The DOE recognizes the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools as an approved accrediting agency. The regional organization accredits post-secondary degree-granting schools in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and various international colleges.
The mission of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools is to improve the quality of education in the South.
Vocational schools that have received accreditation from the Southern Association include Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Altamaha Technical College and Big Sandy Community and Technical College.
The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools has two divisions, the Higher Learning Commission and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. The HLC accredits post-secondary schools.
Some of the HLC's standards for vocational school's seeking accreditation include documents proving the institution has the legal power to grant degrees, the administration promptly addresses complaints and grievances, and the school maintains a website with its contact information.
The North Central region includes Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, New Mexico, South Dakota, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming.
Cowley County Community College and Area Vocational-Technical School, Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, Lake Area Technical Institute and Madison Area Technical College are just some of the school's accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.
California and Hawaiian colleges, universities and post-secondary schools can receive their accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Two separate commissions handle accreditation requests, one for two-year schools and one for four-year institutions.
Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges only accredits two-year colleges. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges accredits four-year institutions. Both the senior and junior commissions follow the same standards. To receive accreditation, a school must have high-quality instruction, a systematic approach to self-regulation, and student and learning support resources.
Junior colleges accredited by the ACCJC are all seven campuses of the Carrington College California, Coastline Community College and American Samoa Community College. Four year vocational schools the Western Association of Schools and Colleges approves include the Southern California University of Health Sciences and the Western University of Health Sciences.
More than 2,000 public and private institutions in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont received accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The NEASC has six commissions devoted to school's self-regulatory efforts and offers peer-reviews for kindergarten through executive offices, such as schools' administrative services.
The NEASC requires a school to submit to a peer-review process in which the agency reviews its policies, mission, academics and resources. If it meets the NEASC standards of excellence, it will grant it accreditation. Vocational schools that have met the NEASC's requirements include Central Maine Medical Center College of Nursing and Health Professions, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences, Springfield Technical Community College and Vermont Technical College.