Accreditation review at S.C. State begins Tuesday

S.C. State University’s accreditors begin a three-day visit to the Orangeburg campus on Tuesday by meeting with school trustees behind closed doors.

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges placed the accreditation of state’s only historically black public college on probation. The commission cited financial and governance concerns.

After the review team leaves after its fact-finding visit, the commission will vote on S.C. State’s accreditation in June.

The commission could lift the probation, continue the probation for one more year or remove the school‘s accreditation. Students cannot get federal financial aid from unaccredited colleges.

S.C. State has struggled with deficits hovering around $17 million and changes in the president’s office, including the firing of Thomas Elzey last month.

This story was originally published April 13, 2015 at 7:09 PM with the headline "Accreditation review at S.C. State begins Tuesday."