Unversity Life

Institutional Accreditation (AALE)

American Pathways University is a member of the American Academy for Liberal Education (AALE), national accreditor of outstanding liberal arts colleges and universities, with the status of full institutional accreditation. AALE accredits institutions offering quality general education programs in the liberal arts that meet the Academy’s stringent educational, administrative, and financial criteria.

ACCREDITATION

Accreditation is the primary means by which the quality of higher education and programs disseminated by the institutions of postsecondary education based or operating in the United States is assured. Accreditation is a voluntary, private and nongovernmental process, and a form of self-regulation in which colleges, universities and programs of higher education of the United States have come together to develop standards, policies, and procedures for self-examination and judgment by peers.

Accreditation is carried out through private and nonprofit organizations that review entire institutions. Such agencies are known as national accreditors or regional accreditors. Both national and regional accreditors conduct such reviews in a similar manner by requiring self-study by the institution, evaluation by peers (including on site evaluation visits by scholars and university administrators), and a judgment about the accredited status based on standards of quality developed by the accrediting organization in consultation with the higher education community.

STATE AUTHORIZATION

The Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) has authorized American Pathways University (APU) to operate in the state of Colorado as a fully accredited private institution of higher learning. APU subscribes to the standards of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (the state policy and coordinating board for Colorado’s higher education system). For the listing of American Pathways University on the CDHE website as a private institution of higher education go to www.highered.colorado.gov.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

American Pathways University is currently listed by the United States Department of Education as an accredited institution of higher learning (www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation).

NATIONAL ACCREDITATION

American Pathways University is a member of the American Academy for Liberal Education (AALE), national accreditor of outstanding liberal arts colleges and universities, with the Status of Institutional Accreditation. AALE’s review and evaluation of American Pathways University is available on the University’s website (www.americanpathways.edu). Interested parties in the University’s accreditation may contact the American Academy for Liberal Education, 127 S. Peyton Street., Suite 210, Alexandria, VA 22314 • 703.717.9719 • www.aale.org.

The American Academy for Liberal Education is the national association that accredits institutions offering quality general education programs in the liberal arts that meet the Academy’s stringent educational, administrative, and financial criteria. AALE is unique in the accreditation community in grounding accreditation on a rigorous set of Education Standards. Accreditation by AALE signifies institutional integrity and a strong commitment to liberal education. Membership certifies that the institution meets or exceeds the Academy’s independently established Education Standards. The Academy’s accreditation standards are focused on matters of educational significance, including curricular design and quality, commitment to excellence in teaching, and evidence of student learning. Students are required to complete demanding core studies in the arts, sciences, and humanities taught by University faculty. AALE provides the Colorado Department of Education, other agencies, faculty and registrars of colleges and universities, and parents and prospective students with a clear means for identifying curricula with a focused, well-articulated core of languages, history, mathematics, science, literature, philosophy, and other elements of liberal education.

REGIONAL ACCREDITATION

The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools lists American Pathways University in its Directory of HLC Institutions Current Affiliation Status as Applying for Candidacy (with the University’s HLC Institution ID No. 2913). The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is listed by the Secretary of the United States Department of Education as a recognized regional accrediting agency for the accreditation of institutions of higher education at the undergraduate and graduate levels.