Good news for those possessing a CCU degree prior to the schools accreditation in 2005. See below snippet from a letter I have obtained: This lawsuit asked the Court to find certain statutes in Texas unconstitutional to the extent that these statutes made it illegal to use a CCU degree in Texas. I am pleased to report that the federal lawsuit is now successfully concluded. The Court determined that CCU’s degrees are indeed legal to use in Texas. It appears that the Court figured out a way to rule in favor of CCU graduates and students without striking down the Texas statutes as unconstitutional. Among other things, the Court’s Order states: “In light of the language of the statute and all other competent evidence presented to the Court, there appears to be no basis to believe doctoral degrees or degrees issued before 2005 may still be considered ‘fraudulent or substandard’ under the [new Texas statutes] . . . .” “. . . all other competent evidence points to the conclusion all CCU degrees are perfectly valid in Texas.” “The State of Texas as an intervenor in this lawsuit has represented unequivocally that all CCU degrees, including doctoral degrees, are legal to use in Texas under the [new Texas statutes] . . . .” Abner
It's hard to imagine why pre-DETC Cal Coast degrees should receive any special legal immunities that degrees from other non-accredited schools aren't eligible to receive. So assuming that this report is accurate, it could probably be generalized into a significant challenge to degree-use laws nationwide.
And why should the states care which degrees are good enough for use? Shouldn't it be the employer's decision which degrees are good enough to hire based upon and the student's decision which degrees are good enough to get in the first place?
Precisely. I just don't see what is so hard to understand about what you just said. This is the stance of most other States as well. Abner
For those who may wish to learn more, it is State of Texas (Shepard, et al) vs. California Coast University (Hebert, et al) Sam Sparks, presiding, US District Court, Austin, TX Case 1:08-CV-000-24-SS Cause: 42:1983 Civil Rights Act Filed Jan. 8, 2008 Closed Dec. 2, 2008
Yes. However, the state may have a legitimate interest in ensuring that students and employers make informed decisions. States are on firmer ground when they require "unaccredited degree notification", as opposed to restricting "unaccredited degree use". So degree notification laws like those in Hawaii (which oblige unaccredited schools to fully disclose the lack of accreditation to potential students) or Oregon (which oblige holders of unaccredited degrees to fully disclose the lack of accreditation to potential employers) are not likely to be affected by the Texas decision. If a student decides to enroll in an unaccredited school in Hawaii, or if an employer decides to hire someone with an unaccredited degree in Oregon, these states won't object. The final decision is entirely in the hands of the student or employer. The state laws only serve the purpose of ensuring that the decision is informed, at least with regards to accreditation status. We may or may not agree with the need for "degree notification" laws. However, they are likely to withstand legal challenge (in fact, the Oregon law was specifically crafted in response to a lawsuit from Kennedy-Western), because they don't oblige unaccredited schools or degree holders to do anything other then tell the truth.
