Update on ACICS situation

December 27, 2016

Southern States University Students:

This is to provide an update to the notice to students on October 4, 2016 (attached) which affects ONLY international students in the ENGLISH PROGRAM and US citizens/permanent residents receiving federal student financial aid.

On December 12, 2016, the US Department of Education removed recognition of our accrediting agency, ACICS. Since then ACICS has filed a court injunction to stop or reverse that action. The Motion for a Preliminary Injunction is scheduled to be heard in federal district court on February 1, 2017.

The Department of Education has provided 18 months for ACICS accredited schools to REMAIN RECOGNIZED as accredited while seeking accreditation from other recognized agencies. In the event ACICS is not reinstated in February, SSU had already begun that process with multiple accreditors last October, in advance of these developments.

For international students studying on F-1 visas, this situation will not affect CPT or OPT at all because degree programs do not require accreditation for SEVP approval.

If you have further questions or concerns, please contact Chancellor John Tucker at jtucker@ssu.edu