Accreditation

Higher Learning Commission Accreditation

Illinois Central is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an independent corporation that was founded in 1895 as one of six regional institutional accreditors in the United States. HLC accredits degree-granting post-secondary educational institutions in the North Central region, which includes the following 19 states: Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, New Mexico, South Dakota, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Wyoming. The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an independent which was founded in 1895 as one of six institutional accreditation agencies in the United States.

ICC Standard Pathway Dates

Prepare Assurance Filling: 2020-2023

Comprehensive Evaluation: 2024

Prepare Assurance Filing: 2025-2029

Comprehensive Evaluation For Reaffirmation of Accreditation: 2030

Understanding Accreditation

Educational accreditation is a process of external quality review created and used by higher education to scrutinize colleges, universities, and programs for quality assurance and quality improvement. Accreditation in the United States is more than 100 years old, emerging from concerns to protect public health and safety and to serve the public interest.

In the United States, accreditation is carried out by private, nonprofit organizations designed for this specific purpose. External quality review of higher education is a nongovernmental enterprise.

There are two types of educational accreditation: institutional and specialized.

Regional (Institutional) Accreditation

Institutional accreditation is provided by regional and national associations of schools and colleges. There are six regional associations, (Middle States Commission, New England Association, Higher Learning Commission, Southern Association, Western Association for Community and Junior Colleges, Western Association for Senior Colleges and Universities). The regional associations are independent of one another, but they cooperate extensively and acknowledge one another’s accreditation. Several national associations focus on particular kinds of institutions (for example, trade and technical colleges, or religious colleges and universities). An institutional accrediting agency evaluates an entire educational organization in terms of its mission and the agency’s standards or criteria. As an institution, Illinois Central College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission through 2030.

Specialized (Programmatic) Accreditation

Programmatic accreditors review specific programs, professions and freestanding schools of law, medicine, engineering, etc. Several ICC programs have sought and received specialized (program) accreditation/approval. These include the following.

Accreditation by Program