What's Inside

August 2014 Commission Meeting
Staffing Update
Standards Review Public Comment
Recent Decisions
Commission Reviews for December 2014

August 2014 Commission Meeting

The Commission welcomed Mary Reeves, PhD to her first Commission meeting as executive director.

Per CEA’s policies and procedures, the Commission is responsible for accreditation decisions and governance of the agency. At the August 1 -3, 2014 meeting, the Commission reviewed accreditation applications for 47 sites. Decisions must be announced to the public within 30 days and can be found below under Recent Decisions, as well as through posting to outlets to the field such as the EnglishUSA and UCIEP member lists, to the U.S. Department of Education and other regulatory and licensing bodies, and to other accreditation agencies. CEA continues to review a wide variety of types of sites, with 55% of accredited sites now being institutions (private or “stand-alone” schools), 37% being programs within accredited institutions, and 8% being in international settings. Also noteworthy is that programs and institutions are now in all stages of accreditation decisions, with sites coming before the Commission for initial accreditation, re-accreditation, and for the first time, renewal of re-accreditation.

Regarding governance matters, the Commission reviewed five applications for initial accreditation of additional branches using the new additional location policy that was implemented in April 2014. The Commission Standards Compliance Committee reviewed 50+ substantive change and reporting requirements reports. Other Commission agenda items which will receive on-going reporting to constituents and the field include a future task force to address the “echo” effects following the Accreditation Act “boom” for CEA sites, and a strategic planning initiative which will begin in early 2015.

The Commission also received the Standards Review Committee’s report recommending that revisions to selected standards be posted for public comment. The background of this review and the process of public comment are outlined in the Standards Review Public Comment article below.

Staffing Update

CEA continues to grow, and in order to promptly meet the needs of applicants and accredited sites, the central office will soon be welcoming new professional staff, to be announced this fall. In addition, Heidi Vellenga has been named assistant director, and will support the Standards Review Committee among other assignments. Masha Vassilieva, as senior accreditation specialist, will continue to be the staff contact for sites undergoing substantive changes and will support the Standards Compliance Committee. Gina Spears’ portfolio has expanded, and she is now CEA’s business and financial operations manager. Staff directory entries for all staff will be updated in October, ensuring that contact with CEA is easy to accomplish.

Standards Review Public Comment

As part of the regular review of the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation Standards for English Language Programs and Institutions, CEA’s Standards Review Committee is calling for public comment on the proposed revisions to the standards.

We are required by CEA’s Policies and Procedures to solicit public comment on the standards, but have included context and discussion sections and the glossary for optional public comment as well. Interested parties can review the proposed changes and provide feedback through an online survey.

We recommend allowing at least 45 minutes to complete the survey. Note that the survey cannot be paused or saved, but you’ll notice a small “Exit the Survey” button in the top right hand corner. If the survey is accessed from the same computer and browser, progress until you exit or close the browser will be stored (based on the IP Address).

The public comment period will close on Monday, October 27 at 5:00 p.m. EST.

You may wish to review the following documents prior to or during the survey:

• Proposed changes markup to the standards (PDF)
• Copy of the current 2014 standards (PDF)
• Copy of Accreditation Manual Appendix A (PDF) or consult your Accreditation Manual
• Copy of the Standards Review Committee Task Force Topic Briefs (PDF)

For more information on the work of the Standards Review Committee and its task force, consult the Topic Briefs which were released in May 2014 and discussed at the Constituent Council meeting held in San Diego in association with the NAFSA Annual Conference & Expo.

For comments on the standards themselves or the process of the standards, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., CEA Assistant Director and Standards Review Committee Staff Liaison.

Recent Decisions

As required by CEA and U.S. Department of Education policy, accreditation decisions must be made public. The following decisions were made at the August 2014 Commission meeting. These decisions are reflected in the complete list of CEA accredited programs and institutions.

Granted 10-year re-accreditation

• ESOL Department, Lone Star College-CyFair, TX, USA
• Intensive English Communication Program, Pennsylvania State University, PA, USA
• Intensive English Program, Al Akhawayn University, Morocco
• Intensive English Program, American University of Kuwait, Kuwait
• Intensive English Program, Georgia State University, GA, USA
• Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute, WA, USA
• Spring International Language Center- Denver, CO, USA
• Spring International Language Center- Littleton, CO, USA
• Spring International Language Center- University of Arkansas, AR, USA
• St. Giles International San Francisco, CA, USA

Granted 9-year continued re-accreditation

• English Language Programs and Accelerated Certificate Program in Teaching English as a Foreign Language, University of California, Irvine Extension, CA, USA

Granted 5-year initial accreditation

• Bergen County Career Advancement Training, NJ, USA
• Language Pacifica, CA, USA
• Optimus Language School, CA, USA
• Orlando Language School, FL, USA

Granted 4-year continued initial accreditation

• A.C.E Language Institute at Montana State University, MT, USA
• Bell Language School, NY, USA
• C.C.B. School of Atlanta, GA, USA
• English Language Institute, Stephen F. Austin State University, TX, USA
• English as a Second Language International (ESLI) at McNeese State University, LA, USA
• English as a Second Language International (ESLI) at Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, TX, USA
• English as a Second Language International (ESLI) at West Texas A&M University, TX, USA
• English as a Second Language International (ESLI) at Western Kentucky University, KY, USA
• Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (ICPNA) Binational Center (BNC) Peru, Peru
• ILSC New York, NY, USA
• International Educational Center, IL, USA
• International Mid Pac College, HI, USA
• Mentora College, Washington, DC, USA
• Mountain Language Institute, CO, USA
• Selnate International School, UT, USA

Granted 1-year re-accreditation

• Academic and Test Preparation Program, San Jose State University, CA, USA
• Center for English as a Second Language, Southern Illinois University, IL, USA
• English Language Program, Virginia Tech Language and Culture Institute, National Capital Region, VA, USA
• Hellenic American Union Center for Applied Linguistics and Language Studies, Greece

Granted 1-year initial accreditation

• Language On, FL, USA
• Madison English as a Second Language School, WI, USA
• Nile Language School, NJ, USA
• Tampa Language Center, FL, USA

Granted initial accreditation through April 2016

• American Language Academy, California, CA, USA
• American Language Academy, Lincoln Memorial University, TN, USA
• ESLI at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, IL, USA
• ESLI at the University of Wisconsin Superior, WI, USA
• Virginia Tech Language and Culture Institute at Radford University, VA, USA

Denied accreditation (appealable)

• Albert Career School, PA, USA
• International Language Training Institute, NY, USA

Denied re-accreditation (appealable)

• Internexus Salt Lake City, UT, USA

Denied continued initial accreditation (appealable)

• Internexus Provo, UT, USA

Appeals Update

• Interlink Language Center at West Chester University – denial upheld

More information about denials and site responses are available at Denial Actions.

Accreditation Expired

• USC Language Academy, University of Southern California, CA, USA

Commission Reviews for December 2014

In accordance with 602.23 of US Federal Regulations for accrediting agencies, a recognized accrediting agency must provide public notice that an institution or program is being considered for accreditation and must provide an opportunity for third-party comment. Comments are taken into consideration by the Commission in making accreditation decisions. The following programs and institutions will be reviewed at the December 2014 meeting of the Commission. Comments must be submitted to CEA in writing prior to December 1, 2014. Submit comments by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

For 4-year continued initial accreditation

• American Advanced Institute of Technology (AAIT) Language School, MA, USA
• American Language Communication Center- Manhattan, NY, USA
• American Language Communication Center- Elmhurst, NY, USA
• ASC English School, MA, USA
• Atlanta English Institute, GA, USA
• Century School of Languages, CA, USA
• ESL Program, Harbor Career College, CA, USA
• ESL Program, Institute for Health Education, NJ, USA
• English as a Second Language Program, Los Angeles Pacific College, CA, USA
• English Language Study Center/Internexus Indiana, IN, USA
• Evergreen Academy, VA, USA
• Gulf Language School, TX, USA
• Hancock International College at Irvine, CA, USA
• inlingua Metro New York Manhattan, NY, USA
• inlingua Metro New York Ridgewood, NY, USA
• inlingua Metro New York Summit, NY, USA
• inlingua Princeton, NJ, USA
• Intensive English Language Center, University of Nevada Reno, NV, USA
• Intercultural Communications College, HI, USA
• International Academy of English/ Las Vegas East, NV, USA
• International Academy of English/ Las Vegas West, NV, USA
• International Academy of English/ San Diego, CA, USA
• Language Skills English Center, MA, USA
• LIC/LISMA Language Center Long Island, NY, USA
• LIC/LISMA Language Center Manhattan, NY, USA
• LIC/LISMA Language Center Palisades Park, NJ, USA
• LIC/LISMA Language Center Queens, NJ, USA
• New York Language Center - Jackson Heights, NY, USA
• New York Language Center- Midtown, NY, USA
• New York Language Center-Broadway, NY, USA
• Nomen Global Language Center, UT, USA
• POLY Languages Institute Irvine, CA, USA
• POLY Languages Institute Los Angeles, CA, USA
• POLY Languages Institute Pasadena, CA, USA
• Professional and Collegiate English (PACE) International Academy, UT, USA
• UCEDA International New Brunswick, NJ, USA
• UCEDA International Paterson, NJ, USA
• Uceda School of Boca Raton, FL, USA
• Uceda School of Elizabeth, NJ, USA
• Uceda School of Hackensack, NJ, USA
• Uceda School of Orlando II, FL, USA
• Uceda School of Orlando I, FL, USA
• Uceda School of West New York, NJ, USA
• Uceda School of West Palm Beach, FL, USA

For re-accreditation

• Columbia School of English, OR, USA
• Converse International School of Languages - San Diego, CA, USA
• English Language Programs, INTO CSU, CO, USA
• English Programs for Internationals, University of South Carolina, SC, USA
• CLED Intensive English Program, Georgetown University, DC, USA
• Intensive English Program, Maryland English Institute, University of Maryland, MD, USA

For initial accreditation

• Austin Language Learning Center, TX, USA
• Aviation English Program, Aviator College of Aeronautical Science and Technology, FL, USA
• CAMPUS Education Flushing, NY, USA
• CAMPUS Education Jersey City, NY, USA
• CAMPUS Education New York City, NY, USA
• CAMPUS Education Palisades Park, NJ, USA
• Centro Cultural Peruano Norteamericano Cultural – Arequipa, Peru
• General English Program, Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (ICPNA)- Chiclayo, Peru
• Intensive English Language Program, Cleveland State University, OH, USA
• Language Exchange International, FL, USA
• Links English Language Institute, NJ, USA
• Massachusetts Int’l Academy, MA, USA
• School of English Language, Bilkent University, Turkey
• Universidad Nacional Autonoma De Mexico UNAM-San Antonio, TX, USA