ASURAMS GLOBAL ACCREDITATION

Albany State University is approved to participate in the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), administered by the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (NC-SARA). For Georgia-specific SARA information, please visit the Georgia Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission (GNPEC), Georgia's SARA State Portal Entity. SARA is a voluntary, regional approach to state oversight of postsecondary distance education. Institutions participating in SARA are authorized to provide distance education to students in participating SARA member states, subject to SARA policies and applicable state requirements.

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

For more information about the SARA initiative and the progress of state and institutional membership, please visit the NC-SARA Institution Directory.

CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS: California is NOT an NC-SARA member; however, public institutions do not need to seek approval to operate in California. Therefore, Albany State University does accept admission applications from online learners for distance programs from California residents. We look forward to speaking with you about our online programs and educational opportunities.

California has established a process to manage complaints for out-of-state institutions serving online students in the state. The student complaint process is published by the California Department of Consumer Affairs.

Nursing licensure requirements may vary by state. Before applying to a nursing program, please review the applicable requirements for the state in which you intend to seek licensure. For additional information, please contact Eric Hernandez at Eric.Hernandez@asurams.edu.

Student Complaint Resolution

Regulations associated with the federal student financial aid program include the following requirements. “The institution must make available for review to any enrolled or prospective student upon request, a copy of the documents describing the institution’s accreditation and its State, Federal, or tribal approval or licensing. The institution must provide its students or prospective students with contact information for filing complaints with its accreditor and with its State approval or licensing entity and any other relevant State official or agency that would appropriately handle a student’s complaint.”

Students should first attempt to resolve concerns through Albany State University’s internal complaint procedures, where information about institutional complaint processes, policies, and applicable forms is available. Students may also submit the ASU General Student Complaint Form or review the Student Complaint Procedures in the Albany State University Catalog.

External Complaint

If a concern cannot be resolved through Albany State University's institutional complaint process or by submitting the ASU General Student Complaint Form, a student may submit a complaint to The Commission on Colleges and Universities. For information about the Commission's complaint process, requirements, and complaint form, visit Complaints and Third-Party Comments.

Additional information about the Commission's complaint process, including the types of concerns that may be addressed, applicable procedures, and submission requirements, is available through Complaint Procedures Against SACSCOC or Its Accredited Institutions. Students are encouraged to review the procedures carefully to understand the Commission's role in addressing concerns related to institutional accreditation.

The Commission's complaint process is intended to address concerns related to an institution's compliance with applicable accreditation standards, policies, or procedures. It is not intended to serve as an additional level of review for individual disputes or to replace the institution's established complaint and grievance processes. Complaints should identify the applicable accreditation standard(s), policy, or procedure, when applicable, and explain how the concern relates to the institution's compliance.

For reference, the current 2024 Principles of Accreditation: Foundations for Quality Enhancement provides the accreditation standards used by the Commission.

For state-specific information about consumer complaint processes, please visit Student Complaint Information by State and Agency.

For Federal Financial Aid and other federal obligations:

Instructions for filing a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education in regard to Title IV (financial aid, civil rights violations or discrimination) can be found on How to File a Discrimination Complaint with OCR page.

Complaint Resolution for Fully-Online Out of State Students

Albany State University participates in the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), administered in Georgia by the Georgia Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission (GA-SARA).

Through its SARA participation, Albany State University is authorized to provide distance education to students located in participating SARA member states, subject to SARA policies and applicable state requirements. Albany State University periodically reviews SARA requirements regarding authorization to offer distance education; however, students are responsible for understanding the specific requirements that may apply in their state of residence while participating in distance education.

SARA provides a process for addressing certain student complaints related to distance education offered across state lines. Under SARA policies, students who reside in SARA member states should follow these steps:

1. Students should first attempt to resolve concerns through Albany State University's internal complaint procedures, the ASU General Student Complaint Form, or the Student Complaint Procedures in the Albany State University Catalog.
2. Students should complete Albany State University's institutional complaint process before pursuing a SARA complaint. SARA complaint procedures apply to qualifying consumer protection complaints related to distance education provided under SARA. Complaints concerning student grades and student conduct violations are governed by the University's applicable policies and procedures and are not subject to appeal through the SARA complaint process.
3. If a complaint is not resolved through Albany State University's institutional process and falls within the scope of SARA, a student may pursue or appeal the resolution within two years of the incident. An appeal may be submitted to the SARA State Portal Entity in the institution's home state or the SARA State Portal Entity in the state where the student was located at the time of the incident. For Albany State University, students may review the GA-SARA Student Complaint Rules and submit the GA-SARA Online Student Complaint Form. The NC-SARA Student Complaints page also provides information about the SARA complaint process and the types of complaints covered by SARA. The SARA State Portal Entity in the institution's home state has final authority to resolve the complaint appeal.
4. California is not a member of SARA. Therefore, students located in California are not covered by SARA and may be subject to applicable California requirements. If a student located in California wishes to file a complaint, please visit the State of California's Department of Consumer Affairs.
5. Students may also review Student Complaint Information by State and Agency for information about state-specific consumer complaint processes.

The SARA complaint process applies only to complaints arising from distance education courses, activities, and operations provided by SARA-participating institutions to students in other SARA member states. Complaints concerning an institution's in-state operations are addressed through applicable state and institutional processes rather than the SARA complaint process.

GA-SARA Student Complaint Resources

GA-SARA Student Complaint Rules
GA-SARA Online Student Complaint Form

Georgia SARA State Portal Entity Contact
GA-SARA Coordinator
Georgia Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission (GNPEC)
Email: gasara@gnpec.ga.gov

Contact Information

Albany State University complies with all U.S. Department of Education regulations and state laws and strives to provide excellent educational opportunities and consumer services.

If you have a complaint, we encourage you to reach out directly to Distance Learning at:
asuonline@asurams.edu or 229-500-2907

For ethical violations, misconduct, or consumer complaints, please see ASU’s Office of Legal Affairs’ Compliance, Ethics, and Reporting page.

To contact Albany State University’s accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), which now does business as The Commission on Colleges and Universities:

The Commission on Colleges and Universities
1866 Southern Lane
Decatur, GA 30033
Phone: 404-679-4500

For information about filing a complaint with the Commission, please see Complaint Procedures Against SACSCOC or Its Accredited Institutions.

If you would like to contact the agency within your home state, please refer to the information below.