Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools

The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) is a non-profit education corporation that was recognized until 2022 by the United States Department of Education as an independent and autonomous national accrediting body.^[2]

Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools

Formation	1912
Type	National accrediting body
Location	Washington, D.C.
President	Michelle Edwards^[1]
Website	www.acics.org

The accreditor's status worsened after a USA Today article in February 2020 revealed that ACICS had accredited a sham university called Reagan National University.^[3][4][5]

ACICS was established in 1912. At one time it accredited 245 institutions of higher education offering undergraduate and graduate diplomas and degrees in both traditional formats and through distance education.^[6] ACICS is incorporated in Virginia and operates from offices in Washington, D.C.^[7]

During the presidency of Barack Obama, concerns about the validity of its accreditation led the U.S. Department of Education to revoke the accreditor's recognition in 2016, making the students of schools without other accreditation ineligible for federal student aid.^[8] After a legal battle, President Donald Trump's administration undid that move.^[9] Through a lawsuit, Trump's Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, restored the institution's recognition (although the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) withdrew the organization's membership).^[10]

Immediately after President Biden's inauguration in January of 2021, an independent advisory board, the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, following a recommendation from the U.S. Department of Education staff,^[11] recommended 11–1 that the ACICS lose its recognition by the U.S. Department of Education as an authorized accrediting body.^[12][13] In June 2021, the department again revoked ACICS recognition as an accreditor.^[1] At the time of this revocation, ACICS was an accreditor for about 60 colleges.^[14]

Federal financial aid for higher education—Pell Grants and Stafford Loans are the largest programs—requires that the aid be used at an institution whose accreditation the U.S. Department of Education recognizes. Usually, schools that lose recognized accreditation, and consequently access to federal financial aid, subsequently close.

On August 19, 2022, the US Department of Education terminated the ACICS as a nationally recognized accrediting agency losing its oversight role for the federal funding aid for education.^[15][16] At the time of the United States Department of Education termination of ACICS recognition, there were 27 schools accredited by ACICS with enrollment of 5,000 students.^[2]

History

ACICS was established upon the request of Benjamin Franklin Williams, President of Capital City Commercial College of Des Moines, Iowa. Upon the meeting of 22 school administrators, who met in Chicago, Illinois, on December 12, 1912, the original alliance formed the basis of National Association of Accredited Commercial Schools (NAACS), which was later renamed ACICS.^[17]

Accreditation

The scope of ACICS' recognition by the Department of Education and CHEA was defined as accreditation of private post-secondary educational institutions, both for-profit and non-profit, offering nondegree programs or associate degrees, bachelor's degrees and master's degrees in programs "designed to train and educate persons for professional, technical, or occupational careers".^[18][19]

As an accreditor for many for-profit colleges, ACICS provided information during U.S. Congressional investigations of for-profit education in 2010. ACICS reported that the institutions it accredits are required to demonstrate a student retention rate of at least 75 percent.^[20] Retention rates are calculated within a single academic year.^[21]

In 2015, ACICS fell under significant scrutiny after the collapse of Corinthian Colleges, a for-profit institution that was accredited by ACICS until its sudden demise. A subcommittee of the United States Senate requested information from ACICS in November 2015.^[22] Five months later, twelve state attorneys general requested that the U.S. Department of Education withdraw recognition from ACICS as a federally-recognized accreditor.^[23][24] The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau petitioned a federal court to order ACICS to make available information about "its decision to approve several controversial for-profit college chains",^[25] and the president of the organization, Al Gray, resigned.^[24][26]

Scrutiny continued in 2016 and intensified after another large chain of for-profit institutions accredited by ACICS, ITT Technical Institute, came under fire by state and federal agencies; the chain closed in 2016 and filed for bankruptcy. U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a prominent critic of ACICS, released a report critical of the accreditor in June. Several days later, the U.S. Department of Education formally recommended that the accreditor's recognition be withdrawn.^[27][28]

In September 2016, the chief of staff to the U.S. education secretary wrote in a letter to ACICS: "I am terminating the department's recognition of ACICS as a national recognized accrediting agency. ... ACICS's track record does not inspire confidence that it can address all of the problems effectively."^[8] The company immediately announced that it would appeal the decision within the 30 days allowed for appeal, to Education Secretary John King Jr.^[8] ACICS unsuccessfully appealed the decision^[29][30] and subsequently sued the Department of Education.^[31] Although Secretary of Education King finalized the process of revoking the U.S. Department of Education's recognition of ACICS as an accreditor in December 2016,^[30] ACICS's lawsuit resulted in a judge ordering Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to review the decision in March 2018 as King did not take into account all of the evidence;^[32] DeVos subsequently restored the accreditor's recognition by the Department of Education.^[33]

Although the Department of Education continued to recognize the accreditor, many institutions left the organization while its status was in question. At the same time, many institutions formerly accredited by ACICS closed. This loss in membership, combined with the legal costs associated with the lawsuits and legal proceedings, placed the organization into financial difficulties including a $2.1 million deficit in 2019.^[33] Although the Department of Education restored its recognition of ACICS following its lawsuit, CHEA did not and ACICS withdrew its application to CHEA in early 2020.^[34] Following the inauguration of Joe Biden in 2021, the Department of Education again moved to withdraw recognition of ACICS with department staff recommending withdrawal in January and the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity recommending withdrawal in March. The department made its final decision to withdraw recognition in June. ACICS can appeal the decision to the Secretary of Education and plans to do so.^[1][35]

Whether ACICS deserves recognition as an accreditor was called into question by an investigation by USA Today published in February 2020 that found that ACICS had accredited a school, Reagan National University, was a sham. According to this report, Reagan National University had no campus, faculty, current students, or alumni.^[36][37][16]

Due to the decertification of ACICS, Stratford University announced that it would close following the end of the Fall 2022 term.^[38][39]

Council Meetings

Beginning in 2021, Council meetings to present actions are made in April and November and the Annual Meeting is held in June.

See also

• List of recognized accreditation associations of higher learning
• Higher education accreditation in the United States
• Colleges accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools

References

1. Douglas-Gabriel, Danielle (2 June 2021). "Education Dept. drops embattled for-profit college accreditor". The Washington Post. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
2. "U.S. Department of Education Terminates Federal Recognition of ACICS, Enhances Federal Aid Program Participation Requirements for ACICS-accredited Colleges". 19 August 2022.
3. Quintana, Chris. "Group that approved South Dakota college without students rebuked, may lose access to federal money". www.usatoday.com. USA Today. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
4. Danielle Douglas-Gabriel (22 January 2021). "Education Dept. staff recommends dropping embattled for-profit-college accreditor backed by DeVos". Washington Post. Retrieved 6 February 2023. The report makes note of the council's accreditation of Reagan National University, a school in South Dakota that a USA Today investigation last year revealed had no students, faculty or classrooms.
5. "Docket No 21-28-AC" (PDF). www2.ed.gov. Retrieved 6 February 2023. Based on the evidence in the record, I find NACIQI's 11-1 vote to recommend noncompliance based on the Capacity Report and 12-0 vote to recommend noncompliance based on the RNU Report to be well-founded, and I accept these recommendations in finding ACICS noncompliant with this criterion.
6. . U.S. Department of Education. Archived from the original on 13 April 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
7. . Archived from the original on 2015-03-19. Retrieved 2013-12-06.
8. "Education Department Strips Authority of Largest For-Profit Accreditor". U.S. News & World Report. September 22, 2016.
9. Quintana, Chris (June 21, 2019). "A worthless degree? Betsy DeVos wants to change rules for which colleges stay open, close". USA Today.
10. "ACICS no longer seeking recognition from key oversight group". EducationDive. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
11. "U.S. Department of Education Staff Report to the Senior Department Official on Recognition Compliance Issues". OMB 1840-0788. January 22, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
12. Douglas-Gabriel, Danielle (March 5, 2021). "Federal advisory board votes to drop controversial for-profit college accreditor". Washington Post.
13. Kelderman, Eric (March 10, 2021). "Colleges Are Fleeing a Troubled Accreditor. Can They Find a New One?". Chronicle of Higher Education.
14. Quintana, Chris (4 June 2021). "Feds cancel accreditor over apparent fake college". USA Today.
15. USDE ACICS Information Page
16. Danielle Douglas-Gabriel (19 August 2022). "Education Dept. ousts college accreditor from oversight role". Washington Post. Retrieved 6 February 2023. In a decision issued Friday, Deputy Education Secretary Cindy Marten sided with department staff and an independent advisory board that said the council was incapable of meeting federal standards, including having adequate staff and financial resources to operate. She said it was unlikely the oversight body, commonly known as ACICS, could rectify years of problems if given more time.
17. "ACICS - Events".
18. "Accreditation in the United States". U.S. Department of Education. 29 July 2021.
19. . Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Archived from the original on 2016-12-24. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
20. Helguero, Gerald (October 3, 2010). . International Business Times. Archived from the original on October 5, 2010.
21. "How Jewish College Uses Federal Funds To Grow". Forward. October 4, 2012.
22. Stratford, Michael (November 6, 2015). "Senate Inquiry Into Accreditation". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
23. Thomason, Andy (April 8, 2016). "13 State Attorneys General Say Accreditor's Recognition Should Be Revoked". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
24. "Attorneys General Come Down on Accreditor of For-profit Colleges". ProPublica. April 11, 2016.
25. Fain, Paul (October 15, 2015). "Federal Watchdog Eyes Accreditor". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
26. Stratford, Michael (April 18, 2016). "Sudden Departure at For-Profit Accreditor". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
27. Fain, Paul (June 15, 2016). "U.S. Recommends Shutting For-Profit Accreditor". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
28. U.S. Department of Education (June 2016). "U.S. Department of Education Staff Report to the Senior Department Official on Recognition Compliance Issues". Retrieved June 15, 2016.
29. "ACICS Status Update". Retrieved October 25, 2016.
30. "Education Department Establishes Enhanced Federal Aid Participation Requirements for ACICS-accredited Colleges" (Press release). United States Department of Education. December 12, 2016. from the original on December 26, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
31. "Department of Education Appeal Decision". Retrieved 14 December 2016.
32. Harris, Adam (March 25, 2018). "Federal Judge Hands a Victory to Embattled Accreditor". Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
33. Kreighbaum, Andrew (June 6, 2019). "Embattled Accreditor Projects Losses After Closure of Member Colleges". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
34. Fain, Paul (January 20, 2020). "For-Profit Accreditor Drops Recognition Bid". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
35. Gravely, Alexis (June 3, 2021). "Education Department Ends Recognition of ACICS". Retrieved June 3, 2021.
36. Quintana, Chris; Conlon, Shelly (February 15, 2020). "This college was accredited by a DeVos-sanctioned group. We couldn't find evidence of students or faculty". USA Today. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
37. Chris Quintana (28 October 2020). "'A big concern': After we couldn't find students or faculty at college, agency scrambled to crack down". USA TODAY. Retrieved 6 February 2023. But new emails and documents obtained by USA TODAY show the depth of ACICS' struggle to do so with Reagan National. The stumbles call into question the accreditor's ability to protect students and safeguard taxpayer money and have prompted federal investigations that could once again bring the DeVos-approved group to the verge of being shut down.
38. "Va.-based Stratford University to close down". WTOP News. 2022-09-26. Retrieved 2022-09-26.
39. Nathaniel Cline (29 September 2022). "Accreditor's loss of federal recognition puts three Virginia schools at risk - Virginia Mercury". Virginia Mercury. Retrieved 6 February 2023.

External links

• Official website