Information about La Jolla University

Same as "well-said" or "well-expressed." Forgive me, Father Ted, for I am a transplanted Englishman. :smile:

J.

cf. "Since you put it like that...."

 

I know Dr. Douglas doesn't need me (or anyone else) to defend him but - just to make it clear - I'm positive he wasn't referring to any of his own degrees as unaccredited; they're all from fully-accredited institutions. I believe he merely mentioned his PhD dissertation, (Union Institute and University) as it dealt with the utility and perception of unaccredited degrees.

J.

 

Au contraire mon frere. You are missing the fact that there are two types of institutions; state approved accredited institutions (which grant degrees) and state approved non-accredited institutions (who can only grant certificates of completion). A school can have state licensure to operate with the ability to grant degrees contingent on having an application on file with an accrediting body (approved by the US Dept. of Education) at the Associate level or above. The process of (institutional, not programmatic) accreditation takes approximately two years. If during that two year time the institution is rejected by the accreditor, the only thing they can grant is certificates of approval as they will now fall under a "state approved, non-accredited institution." I worked 3 years for the California Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education so I know how this process works as I dealt with it on a daily basis. In order to receive permission to grant degrees in the State of California, institutions must submit the following:

1. An application for Approval to Operate an Accredited Institution.
2. A certified copy of a current verification of accreditation.
3. Associated fees.
4. Evidence of any required approval from other government agencies .

If the institution applying for accreditation the 1st time, they need to have a certified copy of the provisional application to the accrediting body. As long as they are progressing toward initial accreditation, they will have the right to grant degrees. If they have their application rejected, they will still have a state license to operate but will not have the ability to grant degrees.

 

I once met a factory worker with a fully accredited (RA and APA) PhD in Clinical Psychology. She had a license as well. Why was she working in a factory?

Because she was from a small town where that factory was practically the only employer in town (there was also a small school, two bars, a Subway and a tackle shop) and she didn't want to move. She had her fill of living away from home for the duration of her studies and wanted to go home where she took the first job she could get.

Her degree, accredited as it was, was technically useless. In the context of the town where she chose to live her degree offered her very little utility. If anything, it caused her more problems than it solved in her chosen profession (working in a factory).

Degree utility can be impacted by accreditation. But accreditation is not the only factor. An ABA accredited law degree might have lots of utility if you live in a place where you are admitted to the bar and have access to work. If you decide to move to Belgium then that same degree is likely, to borrow a phrase, technically useless.

There are plenty of degrees that are legitimate in one context but completely worthless in another context. I'm not saying any of this applies specifically to La Jolla University, mind you.

If I have an unaccredited PhD it might very well be useless to me. Then again, an accredited PhD might be useless to me as well. It all depends on what I'm doing and how a PhD, accredited or otherwise, helps me toward my goals.

 

That's incorrect.

State approval is a requirement to even apply for accreditation. Some states have instituted policies that require schools to obtain accreditation within a set period after receiving state approval. Many others have not.

There are ACICS accredited schools that will have a short period of time to find a new accreditor or else lose their state approval. That's a decision by the states, however, not the federal government.

Just look at all of the state approved programs in states like Florida that are not accredited and yet remain legally able to award degrees. That same state has provisions in their laws for the "use" of unaccredited degrees by state approved, but unaccredited, institutions.

 

Triple bull's eye! Well done, everyone. :smile:

J.

 

I get that, I'm not talking about Florida. The thread is about La Jolla University that was in San Diego. I understand each state is different and this is the last information I'll post regarding this school. In the State of California, in order to grant a degree. A school must have in an application for accreditation.

California Code of Regulations - Title 5. California Code of Regulations Division 7.5. explicitly states:

71105. Applications for Provisional Approval to Offer Degree Programs.
(a) For an application for approval to operate or a substantive change, the owner of an unaccredited institution also requesting provisional approval to offer a degree program shall submit to the Bureau, for its approval, a plan for achieving institutional accreditation by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education, with the scope of that accreditation covering the offering of at least one degree program.
(b) The plan shall include:
(1) Identification of the accrediting agency from which the institution will seek accreditation;
(2) Identification of the accrediting agency's eligibility requirements;
(3) Identification of the accrediting agency's minimum requirements for institutional accreditation covering at least one degree program offered by the institution with an outline of the process and timeline for complying within two years of provisional approval with the accrediting agency's requirements for submission of a completed application for initial accreditation with the required fee; and
(4) An outline of the process and timeline whereby the institution will achieve full accreditation within five years of provisional approval, including all of the following, if applicable:
(A) Attendance at the accrediting agency's required accreditation applicant workshop;
(B) Submission of financial statements as required by the accrediting agency;
(C) Submission of a self-evaluation report; and
(D) Hosting of a site visit by the accrediting agency.

La Jolla University was not a religious institution (which has it's own accrediting bodies outside of the US Dept of Education), not did it professional or workforce development certifications/diplomas or anything that would have allowed exemption from an accreditation application. However, in the State of California, in order to be licensed AND grant degrees, you have to apply for accreditation.

I also realize that accreditation allows the ability to participate in federal funds for students should the institution choose to do so. Most accredited institutions do but some opt not to do so.

However, Ranasinghe was granting degrees without La Jolla being accredited which is a requirement in the State of California. This is why there were 30 civil cases against La Jolla University from 1991-1993. People paid for an unaccredited degree, so they sued. The information on those cases are accessible online by searching the Superior Court of California, County of San Diego records.

 

Cal. Southern U., formerly SCUPS, operated legally, awarding degrees for nearly 30 years before becoming accredited. I was also going to cite the example of never-accredited California Pacific University, established in 1976, the first institution approved by the State of California to offer academic degree programs by distance study without residency requirements.

Unfortunately, that venerable school has fallen under a cloud after 40 years. The website is not presently available, as a fine appears to be owing to the BPPE for failure to file reports. Details here. http://www.bppe.ca.gov/enforcement/actions/citation_1516079.pdf

Well, 40 years of legally awarding degrees without accreditation. Not a bad run....

J.

 

One could also look at every school in Florida operating under religious exemption. Or Louisiana Baptist University. Or Nations up until very recently.

Personally, I wish schools could get accredited right out of the gate even as formally recognized "candidates" like law schools do with the ABA. Those first few years of unaccredited existence followed by a few years with an NA or FB accreditor really drag the road to RA out.

 

One could but I didn't - on purpose. Religious exemption is what it says - an exemption, therefore a special case. I wanted to stick to schools with no special deal: no accreditation and nothing extra beyond state permission to award degrees. I figured those alone would make an airtight case. Religious schools - there's some wiggle room / weasel clause there. I've been yelled at enough, so...

J.

 

Second, I have not "missed" the fact that there are state approved accredited institutions and state approved unaccredited institutions. All that says is that there are accredited institutions and unaccredited institutions and that both need state approval to exist.

 

I am not your frere and it would be much appreciated if you would cease and desist calling me frere.

 

Hi, I have a copy of the FULL INSTITUTION APPROVAL as a CALIFORNIA DEGREE GRANTING INSTITUTION to 3702161 LA JOLLA UNIVERSITY signed by BILL HONIG (SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION) and JEANNE BIRD (Director, Private Postsecondary Education Division) dated JUNE 1990 to JUNE 1993

 

Hi, I have a copy of the FULL INSTITUTION APPROVAL as a CALIFORNIA DEGREE GRANTING INSTITUTION to 3702161 LA JOLLA UNIVERSITY signed by BILL HONIG (SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION) and JEANNE BIRD (Director, Private Postsecondary Education Division) dated JUNE 1990 to JUNE 1993

 

Because the following analytical response is so complex and lengthy, I'm just going to reply to the second of two identical posts. Here it goes:

So?

 

This thread was started by "prafto" requesting information about LJU. CalDog stated that LJU may have never been licensed. For those who graduated in LJU, I can provide the documentation that proves that LJU was licensed during the period of time I mentioned. I am not interested in participating in the discussion.

 

OK then. So take a photo of the document(s) and post them right here. Then we can all look at them

 

I tried to upload the document, but I get an error saying the file is too large. Looks like the file size limit is 24KB. It is too small.
I can email it to you. Mine is [email protected]

 

Yeah, sorry but the fact is that I really don't care that much.