What would be the reasoning behind this policy other than ignorance?

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by sanantone, Sep 21, 2013.

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  1. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Sanantone said that the point is to ensure most deputies aren't eligible, since that would cost money. It's dismaying, but hardly surprising, that a political decision was made for a reason other than to improve the quality of what is ostensibly a public service.
     
  2. Pugbelly2

    Pugbelly2 Member

    Aside from ignorance, the only reason for a policy like this, albeit weak, would be to support the local b&m colleges.
     
  3. sanantone

    sanantone Well-Known Member

    The problem is that I know people who are working full-time at Bexar County and taking criminal justice courses online at the local community colleges. Up until recently, they had jailers working mandatory overtime. How are they supposed to attend class on ground with such unpredictable schedules? I, too, took a lot of courses online at the local CCs because of my weird schedules. Most of my classmates lived in the San Antonio metro. Instead of supporting the local b&m colleges, they are insulting them by not accepting the online programs they have to offer (that's if they can even tell the person attended online). UIW has many programs made for working adults; these programs are marketed to locals. That's just another facet of their ignorance.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 22, 2013
  4. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    I've written about the time that 12 management employees at Ingersoll Rand in Dallas petitioned their HR department to do the Edinburgh Business School MBA-by-exam, and were rejected. The HR manager agreed to a meeting, so I headed off to Dallas. He looked up and down the hall, then closed his door and said, in effect, "I busted my tail to earn my MBA the old fashioned way at Rice. If these people think I'm going to approve a namby-pamby program like yours, they've got another think coming."

    A year later, this HR person was gone, and a bunch of the I-R people enrolled. A reminder that things do change, and sometimes for the better.

    Namby-pamby???
     
  5. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Heh, that just makes me think of the old judge in Boston Legal....
     
  6. sanantone

    sanantone Well-Known Member

    I looked at the policy for the San Antonio Police Department. All they require is regional or state accreditation. I don't know much about state accreditation, but I don't see how it's better than national accreditation. Anyway, at least they don't discriminate against online degrees and schools without campuses.
     
  7. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    It isn't in many states. In some states, like New York, the evaluation process is at least as robust as national accreditation. I wouldn't say that about Texas, but nor has it been a haven for degree mills in the past (like Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Iowa, Wyoming, California, Idaho and others). The problem with allowing "state accreditation" (which is an oxymoron, except in New York) is that unaccredited degrees from phony schools operating in lax states will be accepted. That's happened a lot.
     
  8. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    And what, praytell, is state accreditation?
     
  9. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    I have fought this sort of thing (by proxy) at one other law enforcement agency and won. Here's how. First, look up the TCLEOSE standards on post secondary education, then ask your agency head if they define "accredited college or university" the same way that TCLEOSE does. If you are dealing with someone who thinks fast, they'll smell a trap and reiterate their policy, but push forward. Be aware, TCLEOSE is explicit with how they define "accredited". This is how I won.

    Here it is for you: http://www.tcleose.state.tx.us/documents/commission_about/Rules%20proposed%20at%20the%20September%202012%20meeting%20for%20the%20web.pdf

    Alternatively, you could challenge the rule on how the State of Texas Dept. of Ed. defines "accredited" and go that route first. TCLEOSE sets the standard for certification to include master peace officer, etc. For the county to fly in the face of that with something as nonsensical is a losing battle on their part.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 27, 2013
  10. sanantone

    sanantone Well-Known Member

    I am not familiar with this. I'm only familiar with state approval. I did find this.

    U.S. Department of Education Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs

    Your former employer had a similar policy? Was it part of a collective bargaining agreement? I guess that could work, or you could run into someone who will say that they have the power to set higher standards.
     
  11. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    Technically, there is no such thing as "state accreditation", except in New York.

    The New York State Board of Regents & Commissioner of Education is recognized as a national institutional accreditation agency by the US Dept. of Education. They do accredit a number of schools, such as Rockefeller University. No other state agency can confer USDoE-recognized accreditation.

    While other states can't confer accreditation, they may have a process that allows unaccredited schools to operate. Such schools are often called "state approved". So the reference to "state accreditation" most likely means "state approved".
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 27, 2013

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