Middle States Is Not The Enemy

Contrary to the folderol coming out of Harrisburg, 1837 University Circle Cheyney Pa. and other sources, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education is not the cause or the reason Cheyney University of Pennsylvania was placed on probation.

- Junious Ricardo Stanton

Middle States is merely the accrediting agency for this region tasked with making sure colleges and universities under its purview are run in a fiscally sound and responsible manner that the academic competencies and capabilities of the staff and facilities are suited to carry out the institution’s mission, so the institution is eligible to receive federal financial aid money.

On November 16, 2023, Middle States announced Cheyney was being placed on probation until it could ascertain the university was in full compliance with a variety of standards. They asked the university administration to provide documentation it was in compliance with the specified standards. This is not the first time Middle States has done this. They did it most recently in 2015.

On both occasions, they did so after site visit teams met with administrators, faculty, students, and alumni and reviewed material Cheyney itself submitted detailing its’ academic, financial, and facility abilities to meet or surpass the standards put forth by Middle States. Middle States does not have subpoena powers or the authority or staff to send in forensic auditors and investigators to review a university’s books. They have to go by what the university provides!

On both occasions, Middle States commended Cheyney for the progress it made to address and remediate various issues that were plaguing the university, such as massive debt, low graduation and retention rates, lack of technology, depreciating facilities, etc. They asked for additional documentation and proof and made recommendations to the administration on how to further improve. Nevertheless, when Cheyney complied, Middle States made the decision to place the institution on probation on both occasions.