Alabama State University officials announced the lifting of its accreditation warning status yesterday, ending an extended period of review by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools’ Commission on Colleges, which cited ASU for the last two years for financial control issues.
Alabama State President Gwendolyn Boyd cited the financial cuts of more than $25 million to rightsize operations, which satisfied reviewers to restore accreditation with no conditions.
“In my first year here, we cut $25 million from our budget to set a new normal for our University, and they (SACSCOC) wanted to see how we were going to be able to function with a $25 million dollar cut and still be able to maintain the University. We were able to do that. It was extremely hard and was very difficult, but we were able to do that. Now, everyone understands that this is our new normal, and we can’t go back,” Boyd said.
The announcement follows a two-week run of success for the university, in which it announced the renewal of a federal grant in excess of $800,000 to improve outcomes for minority women and children, and news that the ASU Mighty Marching Hornets will appear in the November release of the feature length film, “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.”
