College is authorized to offer distance learning courses in their state. Registration of students from states not included in NC-SARA may require additional time and information so please allow additional time for this process.
Students have the right to file a complaint against an institution when regulations regarding the delivery of distance education are not followed or regarding the loss of tuition and fees as a result of unfair business practices. Institutions must provide both current and prospective students with contact information for filing complaints with its accrediting body and the appropriate state agency for handling complaints in a student’s resident state.
Students residing outside of the State of North Carolina while taking online courses from Heritage Bible College who desire to resolve an academic grievance or complaint should first follow Heritage Bible College’s Student Complaint Process (see "HBC Complaint Process"), or contact:
Mr. Stephen Rzonca, President
Heritage Bible College
P.O. Box 1628
Dunn, NC 28335
910-892-3178, ext. 228
[email protected]
Records of students complaints, appeals, and proceedings are kept in a secure file in the college president's office.
If a complaint cannot be resolved through the institution's complaint process, students may file a complaint with The North Carolina Post-Secondary Education Complaints unit. Please review the NC Post-Secondary Education Complaint Policy (PDF), print and complete the NC Post-Secondary Education Complaint Form (PDF) and submit the complaint to:
North Carolina Post-Secondary Education Complaints
c/o Student Complaints
University of North Carolina System Office
223 S. West Street, Suite 1800; Raleigh NC 27603
Phone: (919) 962-4550
If for some reason the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved, the next step would be to file a complaint with Heritage Bible College’s accrediting agency.
Transnational Association of Christian Schools and Colleges (TRACS)
15935 Forest Road
Forest, VA 24551
(434) 525-9539
[email protected]
TRACS - Complaints Against Member Institutions Procedures
TRACS - Complaint Information Sheet
TRACS - Complaint Processing Form
Students may access a TRACS Student Complaint Form at the TRACS website: https://tracs.org/resources/
Students may also file a complaint through SARA-NC.
SARA-NC is the portal for the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority. Students should follow the SARA-NC Complaint Process and use the SARA-NC Complaint Form (PDF). SARA-NC contact Information: email to [email protected] or
SARA North Carolina
North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority
P.O. Box 41349
Raleigh, NC 27629
T: (855) SARA-1-NC (727-2162)
T: (919) 549-8614, ext. 4667
Website: www5.ncseaa.edu/SARANC/
As a last resort students may contact the appropriate authority in the student's state of residence. Links to appropriate state entities can be found at the following link: State Portal Entity Contacts
Professional Licensure
HBC does not offer any programs, online or campus, that lead to professional licensure at this time. Important: In most cases, these complaint procedures require the student to exhaust all complaint avenues internal to the institution before a complaint can be filed at the state or accrediting agency level. HBC students are advised to first attempt to resolve complaints with HBC administration.
