CEO 02-08 Important Information about New York Colleges

CEO 02-08 December 27, 2002

To: Chief Executive Officers of Degree-Granting Institutions in New York State From: Johanna Duncan-Poitier

Subject:  Important Information about New York Colleges that are Institutionally Accredited by the Board of Regents and the Commissioner of Education in Their Capacity as a Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agency

I am pleased to inform you that the U.S. Department of Education has renewed its recognition of the Board of Regents and the Commissioner of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency for institutional accreditation of degree-granting institutions in New York State. A copy of the Secretary of Education’s letter is attached.   The purposes of this memorandum are:
  • to distinguish the State approval process from institutional accreditation by the Regents and the Commissioner, and
  • to encourage you to recognize credit earned by students at colleges that are institutionally accredited by the Regents and the Commissioner.

State Approval Process

In New York, all institutions seeking to confer degrees must first receive Regents authorization. Then, the State Education Department reviews and registers (approves) the individual programs of study leading to degrees and credit-bearing certificates fully creditable toward degrees at the institution according to standards of academic quality in the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education. Together, Regents authorization to confer degrees and State Education Department program registration make up the State approval process.

Institutional Accreditation by the Regents and the Commissioner
In addition to review under the State approval process, 24 colleges in New York have voluntarily sought institutional accreditation by the Regents and the Commissioner in their capacity as a national accrediting agency. The Regents and the Commissioner are the only state entity that the U.S. Secretary has recognized to accredit degree-granting institutions. They are identified on the

U.S. Department of Education’s Web site at                                                              www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/accreditation/natlagencies.html External Link Image Icon under the category "Other."

The institutions accredited by the Regents and the Commissioner reflect the diversity of educational programs available in New York and range from two-year vocational colleges to graduate-only institutions offering doctoral study. A complete list of all 24 colleges is attached to this memorandum. Standards used to accredit these institutions are based on detailed requirements in Federal regulations (CFR 602), the same regulations that govern the regional accrediting bodies and the specialized agencies given national recognition by the U.S. Secretary of Education. The Regents standards can be found in the Rules of the Board of Regents, Part 4. The complete accreditation standards and other information about institutional accreditation in New York are available on the State Education Department’s Office of Higher Education Web site at www.highered.nysed.gov/ocue/accredinfo.htm.
Accepting Transfer Credit from Institutions Accredited by the Regents and the Commissioner

When a student seeks to transfer credit for study completed at one of the colleges accredited by the Regents and the Commissioner, I encourage you to evaluate and accept that credit as you would credit earned at institutions accredited by a regional accrediting body or other accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education.

For Additional Information

I hope this information is helpful. Additional information is available on the Office of Higher Education’s Web site at www.highered.nysed.gov. If you have follow-up questions or need specific guidance, please contact Joseph Frey, Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Quality Assurance, at (518) 486-3633 or via e-mail at jfrey@mail.nysed.gov.

Attachments
cc:   Academic Deans
Directors of Admission

Last Updated: October 22, 2009