Saint Paul’s College, in Virginia, Loses Accreditation

Saint Paul’s College, in Lawrenceville, Va., has lost its accreditation by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

The historically black college, founded in 1888, had been on probation for two years, largely as a result of its financial problems and the accreditors’ questions about whether it had adequate resources for student and administrative support and about the faculty’s academic qualifications.

In a written statement, the college’s interim president, Eddie N. Moore Jr., said the institution would appeal the decision, a step that will preserve the college’s accreditation until at least late August, when the appeal is to be heard.

Appeals, however, are usually unsuccessful, and the college has created a transition committee to help students who are seeking to transfer to other institutions. Saint Paul’s enrolled about 300 students during the most recent academic year.

Mr. Moore also said the college had been making strides to solidify its financial situation. “To say we are disappointed is a terrible understatement,” he said in a news release last week.

He noted that Saint Paul’s had raised nearly $5-million recently and had overhauled its management and strategic plan. “If we can do this in half a year, imagine what we could do if allowed to continue reaffirmed,” he said.

Losing accreditation can prove fatal to a college, because its students can no longer receive federal financial aid. And without tuition revenue, the college cannot afford to make the improvements necessary to be reaccredited.

While there has been no mention of legal action from Saint Paul’s, many colleges have tried to preserve their accreditation in the courts. For example, Paul Quinn College, in Dallas, sued the Southern Association in 20009 and kept its accreditation long enough to find another accrediting agency, the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools.