In June 2014 the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools placed Paine College, a historically Black educational institution in Augusta, Georgia, on accreditation probation. The college was given 12 months to address the commission’s concerns or it could possibly lose its accreditation. Colleges that lose their accreditation are no longer eligible to participate in federal financial assistance programs.
Recently, Samuel Sullivan, interim president of Paine College, gave the college community hope that Paine was moving the right direction. According to Dr. Sullivan, a team from the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools recently visited the Paine campus and gave college officials some encouraging news that they are on the right track in addressing the commission’s concerns. The commission told the university officials that six of their 10 concerns had been dealt but four remained.
“We have much to be thankful for, yet we must return to work,” Dr. Sullivan told the Paine College community. “Together, we can move Paine College to greater heights and ensure its survival.”