College District to Fight Accreditation Report

With its accreditation in jeopardy, the South Orange County Community College District has taken the unusual step of challenging a panel that holds the district’s future in its hands.

In an appeal lodged with the U.S. Department of Education, district Chancellor Cedric A. Sampson criticized a Western Assn. of Schools and Colleges accreditation panel’s decision this year to place Irvine Valley and Saddleback colleges on a “warning” status.

The two colleges that make up the South Orange County Community College District remain accredited but are subject to inspections. A 19-member association panel is scheduled to reconsider the district’s status in January.

In a news conference Wednesday, Sampson said the complaint was warranted because of biases and conflicts of interest among the accreditation panel’s members and reviewers. Sampson and district Board President Dorothy Fortune also criticized accreditation team members for inserting themselves into a long-standing battle between faculty and the board.

Without addressing the complaint in detail, association executive director David B. Wolf said the organization is preparing a response. He said the complaint is the first of its kind in the panel’s history.

The schools were granted renewed accreditation in February despite a blistering critique by the commission, which blamed the district’s elected leaders for meddling in college affairs. The commission described the district as “racked by malfunction.”

Loss of accreditation can result in a school’s inability to secure some federal grants and offer some federal financial aid to students. It can also hinder students’ ability to transfer credits to another school.