The United Negro College Fund released a white paper Thursday that details grievances of historically black colleges with their primary regional accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on the States.
The paper argues that there is too much uncertainty in the SACS peer-review process, that the process lacks transparency, that the accreditor has failed to evaluate its own standards and that its standards do not reflect the diversity or mission of colleges.
The paper is the latest criticism offered of the accreditor by HBCUs since a war of words in March. UNCF president Michael Lomax called in a speech for Congress to scrutinize the practices of regional accreditors and complained about discrimination against historically black colleges. In a letter responding to the speech, SACS president Belle Wheelan dismissed the allegations and said the vast majority of HBCUs maintained compliance with the accreditor’s standards.
