Cuesta regains full accreditation 

Cuesta College President/Superintendent Gil Stork announced on Feb. 10 that the college’s accreditation has been fully reaffirmed, and all sanctions against Cuesta have been lifted.

After the college’s two-year struggle to retain its accreditation due to inadequate planning with regard to technology resources and financial stability, the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) has deemed Cuesta’s turnaround fully satisfactory.

“The Commission commends Cuesta College on the depth and quality of the continuous improvement processes now in place,” ACCJC President Barbara Beno wrote in a Feb. 7 letter.

The commission placed Cuesta on severe “show cause” status in February 2012, imperiling the college’s accreditation. After an eight-month scramble to redesign future planning, Cuesta was subsequently placed on warning—the least severe level of sanction—in February 2013.

The most recent report from the commission removed all sanctions, reaffirmed the college’s accreditation, and completed the turnaround process for Cuesta.

“We want to continue to show that we’re on the right path, because it’s a continuing process,” Cuesta Media Relations Coordinator Lauren Milbourne told New Times. “Just because we’re sanction-free doesn’t mean we’re free to do anything we want.”

The college is scheduled to submit its institutional self-evaluation report later this year.