Harrison Middleton University is accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) www.deac.org. The Commission voted to renew HMU’s accreditation through January 2028, which is HMU’s fifth consecutive renewal grant of accreditation. This renewal of accreditation was without conditions and is for a five-year period. Renewal of accreditation was granted following a regularly scheduled, comprehensive evaluation of the institution. The institution was found to meet or exceed each of the Commission’s standards for accreditation. The institution will be considered for its next renewal of accreditation in January 2028.
Accreditation by DEAC is a reliable indicator of the value and quality of the distance education that an institution offers. In receiving renewal of accreditation, HMU has demonstrated its commitment to educational standards and ethical business practices that assure quality, accountability, and improvement in higher education.
The scope of Harrison Middleton University’s accreditation extends to the following programs: Master of Arts, Doctor of Arts, and Doctor of Education. (Three additional programs are in teach-out and new students are not being admitted into these programs: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Arts in Humanities, and Master of Arts in Philosophy and Religion.)
The Distance Education Accrediting Commission is listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a recognized accrediting agency (USDE – www.ed.gov/accreditation). DEAC’s scope of recognition by the Secretary of Education is the accreditation of postsecondary institutions in the United States that offer degree and/or non-degree programs primarily by the distance or correspondence education method up to and including the professional doctoral degree. On November 7, 2022, DEAC was granted renewed recognition as an accreditor from the United States Department of Education for a period of five years.
The Distance Education Accrediting Commission is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA – http://chea.org/). DEAC’s scope of recognition by CHEA is the accreditation of higher learning institutions in the United States and international locations that offer programs of study that are delivered primarily by distance (51 percent or more) and award credentials at the associate, baccalaureate, master’s, first professional, and professional doctoral degree level.
Regional versus National Accreditation
The Department of Education provides oversight over the postsecondary accreditation system through its review of all federally-recognized accrediting agencies. The Department holds accrediting agencies accountable by ensuring that they enforce their accreditation standards effectively. The Department of Education holds all accrediting agencies to the same standards, and no longer distinguishes between “regional” and “national” accrediting agencies.
Click here to see the statement from the United States Department of Education.
Because the Department holds all accrediting agencies to the same standards, distinctions between regional and national accrediting agencies are unfounded. Moreover, we have determined that most regional accreditors operate well outside of their historic geographic borders, primarily through the accreditation of branch campuses and additional locations. As a result, our new regulations have removed geography from an accrediting agency’s scope. Instead of distinguishing between regional and national accrediting agencies, the Department will distinguish only between institutional and programmatic accrediting agencies. The Department will no longer us the terms “regional” or “national” to refer to an accrediting agency.
Harrison Middleton University is accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) www.deac.org. The Distance Education Accrediting Commission is listed by the United States Department of Education (USDE) as a recognized accrediting agency (www.ed.gov/accreditation).
