Ashford loses accreditation

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by agschmidt, Jul 10, 2012.

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  1. taylor

    taylor New Member

    Actually this was my failed attempt at a joke. Ashford & Simpson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    I guess I should just stick to being a bystander on this discussion.
     
  2. graymatter

    graymatter Member

    Ok, just received a faculty email:
    "Due to the denial by WASC of our application for accreditation the HLC has placed Ashford on its Special Monitoring status to confirm compliance with the Commission’s Criteria for Accreditation, including the Minimum Expectations. In an effort to ensure that the University continues to satisfy HLC’s accreditation requirements, the HLC Board of Trustees is requiring Ashford University to provide a report by August 10, 2012.

    Ashford University is also required to host an Advisory Visit within 60 days of the Commission’s receipt of its report. Subsequently, at its meeting in February 2013, the HLC Board of Trustees will review the report of the Advisory Visit team and the University’s response to those documents.

    “We are accredited, and will continue our critical service to our non-traditional students, largely comprised of working adults and underserved populations,” said Dr. Elizabeth Tice, president and chief executive officer of Ashford University. “We are fully committed to providing the opportunity for a brighter future to the more than 90,000 students currently attending Ashford University in pursuit of a higher education.”

    Ashford University believes it is in substantial compliance with the HLC accreditation criteria and intends to cooperate fully with HLC in this matter.

    The HLC region includes 19 states from Arizona to West Virginia, including Iowa where Ashford University maintains its residential campus.

    Thank you once again for your dedicated service to all of our students."

    There ya go.
     
  3. Petedude

    Petedude New Member

    :: chuckle ::

    I'm big on puns and wordplay, so I'm surprised I didn't catch that.
     
  4. Petedude

    Petedude New Member

    Baker College is in HLC territory. Maybe Ashford could buy them out. . .
     
  5. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Baker College is non-profit. Those primarily only seem to be available for takeover when they're not doing well.
     
  6. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

    One Report Puts Ashford U. Under Pressure From 2 Accreditors - Administration - The Chronicle of Higher Education

    Looks like my question a few posts ago has been answered...
     
  7. Jodokk

    Jodokk Member

    Hi Abner,

    Yes, I started TAing for them right after I finished my Psych Masters at UWA. Great talking to you again. I can barely find time to check in here these days. Hope you are well!

    Dan
     
  8. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Is this supposed to be some attempt at humor?
     
  9. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

  10. graymatter

    graymatter Member

    One more follow-up... Received this email just now from the CEO of Bridgepoint:

     
  11. LearningAddict

    LearningAddict Well-Known Member

    This is getting ugly.
     
  12. Petedude

    Petedude New Member

    No, just trying to think of how a firm in Bridgepoint's situation might try to work around the "significant presence" requirement. I don't know the colleges in the region well enough to know who they could "snap up" quickly.
     
  13. StefanM

    StefanM New Member

    The problem isn't that they need to "snap up" a college in the area. Ashford already has a campus in Iowa. The problem is that the vast majority of the administration is in California. IMO, the only solution is to relocate most of the admin to an area in HLC's territory.
     
  14. mcjon77

    mcjon77 Member

    This whole saga has been quite interesting from many perspectives. The most fascinating one for me has been its stock price. Bridgepoint Education Inc(NYSE:BPI) closed at $9.84 today, down from a $30.62 high just under a year ago.

    By the time this thread started (Tuesday),BPI had closed at $13.07, having dropped from 14.25 Monday, and from 21.50 at close the previous Friday.

    I bring this up because there were a few days where it was still trading around $13 and I kept asking myself how to reconcile the need for "substantial presence" by December of this year, with their not having another scheduled comprehensive evaluation until late 2014.

    If I actually had a clue about the stock market, maybe I could have taken my (and the members of this form's) insight and shorted the stock. Who knows. I was just tickled by the idea that a little specialized knowledge of the accreditation process gave some members of the board a bit of extra insight that the market didn't seem to acknowledge until HLC made it official with their placement of Ashford on "Special Monitoring Status".

    Maybe the degreeinfo folks should start an education industry hedge fund. :biggrin:
     
  15. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    There's a Steve Eisman joke in there somewhere....
     
  16. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    Eisman and co have already cashed in from what I've read. I predict a strong rise in stock prices the instant this works itself out...single digit stock prices for one of the largest for profit schools in the U.S. is potential for staggering profits. I'm going to wait a bit but I'm thinking of tossing $500 or so into the stock and sit on it to see what happens. Who knows, maybe I'll make enough to purchase another used Harley. :)
     
  17. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    So according to the WSJ...Ashford is one of the few schools that has not had a drop in enrollments. If they re-up their accreditation (which I assume they will) I smell potential for a rapid and huge stock price increase. Gonna' have to watch the ticker.
     
  18. JBjunior

    JBjunior Active Member

    Stop telling people, you will cut in to my profits if you cause a run now. :bandit:
     
  19. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    True...I did okay last time I bet on them. I'm betting again. It'll be fun.
     
  20. mcjon77

    mcjon77 Member

    Good luck, guys!
     

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