GREENSBORO, N.C. — Despite raising almost $10 million dollars, Bennett College lost its accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools earlier this week. However, as of Friday afternoon, it has been restored by a federal court in Atlanta, Georgia.
On Monday, the SACS Appeals committee affirmed the December 9 decision of the Board of Trustees to terminate the accreditation of Bennett College, finding that the school "failed to show that the institution possesses resources demonstrating a stable financial base to support the mission and scope of programs and services."
Once Bennett found out the school had lost its appeal, leaders worked quickly to file a lawsuit against SACS and a motion for a temporary restraining order to prevent SACS from revoking the college's accreditation. During the legal battle, which could take between several months and a couple of years, Bennett College will remain accredited.
President Dr. Phyllis Worthy Dawkins said in a press conference Friday that "this negative decision by SACS to remove Bennett from membership will not disrupt the daily operations of the college. We will continue educating our young women to become analytical thinkers, effective communicators, and phenomenal leaders."
Students on campus are taking this weekend to process the news. Dr. Dawkins has urged both the students, and community, to continue to #StandWithBennett during this time.
While working to preserve Bennett's accreditation with SACS, simultaneously, the school has already made progress in seeking accreditation with the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools, otherwise known as TRACS. Officials with TRACS are set to visit Bennett on March 14th.
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