Morris Brown has addressed several issues that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools cited when it yanked the college’s accreditation in 2002. But Morris Brown still has to show that it’s fiscally stable and that’s where many of the school’s new trustees, including executives who can attract corporate dollars, come in.
Morris Brown College is pinning its hopes and its future on a new board of trustees.
The historically Black college in Atlanta lost its accreditation five years ago amidst a financial scandal that eventually led to the conviction of the school’s former president Dolores Cross and her financial aid director on federal fraud charges in 2004.
In the last 12 to 14 months, the school has addressed several issues that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools cited when it yanked the college’s accreditation in 2002, including shoddy record keeping and a shortage of professors with advanced degrees. But Morris Brown still has to show that it’s fiscally stable and that’s where many of the school’s new trustees come in, said the school’s interim president, Dr. Stanley Pritchett.
College officials hope to re-apply for accreditation by the end of this year, a lengthy process that would require the school to be debt free.
“All of our audits are up-to-date and we’re in the process of cleaning up our balance sheets and making sure that we have all the fiscal procedures in place to move ahead (with re-accreditation),” said Pritchett, who was named to his interim position in July. To that end, the school announced this month that it is strengthening its 24-member board of trustees by adding nationally ranked academic leaders as well as business executives who can attract corporate dollars and long-term revenue streams to the campus, Pritchett said.
