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Saint Augustine’s University is once again accredited after a court granted a preliminary injunction last week that will keep the institution in good standing while it continues its legal battle with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
The decision comes despite an arbitration panel rejecting SAU’s appeal to remain accredited last month and a little more than two weeks before the semester starts at the private, historically Black university in North Carolina, which has navigated significant financial challenges in recent years, pushing it to the brink of closure. But thus far, Saint Augustine’s has managed to remain open, in part by taking out high-interest loans with terms some critics have deemed predatory.
For SAU, the reprieve from the courts is another twist in its long-running battle with SACS, which first stripped the university’s accreditation in December 2023 due to financial and governance issues. SAU appealed that decision and lost in February 2024 but won in court last July, when an arbitration committee restored its accreditation. SACS pulled Saint Augustine’s accreditation again in December, setting up a failed appeal that was then followed by last week’s injunction.
Now SAU will begin its new school year virtually on Sept. 2 as an accredited institution.
“We have said all along that we will stop at nothing to maintain our accreditation and continue serving our scholars—and we meant it. Our faculty and staff are fully prepared to begin the semester, and our commitment to providing an uninterrupted, high-quality education remains stronger than ever,” SAU interim president Marcus Burgess said in a statement last week.
The university also announced a leadership transition on its Board of Trustees, with Chair Brian Boulware stepping away from that role but remaining a trustee. Boulware has been sharply criticized by alumni and former employees, who have accused him of mismanagement that contributed to SAU’s financial crisis and verbally abusing employees, among other claims.
