SUNO accreditation is renewed

By JC Canicosa
Contributing Writer

(lailluminator.com) — Southern University at New Orleans had their accreditation renewed for another 10 years even after being placed on financial probation in 2019, the university announced last week on Wednesday.

“The reaffirmation of accreditation sends a strong message to our students and to the larger community that our university has stable resources,” James H. Ammons Jr., chancellor of SUNO, said. “We have the financial resources that we need to support our mission and our programs.”

Accreditation is the certification that a college or university meets certain financial, educational and professional standards. To be reaffirmed, an institution has to demonstrate compliance with over 73 standards.

Schools receive accreditations from agencies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. The agency responsible for reviewing SUNO’s accreditation status is the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS).

SACS placed SUNO on financial probation in 2019, as the university reported a $7.7 million deficit during the 2019-2020 fiscal year, Ammons said.

“We were able to identify all of the root causes of the deficit, correct them and the university was removed from probation in the late summer of 2020,” he said.

Adjusting the budget included suspending SUNO’s athletics program. The university’s basketball and volleyball programs will be returning next school year– with a mandatory $100 student fee for SUNO students to help shoulder the cost.

This article originally published in the December 13, 2021 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.