Report 2013-123 Recommendation 6 Responses
Report 2013-123: California Community College Accreditation: Colleges Are Treated Inconsistently and Opportunities Exist for Improvement in the Accreditation Process (Release Date: June 2014)
Recommendation #6 To: Community Colleges Chancellor's Office
To allow colleges flexibility in choosing an accreditor, the chancellor's office should remove language from its regulations naming the commission as the sole accreditor of California community colleges while maintaining the requirement that community colleges be accredited.
1-Year Agency Response
On January 20, 2015, the California Community Colleges Board of Governors approved changes to section 51016, of title 5, of the California Code of Regulations, removing the explicit reference to ACCJC. This change was intended to give the California Community College system greater flexibility in selecting an accreditor. The regulations require that an accreditor be recommended by the Chancellor and approved by the Board of Governors. Further, the regulations dictate that any accreditor must be recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education. The regulatory change was subsequently approved by the Department of Finance and is now in effect.
- Completion Date: June 2015
- Response Date: June 2015
California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented
6-Month Agency Response
On January 20, 2015, the California Community Colleges Board of Governors approved changes to section 51016, of title 5, of the California Code of Regulations, removing the explicit reference to ACCJC. This change was intended to give the California Community College system greater flexibility in selecting an accreditor. The regulations require that an accreditor be recommended by the Chancellor and approved by the Board of Governors. Further, the regulations dictate that any accreditor must be recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education. The regulatory change will take effect once approval is received by the Department of Finance.
- Completion Date: January 2015
- Response Date: January 2015
California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Partially Implemented
As noted above, the Board of Governors approved regulations that removed the explicit reference to the accrediting commission; however, those regulations are pending approval from the Department of Finance.
- Auditee did not address all aspects of the recommendation
60-Day Agency Response
The Chancellor's Office is in the process of conducting legal and policy analysis related to this recommendation. In addition, the Chancellor's Office will also seek input from the colleges about this proposal. Based on this research and input, the Chancellor's Office will determine an appropriate course of action.
- Estimated Completion Date: TBD
- Response Date: September 2014
California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending
All Recommendations in 2013-123
Agency responses received are posted verbatim.