SAN FRANCISCO—The five year-long process of determining the City College of San Francisco’s accreditation status ended on Friday, January 13.
The announcement was made by the interim chancellor, Susan Lamb through an email that was posted on the school’s website.
The cause of the initial alarm was from back in 2012. The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) had assessed the school and reported a “show cause,” which put the school in the position to defend itself based off of financial matters within the school. There were issues regarding budget and spending, financial planning, and their overall money management.
Politicians in California and the U.S. Department of Education instigated lawsuits against ACCJC providing the school time to sort out internal matters.
Those critical of the ACCJC expressed how even though the job of the Commission was to point out areas that were inadequate and treat the policies sternly, the idea of discrediting an institution the following year was a heavily opposed idea by the community and those in the educational system. Those against the decision fought for CCSF to be allotted a reasonable amount of time for a reassessment.
According to the San Francisco Examiner, the college lost a third of its student head count when ACCJC announced in 2013 that CCSF would no longer be an accredited institution the following year. The schools population was 90,000 and considered to be one of the largest community colleges in the country, but has since declined to less than 30,000. Last year, the U.S. Department of Education allowed the accreditor and school one year to get back on track.
“San Francisco has a tremendous asset in City College, which provides quality teaching and learning for students who want to improve their lives and their community … My office looks forward to working with Chancellor Susan Lamb and the Board of Trustees to ensure that the college continues on a path to structural improvements and financial sustainability,” stated Eloy Ortiz Oakley, the new chancellor of California Community Colleges.
