Wednesday, April 18, 2001

College Officials Worry as Peterson's Gathers Information on Unaccredited Institutions By SARAH CARR Word that researchers for Peterson's Guide to Distance Learning Programs are now collecting information about unaccredited colleges has some administrators at mainstream institutions worrying that unaccredited colleges may be listed in future editions of the guidebook. But Rocco Russo, the vice-president for institutional research and relations at Peterson's, said the guidebook that is set to come out this fall will still list only accredited institutions that have online and other distance-learning offerings. "The change is that we are now collecting information about both accredited and unaccredited ones," Mr. Russo said, adding that the new information could be the basis for a second book. Kay J. Kohl, the executive director of the University Continuing Education Association, said officials at Peterson's had been unclear in conversations with her about whether they planned to use the additional research in print or online editions of the existing book. "The question would be how the company uses any information that is collected -- either in a print publication or on a distance-learning site," she said. "Over the years Peterson's has developed an excellent reputation as being a reliable source of information, and obviously it is a concern if that position shifts," said Ms. Kohl. Ms. Kohl and some college officials said if Peterson's were to expand its listings to include the unaccredited institutions, they would no longer work with the authors of the guidebook or use it as an advertising vehicle. Dwight Laws, the director of independent study at Brigham Young University, said, "We have advertised for years and years because we felt like they represented the interests of accredited institutions." Under Peterson's traditional policy, universities and companies with accredited programs can be listed free, and can pay to have expanded advertisements in the guidebook. Mr. Russo said officials were still considering whether to use the information from the unaccredited institutions. "We are looking at how best to present that information," he said. "If it were a sizable enough cohort of information, it would certainly be a separate book." Easy-to-print version E-mail this article

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