Regional accreditation

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Regional accreditation map

Regional accreditation is the educational accreditation of schools, colleges, and universities in the United States by one of seven regional accrediting agencies. Accreditation is a voluntary process by which colleges demonstrate to each other, and sometimes to employers and licensing agencies, that their credits and degrees meet minimum standards. It is the self-regulation of the higher education industry.

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Each regional accreditor oversees the vast majority of public and private educational institutions, both not-for-profit and for-profit, in its region. Their primary function is accreditation of post-secondary institutions, though there is a limited amount of accreditation of primary and secondary schools. [1] [2] [3]

Regional accreditation is older than national accreditation and, with a few exceptions, more rigorous than national accreditation. [4] Additionally, most non-profit institutions are regionally accredited while most for-profit colleges and universities are nationally accredited. [4]

List of regional accreditors

The following are the seven active regional accrediting agencies for educational institutions in the United States: [5] [6]

The seven organizations form the Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC). [8] Each regional accrediting commission's executive directors and commission chairs sit on C-RAC and periodically promulgate principles and guidelines which are followed by the regional commissions. Although the principles do not replace individual commission regulations, they provide a basis for assessing accreditation practice between regions. [9]

All regional agencies have accrediting authority for colleges and universities, 2-year, 4-year, or both. Some agencies also have accrediting authority over K-12 schools (primary and secondaryschools). The Northwest and Mid-Atlantic regional accreditors divide responsibility between two separate accreditation agencies with one focusing on primary and secondary schools and the other focusing on postsecondary institutions. [10] [11] [12] In the Western region, there is a separate commission that accredits 2-year colleges.

History

The regional accrediting agencies were established in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in response to a perceived need for better articulation between secondary schools and higher education institutions (the school offered the courses the college needed applicants to have taken; this helped colleges and universities evaluate prospective students). [13] [14] The New England Association was formed in 1885 by a group of schoolmasters of secondary schools. The Middle States Association formed in 1887. [13] The faculty of Vanderbilt University led the establishment of the Southern Association in 1895, and the North Central Association was organized the same year at a meeting of 36 administrators of midwestern schools, colleges, and universities. [13] [14] The Northwest Association of Secondary and Higher Schools (predecessor of the two organizations that now serve that region) was formed in 1917 and the Western Association was founded in 1923. [13]

Initially the main focus of the organizations was on accreditation of secondary schools and establishment of uniform college entrance requirements. [13] [14] Regional accreditation replaced other methods, such as the Association of American Universities's "AAU Accepted List" (1914-1948). [15]

Accreditation first emerged as a regional rather than national activity because it typically involved site visits, and the fastest transportation available at the time was the railroad.[ citation needed ]

Regional accreditation vs. national accreditation

Regionally accredited institutions are usually academically oriented, state-owned or non-profit private institutions. [16] Nationally accredited schools are usually career-oriented and for profit. Both regional and national accreditations are recognized by the United States Department of Education (U.S.DoED) , the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

Every college in the United States has the right to set standards and to accept or refuse to accept transfer credits. [17] If a student has attended a school that is not regionally accredited, it may be difficult or impossible to have the credits, or even the degree earned, recognized by a regionally accredited college (or employer). [18] A 2005 study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that, in making decisions on credit transfer, about 84 percent of U.S. higher education institutions considered whether the sending institution is accredited, and many had policies stating that they would accept credits only from regionally accredited institutions. [19] About 63 percent of institutions told the GAO that they would accept credit from any regionally accredited institution, but only 14 percent similarly accepted credits from nationally accredited schools. [19] Regionally accredited institutions are reluctant to accept credits from nationally accredited institutions because of national accreditors' less stringent standards for faculty qualifications and library resources. [19] Students who anticipate transferring credits from a nationally accredited school to a regionally accredited one are advised to verify in advance that the credits will be accepted. [20] [18] [17]

In general, the names of U.S. post-secondary institutions and their degree titles do not indicate whether the institution is accredited or the type of accreditation it holds. Rules on this topic vary from state to state. For example, Tennessee Higher Education Commission regulations require that post-secondary institutions in the state of Tennessee must be regionally accredited to use the word "university" in their names, and that a school lacking regional accreditation may not use the word "college" in its name without adding a qualifier such as "career", "vocational", "business", "technical", "art", "Bible", or "Christian". Tennessee rules also specify that only regionally accredited schools can issue liberal arts degrees or degree titles such as Associate of Arts or Science and Bachelor of Arts or Science. [21]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association

The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association that performs peer evaluation and regional accreditation of public and private schools in the Mid-Atlantic United States and certain foreign institutions of American origin. The MSA has until at least 2013 comprised three separate commissions:

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools university accreditation organization in the U.S.A.

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is one of the six regional accreditation organizations recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and private educational institutions ranging from preschool to college level in the Southern United States. Its headquarters are in North Druid Hills, Georgia, near Decatur and in the Atlanta metropolitan area.

North Central Association of Colleges and Schools Educational accreditation

The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), also known as the North Central Association, was a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states engaged in educational accreditation. It was one of six regional accreditation bodies in the U.S. and its Higher Learning Commission was recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) as a regional accreditor for higher education institutions.

Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities university accreditation organization in the U.S.A.

The Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) is an independent, non-profit membership organization recognized by the United States Department of Education since 1952 as the regional authority on educational quality and institutional effectiveness of higher education institutions in the seven-state Northwest region of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. It fulfills its mission by establishing accreditation criteria and evaluation procedures by which institutions are reviewed. The commission is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

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Higher Learning Commission university accreditation organization in the U.S.A.

The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is a regional accreditor in the United States. It accredits post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. The headquarters of the organization is in Chicago, Illinois.

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) is a United States organization of degree-granting colleges and universities. It identifies its purpose as providing national advocacy for self-regulation of academic quality through accreditation in order to certify the quality of higher education accrediting organizations, including regional, faith-based, private, career, and programmatic accrediting organizations.

The Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), formerly known as the National Home Study Council and then as the Distance Education and Training Council, is a non-profit national educational accreditation agency in the United States specializing in the accreditation of distance education programs of study and institutions.

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National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE) identifies itself as an organization specializing in evaluation of people's educational credentials. Some United States educational authorities identify it as an unrecognized accreditation organization or accreditation mill. NAHE charges fees for a service described as an evaluation of the educational credentials of clients who have studied in other countries or attained degrees through alternative methods.

Proprietary colleges are for-profit colleges and universities. They are operated by their owners or investors, rather than a not-for-profit institution, religious organization, or government. Because they are not funded by tax money, their long-term sustainability is dependent on the value they provide relative to the perceived value of a degree from a higher educational institution overall. The increased reliance on federal student aid funds by these "for-profit" schools is of growing concern. Since federal student loans are typically guaranteed by the government, for-profit colleges can reap a profit from taxpayers even if students drop out after enrolling, do not complete a degree, or the degree turns out to be nearly worthless for future employment. Students can be stuck with large and unmanageable debt loads, defaulting at a significantly higher rate than students at traditional non-profit institutions. Non-profit institutions generally depend in part on academic excellence and creating graduates that succeed in their fields, while for-profit schools are often based on attracting large numbers of students with few requirements in terms of academic qualifications for entry because federal loans are provided for good and bad students alike. Some institutions in this category are regionally accredited, while many others are not. Sometimes a proprietary college may also overlap with the sector of non-degree granting business colleges.

Middle States Commission on Higher Education University accreditation organization in the U.S.A.

The Middle States Commission on Higher Education is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association that performs peer evaluation and accreditation of public and private universities and colleges in selected regions of the United States and foreign institutions of American origin. It is one of the seven regional accreditation organizations dating back 125 years and is recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

Higher education accreditation in the United States is a peer review process coordinated by accreditation commissions and member institutions. It was first undertaken in the late 19th century by cooperating educational institutions, on a regional basis.

Educational accreditation is a quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated and verified by an external body to determine if applicable and recognized standards are met. If standards are met, accredited status is granted by the appropriate agency.

Pre-tertiary-education accreditation is a type of quality assurance process used in the United States under which services and operations of pre-tertiary schools and educational institutions or programs are evaluated by an external body to determine if applicable standards are met.

The Northwest Accreditation Commission (NWAC), formerly named the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools, is a non-governmental organization that provides accreditation to educational institutions in the Northwestern United States. The Commission accredits K–12, elementary, middle, and high schools; those offering distance education; non-degree-granting postsecondary institutions; and special purpose, supplementary education, travel education, and trans-regional schools in seven states in the northwestern United States. Formerly an independent entity based in Boise, Idaho, it is now a division of AdvancED.

References

  1. ↑ Statement of Commitment by the Regional Accrediting Commissions for the Evaluation of Electronically Offered Degree and Certificate Programs, retrieved from University of Hawaii website, June 19, 2011. "The eight regional accrediting commissions assure the quality of the great majority of degree-granting institutions of higher learning in the United States." (Page i)
  2. ↑ Catherine Finnegan, Aligning Information Technology with Academic Standards Archived 2011-10-05 at the Wayback Machine , Educause Center for Applied Research Research Bulletin, volume 2006, Issue 10, May 9, 2006. "Regional acceditors include among their membership nearly all community colleges and public and private colleges universities in the region that they serve." (Page 2)
  3. ↑ Janice M. Karlen, Accreditation and Assessment in Distance Learning, Academic Leadership: The Online Journal, Volume 1, Issue 4, Fall 2003 (November 2003). "Most institutions rely upon one of the eight regional accreditation organizations for their accreditation status."
  4. 1 2 Lechuga, Vicente (2005). The Changing Landscape of the Academic Profession. New York: Routledge, p. 48.
  5. ↑ Regional Accrediting Organizations 2010-2011 Archived 2009-08-31 at the Wayback Machine , Council for Higher Education Accreditation, accessed June 19, 2011
  6. ↑ Regionally Accredited Colleges/Universities Archived 2010-08-31 at the Wayback Machine , State of Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, accessed June 19, 2011
  7. ↑ https://www.ncahlc.org/About-the-Commission/about-hlc.html
  8. ↑ http://www.berkeleycitycollege.edu/accred/Assessment%20Guide%20-%20C-RAC.pdf
  9. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 18, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on August 19, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 1, 2012. Retrieved December 11, 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions About the Middle States Association and the Middle States Commission on Higher Education". Middle States Commission on Higher Education. 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 Fred F. Harcleroad and Judith S. Eaton (2005), "The Hidden Hand: External Constituencies and their Impact," Chapter 9 in Philip G. Altbach, Robert Oliver Berdahl, and Patricia J. Gumport, editors, American higher education in the twenty-first century: social, political, and economic challenges. Page 263. JHU Press. ISBN   0-8018-8035-1, ISBN   978-0-8018-8035-3.
  14. 1 2 3 "The Higher Learning Commission". www.northcentralassociation.org.
  15. ↑ "The Association of American Universities: A Century of Service to Higher Education 1900-2000". Association of American Universities. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  16. ↑ Judith S. Eaton, Accreditation and Recognition in the United States Archived 2012-03-07 at the Wayback Machine , CHEA, 2008.
  17. 1 2 "Demanding Credit, [[Inside Higher Ed]], Oct. 19, 2005 by Scott Jaschik". Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved September 18, 2007.
  18. 1 2 "Tussling Over Transfer of Credit, [[Inside Higher Ed]], February 26, 2007 by Doug Lederman". Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved September 18, 2007.
  19. 1 2 3 Government Accountability Office, Transfer Students: Postsecondary Institutions Could Promote More Consistent Consideration of Coursework by Not Basing Determinations on Accreditation, GAO-06-22, October 2005.
  20. ↑ What is the Difference Between Regional and National Accreditation Archived January 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine , Yahoo! Education website
  21. ↑ Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury, Protecting Tennesseans from Education Fraud , March 2007. Page 7. [ dead link ]
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