CCU Issues in Texas??

[barcotta]

Despite the fact that I have no connection with DETC or CCU, I find ignorance of this magnitude enraging. You could write pages on the lunacy of that article and the concept in general, but I chose to focus my rage into sarcasm and submitted the following as a response to the article. I'll send it to the writer as well.

I find this article alarming—as it seems wholly inadequate that the information contained herein is available primarily for residents of the state of Texas and possibly only they are taking a stand against fraudulent institutions and their even more fraudulent accreditors. This problem has the potential to destroy the credibility of the United States government and our entire education system. I understand the following from this article:

“Although California Coast University asserts accreditation by Distance Education and Training Council…that organization is not...recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board…”

“California Coast University is one on a list of about 400 institutions…that have not been approved and whose degrees cannot be used in Texas. In fact, degrees from those institutions are described as “fraudulent” or “substandard.”

“Under the Texas Penal Code, the use of a “fraudulent” or “substandard” degree is a Class B misdemeanor.”

There’s much work to be done here, but I’ll start with what appears to be most important. First, someone from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (“THECB”) should immediately contact the U.S. Department of Education and alert them to the fact that they have been identifying the DETC Accrediting Commission as a “nationally recognized accrediting agency under Public Law” since 1955. I don’t think I have to explain any further the damage this could cause to the credibility of the U.S. Department of Education should their endorsement of DETC--accreditor to learning institutions that issue fraudulent and substandard degrees--become common knowledge. I have the same grave concerns with regard to the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (“CHEA”). If this becomes common knowledge, their credibility will be shot as well, as they also recognize the DETC.

Next stop should be all branches of the US military, who have unwittingly been duped by the DETC and are, even as I type, offering programs accredited by the DETC.

Finally, the last in this first pass of notifications should go to Governor Perry. You can imagine my shock (and I’m sure his when he finds out) when I discovered that Western Governors University (“WGU”) includes DETC in its list of accreditors. For those who don’t know, here’s a short description of WGU from their web site:

"Truly a university without boundaries, Western Governors University is a non-profit university founded and supported by 19 state governors to serve the needs of today's citizens. At no other time in the history of higher education have the governors of several states joined together to create a university. In addition, WGU is supported by over 20 leading U.S. corporations and foundations."

Their description of their regional and national accreditation, in part, is as follows:

"Why is WGU's regional accreditation important?
Regional accreditation means that WGU's competency-based programs meet the same educational standards for performance, integrity, and quality as those found at other more traditional universities, from large state schools to Ivy League universities. A team of evaluators representing four associations made on-site visits to WGU over a period of two years to review WGU's operations. Based on the reviews and the visiting team's report to the accrediting commissions, WGU was granted regional accreditation. We went through a similar process for our national accreditation by the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC)."

Imagine going through all that for a fraudulent national accrediting agency! I’m sure they thought the addition of national accreditation would be helpful. Little did they know that they invited fraud and deceit to their doorstep!

What does this have to do with Governor Perry? Well, I found the following at the WGU website:

"Governance of WGU
WGU is governed by a Board of Trustees consisting of educators, industry leaders and state governors. In addition, WGU continues to draw support…from the Governors of the Member States that were instrumental in the founding of WGU."

To my horror, included in the list of member states—you guessed it—Texas.