Trident's accreditation is in jeopardy

Discussion in 'Accreditation Discussions (RA, DETC, state approva' started by SteveFoerster, Jul 15, 2011.

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  1. nn1974

    nn1974 New Member

    This has thrown a curve ball at me. I'm hoping someone around here can help me out with a few questions. I've reviewed the thread but still have some questions. I currently hold a bachelors from TUI and have completed a couple of course as prereq's for a master's degree at a brick and mortar facility. I'm confused what this issue means.

    1. If TUI loses it's accredidation how much is that going to harm my package to a master's program at a brick and mortar school (physician assistant program)?

    2. What happens to the prereq's I took that were not part of my bachelors degree? Are they still valid?

    3. If I used credit banking would actually accomplish anything other than paying someone else $$$?

    4. What does show cause mean?

    Thanks for the help?
     
  2. USGRAD

    USGRAD Member

  3. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Thank goodness we have a brand new anonymous poster to show us the error of our ways.

    -=Steve=-
     
  4. _T_

    _T_ New Member

    Where did you find a hotline number?
     
  5. Shal916

    Shal916 New Member

    From Trident Facebook page:

    "Trident University International We will be reaching out to every student to inform them of their individual situations and make sure that all questions are answered. Meanwhile, we’ve set up a hotline for general questions. Please call us between the hours of 6 am and 6 pm pst at 877-293-5970 if you have any questions. We are working closely with our accreditor and committing the resources necessary to meet or exceed their criteria and put this situation behind us"
     
  6. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

    1. If TUI loses it's accreditation, it should not harm your masters package. Your masters school would check on WASC's database, and TUI's valid accreditation dates would be listed.

    2. Probably, since TUI is still accredited.

    3. No - you have a degree from an accredited university

    4. Show cause is the most severe sanction short of losing accreditation. To 'show cause' means you have to show evidence as to why the accreditation should be maintained.
     
  7. Petedude

    Petedude New Member

    More to the point, a "show cause" action is much like a "fix-it" ticket for traffic stops-- you have to show you've corrected the stated issues to avoid the penalty in question. WASC is telling Trident "Show us (by x date) why we shouldn't yank your accreditation."

    For a while, Trident was on my short list to pursue a Master's from. Hopefully, I'll be ready to start some Master's program by the end of November. Unless they get their act cleaned up with WASC by then, they'll have lost me as a potential student.
     
  8. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    USGRAD: "Touro College (now expanded to Touro College and University System) is a major, well-respected institution..."

    John: Yeah, pretty much, once you get past the "dollars for degrees" episode of a few years ago: Fake Degrees alleged in NY
     
  9. USGRAD

    USGRAD Member

    There are all kinds of people, John. What matters is how the problem is handled once discovered/detected.

    See the following:

    West Virginia U. Provost Resigns Over Transcript Scandal Involving Governor's Daughter
    West Virginia U. Provost Resigns Over Transcript Scandal Involving Governor's Daughter - Government - The Chronicle of Higher Education

    Ugandan University Finds Fraudulent Degrees
    10/12/2007, By WACHIRA KIGOTHO
    Makerere University, in Uganda, one of the most prestigious universities in Africa, will revoke more than 200 degrees awarded in the past four years after an internal investigation discovered that ...

    West Virginia U. Roiled Over Alleged Transcript Rewrite for Governor's Daughter
    01/03/2008, By PAUL FAIN
    Michael S. Garrison was controversial at West Virginia University even before his arrival in September as president. Now he is linked to a developing scandal that raises questions about the ties b...

    Edward Waters College Loses Accreditation Following Plagiarism Scandal
    12/09/2004, By BURTON BOLLAG
    Edward Waters College had its accreditation revoked this week, two months after an investigation by a local newspaper, in Jacksonville, Fla., revealed that the institution had plagiarized large pa...
    Former Track Coach Is Convicted in Athletics Scandal at Kansas Community College
    07/13/2006, By XIAO-BO YUAN

    A federal jury in Kansas found Lance Brauman, a former men's and women's track-and-field coach at Barton County Community College, guilty on Wednesday of participating in a scheme to illegally pay...


    Canada's Simon Fraser U. Suspends 44 Students in Plagiarism Scandal
    10/24/2002, By KAREN BIRCHARD
    One of Canada's top-ranked universities has suspended 44 students who were found guilty of academic dishonesty for participating in a plagiarism scheme run by an outside tutor. After nearly a year...

    Investigation Uncovers Admissions Scandal at Prestigious University in Uganda
    10/01/2007, By WACHIRA KIGOTHO
    Nairobi, Kenya Makerere University, in Uganda, one of the most prestigious universities in Africa, may revoke more than 200 degrees awarded in the past four years after an internal investigation d...

    Former Coach at 2-Year College Admits to Embezzling Student-Aid Money and Falsifying Transcript
    12/14/2005, By BRAD WOLVERTON
    A former basketball coach at Barton County Community College, in Kansas, admitted on Monday to falsifying the transcript of a former player and stealing $89,614 in Pell Grants and other student-ai...

    Scandal at Oral Roberts U. Prompts President to Step Down
    10/17/2007
    Scandal at Oral Roberts U. prompts president to step down

    Minnesota Charges 17 Former Basketball Players With Academic Misconduct in Cheating Scandal
    10/20/2000, By ERIK LORDS
    The University of Minnesota-Twin Cities has charged 17 former basketball players with academic misconduct in connection with a cheating scandal that over the past two years has tarred its reputati...


    17 University of Toronto Law Students Are Suspended for Faking Test Scores
    05/11/2001, By JANICE PASKEY
    Toronto The University of Toronto's law college announced on Thursday that it is imposing one-year suspensions on 17 first-year law students who inflated their grades on applications for summer jo...

    What Would Jesus Do at Baylor?
    10/03/2003, By ALAN WOLFE
    Baylor University is not the only institution of higher education that has found itself embarrassed by transgressions in its athletics program. True, its lapses have been more serious than altering...

    Gardner-Webb U. President Resigns in Controversy Over Change in Athlete's GPA
    10/14/2002, By WELCH SUGGS
    After six weeks of controversy, Gardner-Webb University's president announced his resignation on Friday. M. Christopher White, who had led the Boiling Springs, N.C., university since 1986, had bee...
     
  10. _T_

    _T_ New Member

    Well, for what it's worth I spoke with Trident today to understand what actions they were taking to help mitigate some of the risk that their students are experiencing due to their actions. As it currently stands, all undergraduate students will be able to utilize their “teach-out” option if accreditation is lost. This guarantees those students that other selected regionally accredited schools will accept all of their earned credits and that those classes will not have to be taken over. As for any graduate students, they are still working on that. When I explained that was nice to hear but that I was only concerned with their planned actions for Ph.D. students such as myself who have completed all of the coursework, passed their comps, and are now in the dissertation phase, I was told that they would have to get back to me on their planned actions. Not very reassuring... Anyone have any ideas on what I can do here?
     
  11. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    I started to look into options like this when I was in the final stages of NCU and I was pissed and thought I was getting kicked out of the program (after the diss was approved by the chair). The only things I found were dissertation only programs. What are the chances of accelerating the progress and finishing before March 2012?
     
  12. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    USGRAD: There are all kinds of people, John. What matters is how the problem is handled once discovered/detected.

    John: Good point, Interesting list. Thanks. My sense has been (without doing the research) that most accreditation loss is for financial, not ethical reasons.
     
  13. StefanM

    StefanM New Member

    Work like a madman to finish before March.
     
  14. USGRAD

    USGRAD Member

    From my communication and sources, it seems as though Trident University is more focused on preparing for closure of the University than implementing changes to meet the WASC requirements for continuing accreditation. Indeed, the Order to “show Cause” is harsh and serious, and historically not many institutions have been able to recover from such a blow. Just note what has happened to Atlantic Union College (the oldest Seventh Day Adventist Institution in the USA). Also, Mountain State University is in the same position as Trident. And on a positive note, Chancellor University recently managed to survive such an Order.

    I am now more inclined to believe that there will be an extensive teach-out agreement in place for all degree programs (including Doctoral), in accordance with Federal regulations (applicable to closed schools) that must be administered by WASC.

    Indeed, PhD students may not be able to transfer to other comparable institutions, however a “closing” institution can request an extension of its accreditation (beyond the publicly announced closing date) to facilitate such students to complete their degrees without undue hardship. In such a case (and once the institution still has degree-granting authority from the State for that specific purpose) the degrees will be awarded by the closing/closed institution.

    A strict timeline (according to the catalog) will be imposed on students.

    REST ASSURED that you will all end up with a regionally accredited degree, and transcripts may be maintained by the State Education Department and institutions where degrees were completed (as per teach-out agreement). Again, this situation may prove a “blessing in disguise".
     
  15. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

    Hate to say this, but your options are not good either way, but the lesser of 2 evils is to finish FAST. The PhD work will likely not transfer.
     
  16. StevenKing

    StevenKing Active Member

    Just stumbling upon this thread. *sigh* At least my MBA was paid for by the U.S. Army.
    -Steve King, MBA, MEd
    Now pursuing post-bac cert at Regis University to write the RHIA exam.
     
  17. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    What happened?
     
  18. Stu_Dent

    Stu_Dent New Member

    Have joined this forum specifically cos like many on here I'm worried about TUI's (and my) future. Lots of posts here rise a lot of issues for me, but sometimes I get frustrated cos people don't back up their claims with any evidence. Like one guy (USGRAD) says: "From my communication and sources, it seems as though Trident University is more focused on preparing for closure of the University than implementing changes to meet the WASC requirements for continuing accreditation" then he continues about something else, as though that was a throw away statement. The university CLOSING?? - that's pretty darned important to me, so what's the evidence for it?

    People can say anything they like on the net but if they're going to be given any credibility they either have to have a reputation or, better still, evidence that goes beyond, "someone told me that...", cos even if someone did tell you something, it could be garbage.
     
  19. USGRAD

    USGRAD Member

    The worst case scenario for TUI could prove a blessing in disguise for its students (especially Bachelor’s and Master’s), as you could end up with a degree from an established private or public university at NO additional cost to you (through a teach-out agreement mandated by Federal regulations). And as I said before, TUI’s greatest strength is the fact that its student population is predominantly military, so that will be factored in heavily by WASC, in favor of continuing accreditation for TUI.
     
  20. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Join the club! I would say the best thing to do is view the posts here as "ideas" people have and take what the school and WASC has to say as something that is more factual. Of course it may be slanted but at least you know who/where it is coming from. If I were enrolled, I would probably (1) complete the degree as fast as possible if near the end or (2) slow down the pace and see what happens if you just started. Sorry, probably not the most ground breaking advice.
     

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