Kean University on Probation, Trustees Assure to Keep Accreditation
ByKean University in New Jersey, which is facing a risk of losing its accreditation, held an emergency meeting Monday, reports The Star-Ledger.
The university's board of trustees addressed a packed conference hall of students, parents, faculty, alumni and staff reassuring that the university will not lose its accreditation. "This board will do everything in its power to ensure that Kean University remains accredited," The Star-Ledger quoted Ada Morell, the head of the trustee board, as saying."
"We will never, never give up on the tremendous progress we have made at Kean. We will do everything in our power to stand up for our students," she added.
Last year, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education that gives accreditation to degree-granting colleges and universities in the Middle States region warned the university to fulfill their requirements mainly owing to improving the academic standards and file a report by this March before another inspection by the their investigators.
Following failure to adhere to the requirements, the Middle States Commission placed the Kean University on probation last week. If the university loses its accreditation, it may affect college students who are pursuing their degree from the college. Students may not be able to avail financial aid or use their degree to attend any other graduate school.
The university president Dawood Farahi and the Ada Morell lashed out at the commission's decision to put Kean on probation in a joint statement. "Rather than recognize Kean University for the dramatic transformations it has made to benefit students over the last decade, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education has placed the university on probation," the statement said.
The commission has set September 1 as the deadline for the university to make all changes required and submit a report after which another inspection will be done by the commission investigators.
Kean University was established more than 150 years ago and is one of the oldest and largest universities in New Jersey. More than 15,000 students are pursuing their degrees in the university that offers several undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs.