The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is a regional educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. in the Southern United States.
Commission on Colleges
The first SACS was founded in 1895 and is made up of Council on Accreditation and School Improvement and the Commission on Colleges, which existed since 1912. It also works with the Council for Higher Education Accreditation and the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors.
The Commission on Colleges accredits both public and private institutions of higher education in the United States, including some community colleges as well as four-year institutions. As a regional accreditor, SACSCOC accreditation extends to all of the educational programs offered at the accredited institution.
Council on Accreditation and School Improvement
SACS CASI accredits over 13,000 primary, middle, and secondary schools, and school systems located in the SACS region. In 2006, AdvancED was established with the unification of SACS CASI, NCA CASI, and NSSE. Today, SACS CASI acts as an accreditation division of AdvancED, now known as Cognia.
On December 9, 2018, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools had excluded Bennett College from its membership due to failure of completion of the chapter 13, section 1 of the Principles of Accreditation. During the same year, they have suspended membership of the Loyola University New Orleans for the same reason and set up special committees to Johnson University and Prairie View A&M University for the full year. Due to this process, Memphis Theological Seminary was denied reaffirmation and was put on warning for a year, citing the lack of financial responsibilities and institutional planning.