Christian Leaders Institute…

[allvia]

Does this mean that once they become NA they should be able to offer degrees in all states?  As they certainly cannot at this time "The following states will not allow us to accept their residents into the College/Degree programs at this time due to their requirements: District of Columbia, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Utah, Kentucky, North Dakota, Nevada, Virginia, Connecticut, or Oregon. Students may continue to pursue certificates, diplomas, or ordination/licensing through the Institute and Alliance programs." https://study.christianleaders.org/mod/p...p?id=92482

[bjcheung77]

Even with NA, they need to get approval from any state they want to operate in, RA institutions do the same thing for their programs to be approved in states they want approval from... Some institutions also work with NC-SARA for transfer credits... Link: https://www.nc-sara.org/about-nc-sara

[Charles Fout]

Has anyone done the classes through Christian Leaders Institute?  I just heard about this place.  I’d love to know if this is considered RA and if anyone transferred credits… or completed a program from here.  Just seems a little different.  Definitely interesting for anyone looking for a Christian program.   Lots of free classes available.   You pay a small fee if you want a degree program.

https://www.christianleaderscollege.org/degree-program/

This entity does not appear to have any aspirations towards Regional 
Accreditation. it's not apparent whether or not they are sincere about gaining national accreditation. 

I wonder why anyone would consider this institution. Time is one's most valuable asset. There are many low-cost accredited institutions which offer similar programs.

[midnite123]

Are there many inexpensive Bible and religious colleges,
that have at least national Accreditation?

[rachel83az]

NationsU is cheaper. But you have to find your own proctor.

[Pats20]

Are there many inexpensive Bible and religious colleges,
that have at least national Accreditation?

University of the Cumberlands and Eastern University are two RA colleges that are reasonably priced.

[bjcheung77]

RA is great, with the USDOE now putting less emphasis on the differences between RA/NA, having an NA degree isn't all that bad now. People should make sure your degree is at least accredited by NA, but preference still is RA if at all possible unless it's Faith Based or in a field that doesn't have comparable RA offerings... For a list of Faith Based accreditors, review link in post #9.

[Travis_CVUgrad]

CLI will remain free and unaccredited. Christian Leaders College is an applicant with ABHE, which is a religious accreditor recognized by the Department of Education. They're keeping the two separate so that CLI can remain free and open access. You can transfer CLI credits to CLC or an accredited seminary that has an agreement with CLI.

 

A third visit for accreditation is this week! Link: https://www.christianleadersinstitute.or...on-status/

So, if ABHE is a religious accreditor recognized by the Department of Education, wouldn't that make the school NA (vs RA) once complete? Or am I misunderstanding something? I have a much clearer understanding on what constitutes a school being RA vs NA.

Yes, kinda.

As of 2020, Regional Accreditation doesn't really exist (although some institutions may still refer to themselves as Regionally Accredited). The DOE removed recognition of Regional Accreditation in 2019. That is why some of the previous Regional Accreditors have changed their names and/or restructured. There are essentially two types of accreditation now: Institutional and Programmatic. 

That is why the regional and national accrediting organizations now refer to themselves as "Institutional Accreditors". The government does not acknowledge a difference between Regional Accreditation versus National Accreditation. Technically, they are all NA now, as long as they are recognized by the DOE and CHEA.

Christian Leaders College is currently in applicant status with ABHE which is both an Institutional and Programmatic Accreditor. The total process for accreditation can take between 5-10 years. After applicant status, they will be reviewed (in a few months) for Candidate status, which essentially verifies that they are prepared for accreditation, and then will be required to maintain the quality of their programming and administration for a period of time before being granted initial accreditation. This is a process that all schools must go through in order to qualify for accreditation. 

I did choose to take a large series of undergrad general education credits from CLC because they are basically free and transferrable into a number of CHEA/DOE recognized Institutionally accredited schools. Some of the schools will accept you directly into their graduate programs upon completion of a bachelors degree from CLC. I transferred my credits into an institutionally accredited school and completed my B.S. there.

CLC courses are not "easy", but one thing I will say is that the process can be different than some other schools. There typically aren't scheduled live class sessions like other distance schools have. Instead, you watch pre-recorded lecture sessions, participate in discussion posts, read the course material and complete the exams. A staff member is assigned to each course who will answer questions, provide counsel, etc.

One thing I did note about them is that the staff across the board are very friendly and respond very quickly to emails. They do request feedback on courses upon completion and take it seriously if you express concerns about the quality of a course or the course content. They do seem very intent on achieving accreditation status with ABHE.

A note about ABHE: they are not an "easy" accreditor, meaning they don't just grant religious schools a badge. They have been known to deny several schools accreditation for failure to comply with standards over a long period. While this may be more daunting for the institution, it is good news for future students who want to know that their school's accreditation is legitimate. Another thing to note is that ABHE is a bit more religiously conservative and fundamentalist than its counterpart ATS (The Association of Theological Schools). Each accreditation tends to appeal to certain denominations if you're looking for a religiously accredited school for some form of ordination or ministry licensing. ATS accreditation is more common amongst more liberal denominations, but also highly respected as a religious accreditor in pretty much all academic theology circles. ABHE is more widely known in evangelical circles.