American Academy for Liberal Education
Encyclopedia
The American Academy for Liberal Education (AALE) is a United States
educational accreditation
organization.
institutions that offer general education programs in the liberal arts
. It provides institutional accreditation for universities
and college
s that want AALE to be their sole accreditor and it provides program accreditation for liberal arts programs within higher education institutions that are institutionally accredited by another accreditor. Several AALE-accredited institutions follow a "great books
" approach.
AALE accreditation of institutions of higher education
is recognized by the United States Department of Education
Office of Postsecondary Education. As such, this accreditation enables institutions to participate in programs authorized under the Higher Education Act
and other U.S. federal programs. The American Academy for Liberal Education is also an accreditor of K-12
charter schools and independent schools throughout the United States.
The Academy also works with institutions and programs outside the United States that emphasize liberal education and the liberal arts.
The AALE President is Jeff A. Martineau and Chairman of the Board of Trustees is Ralph Rossum of Claremont McKenna College
.
, retired professor from Columbia University, E.O. Wilson of Harvard and Lynne Cheney
, former US Secretary of Education, among others.
In December 2006, the U.S. Department of Education suspended AALE's authority to accredit new institutions and programs, following a determination by the Department's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity that AALE had been lax in not setting minimum standards for what students must learn at the colleges it had accredited. This restriction was lifted in December 2007. In the ruling that lifted the restrictions for a period of three years (expiring in December, 2010), Education Secretary Margaret Spellings
wrote of "continued concerns stemming from AALE's being cited consistently since 2001 for either not having clear standards with respect to measuring student outcomes or not collecting and reviewing data on how institutions it accredits measures student outcomes." The AALE petitioned the Department of Education for renewal of recognition in December, 2010.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
educational accreditation
Educational accreditation
Educational accreditation is a type of quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated by an external body to determine if applicable standards are met...
organization.
Accreditation
AALE provides two types of accreditation for higher educationHigher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
institutions that offer general education programs in the liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
. It provides institutional accreditation for universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
and college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
s that want AALE to be their sole accreditor and it provides program accreditation for liberal arts programs within higher education institutions that are institutionally accredited by another accreditor. Several AALE-accredited institutions follow a "great books
Great Books
Great Books refers primarily to a group of books that tradition, and various institutions and authorities, have regarded as constituting or best expressing the foundations of Western culture ; derivatively the term also refers to a curriculum or method of education based around a list of such books...
" approach.
AALE accreditation of institutions of higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
is recognized by the United States Department of Education
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
Office of Postsecondary Education. As such, this accreditation enables institutions to participate in programs authorized under the Higher Education Act
Higher Education Act of 1965
The Higher Education Act of 1965 was legislation signed into United States law on November 8, 1965, as part of President Lyndon Johnson's Great Society domestic agenda. Johnson chose Texas State University–San Marcos as the signing site...
and other U.S. federal programs. The American Academy for Liberal Education is also an accreditor of K-12
K-12
K–12 is a designation for the sum of primary and secondary education. It is used in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand where P–12 is also commonly used...
charter schools and independent schools throughout the United States.
The Academy also works with institutions and programs outside the United States that emphasize liberal education and the liberal arts.
Membership and leadership
As of August 2009, the Academy had about 20 member institutions in the United States, including accredited institutions and applicants for accreditation, and another dozen members outside the country.The AALE President is Jeff A. Martineau and Chairman of the Board of Trustees is Ralph Rossum of Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college and a member of the Claremont Colleges located in Claremont, California. The campus is located east of Downtown Los Angeles...
.
History
AALE was formed in 1992 by Jacques BarzunJacques Barzun
Jacques Martin Barzun is a French-born American historian of ideas and culture. He has written on a wide range of topics, but is perhaps best known as a philosopher of education, his Teacher in America being a strong influence on post-WWII training of schoolteachers in the United...
, retired professor from Columbia University, E.O. Wilson of Harvard and Lynne Cheney
Lynne Cheney
Lynne Ann Cheney is the wife of former United States Vice President Dick Cheney and served as the Second Lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009...
, former US Secretary of Education, among others.
In December 2006, the U.S. Department of Education suspended AALE's authority to accredit new institutions and programs, following a determination by the Department's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity that AALE had been lax in not setting minimum standards for what students must learn at the colleges it had accredited. This restriction was lifted in December 2007. In the ruling that lifted the restrictions for a period of three years (expiring in December, 2010), Education Secretary Margaret Spellings
Margaret Spellings
Margaret Spellings was the Secretary of Education from 2005-2009 under the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush and previously served as White House Domestic Policy Adviser to President George W. Bush....
wrote of "continued concerns stemming from AALE's being cited consistently since 2001 for either not having clear standards with respect to measuring student outcomes or not collecting and reviewing data on how institutions it accredits measures student outcomes." The AALE petitioned the Department of Education for renewal of recognition in December, 2010.
See also
- List of recognized accreditation associations of higher learning
- Educational accreditationEducational accreditationEducational accreditation is a type of quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated by an external body to determine if applicable standards are met...
- Standards-based education reformStandards-based education reformEducation reform in the United States since the 1980s has been largely driven by the setting of academic standards for what students should know and be able to do. These standards can then be used to guide all other system components. The SBE reform movement calls for clear, measurable standards...