Accreditation
Accreditation is the most commonly accepted means to verify that a college or university has a purpose appropriate to higher education as well as the qualified faculty, academic programs, student and academic services, and resources sufficient to accomplish and sustain its educational mission. St. Andrews currently operates with five different accreditations. St. Andrews holds dual accreditation as an institution of higher education – regionally from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), and nationally from the American Academy for Liberal Education (AALE). Each of these agencies is authorized in the same fashion by the U. S. Department of Education to confer accreditation and thereby provide student access to Title IV financial aid funds. St. Andrews Presbyterian College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, (1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097, telephone 404-679-4500) to award baccalaureate degrees. The Commission on Colleges is the regional body for the accreditation of degree-granting higher education institutions in the Southern states. St. Andrews has been engaged in a dispute with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) for the past three years, centering on the College’s business plan. However, the College and SACS have agreed, and the court has approved, that the College’s SACS accreditation will continue to remain in place and uninterrupted through May 2011. In addition, the educational program offered by St. Andrews Presbyterian College is accredited by the American Academy for Liberal Education (AALE), which accredits outstanding liberal arts institutions and programs. This accreditation is programmatic in nature and certifies that the general education/liberal arts program meets the Academy’s Education Standards. The Academy is located at 526 King Street, Suite 203, Alexandria, VA 22314. The Academy’s telephone number is (703) 299-9030. In addition to these institution-level accreditations, the Elementary Education program at St. Andrews is accredited by both the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). And the Therapeutic riding program has been granted Premier Accredited Center status by NARHA (the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association). St. Andrews and many of its faculty and staff are also members of nearly 100 professional organizations related to higher education and/or their disciplines and interests: |
