ORLANDO, Fla. – The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has re-accredited Tennessee State University and Fisk University. However, Fisk was placed on probation for one year.
The vote came Tuesday in Orlando, Florida. If the universities had lost accreditation, they may have lost access to federal student loans and grants.
In December 2010, the SACS Commission placed TSU on warning status pending the Commission's satisfaction with the University's progress on institutional effectiveness initiatives.
Fisk was also placed on warning status last year due to its financial issues.
Last week, a senior leadership team from Fisk made a presentation that addressed the cash-strapped university's financial stability.
The school is hoping to generate millions of dollars from a 101-piece art collection donated by the late painter Georgia O'Keeffe.
A state appeals court ruling last week threw out a judge's requirement for Fisk to reserve two-thirds of the proceeds to ensure future upkeep of the collection amid the university's shaky financial circumstances.
Accreditation for an institution of higher learning indicates a mission appropriate to higher education and a sufficient infrastructure of academic, operational, financial, governance systems, and policies.
The reaffirmation process occurs every 10 years and involves an in-depth internal evaluation and report of all of the institutions' programs and operations. Reaffirmation is not only important to the university with regard to its ability to offer federal financial aid, but it is also an indicator that university programs meet or exceed national standards.
