Columbia Pacific University

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Columbia Pacific University (CPU) was an unaccredited nontraditional distance learning school in California.[1] It was founded in 1978 by Richard Crews, M.D.[2], a Harvard-trained psychiatrist, and Lester Carr, Ph.D., a former president of Lewis University,[3] and operated with state approval.

CPU was closed by California court order in 2000.[4] The court also ruled that CPU had granted degrees legally between 1978 and mid-1997.[4]

Lester Carr subsequently reorganized the school in Montana, Wyoming, and the Republic of Malawi as Columbia Commonwealth University. CPU alumni acquired all rights to the CPU name and registered a "Columbia Pacific University" non-profit organization in Delaware.[5] The CPU Press continues its publication program.[6]

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Initial licensing in California

In 1983, after four years of operating under a basic licensing, CPU's programs in Administration and Management received institutional approval from the California Department of Education. On June 2, 1986, the California Department of Education granted all of CPU's programs full institutional approval for a 3-year period, ruling that CPU's curricula met California Education Code Section 94310(b)'s statutory requirement of being "consistent in quality with curricula offered by appropriate established accredited institutions which are recognized by the United States Department of Education."[7]

[edit] Changes to California licensing law

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In 1989 California passed the Private Postsecondary Education Act, changing state regulations for approved schools in 1989.[citation needed] CPU received re-approval in 1991 after a site visit from several State and Re-approval Committee representatives.[citation needed] Regulations changed further and the president of CPU began reporting difficulty keeping up with them under the new California Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education (BPPVE).[citation needed] Under the BPPVE, the State's definition of "Approval" was changed to reflect basic compliance with the new regulations.[citation needed]

[edit] Site visits and CPU's response, 1994-1995

In 1994 Marin County inspectors discovered eight permitless dormitories on CPU founder Les Carr's property. Marin County officials cited Carr for "multiple zoning, safety, and health violations". Carr was forced to remove the dormitories, as well as to remove references to the property as "a retreat center on a beautiful 14 acre ranch in northern Marin county" in CPU's promotional literature.[8]

An August 1995 site visit committee of the Council for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education found that CPU had not met the new regulations. It failed the 1995 visit on the basis of 88 points. The Council's review of CPU listed numerous violations of academic standards, including:

  • "One master's-degree student was given credit for "a learning contract describing how he would continue taking dance lessons and watch dance demonstrations in order to improve his skills as a Country Western dancer.""
  • "A Ph.D. dissertation written in Spanish was approved by four faculty who cannot speak the language."
  • "One dissertation "had no hypothesis, no data collection, and no statistical analysis. A member of the visiting committee characterized the work as more like a project paper at the college freshman level." The dissertation, The Complete Guide to Glass Collecting, was 61 pages long."
  • "At least nine students who received the Ph.D. degree in 1994 had been enrolled less than 20 months, four of them less than 12."[9]

On November 15, 1995, CPU submitted a response challenging the CPPVE findings. CPU's response argued that the CPPVE's August report “is grossly in error in most details, as documented in the 86 errors of fact enumerated”, and therefore argued that the CPPVE report was "utterly unreliable as an objective and thorough evaluation of CPU.”[10]

CPU's response argued that the CPPVE Visiting Committee’s review of CPU dissertations was based on superficial judgments. In “Error of Fact No. 27,” for example, CPU's response says that the complaint about the lack of “evidence of competency in statistical research” was erroneous because “many dissertations do not require statistical analysis”. In "Error of Fact No. 28" and "Error of Fact No. 31," regarding CPPVE's finding that a Ph.D. dissertation was submitted in Spanish and reviewed by faculty who could not speak the language, CPU responded that the indicated student "provided an authenticated English translation" and had been working with a Spanish-fluent mentor who resided in Venezuela.[10]

[edit] Closure and appeals, 1995-2000

CPPVE director Kenneth Miller issued CPU a Denial of Application for Approval in December 1995.

CPU administrators appealed the decision to close the school, but an administrative court judge ruled against the appeal on June 10, 1997. Among other items, the administrative appeals judge found that CPU:

  • awarded excessive credit for prior experiential learning to many students;
  • failed to employ duly qualified faculty; and
  • failed to meet various requirements for issuing Ph.D. degrees.[4]

In the state's 1997 lawsuit to compel CPU to close, California Deputy Attorney General Asher Rubin called the correspondence school "a diploma mill which has been preying on California consumers for too many years" and "a consumer fraud, a complete scam." The suit also referred to Columbia Pacific University as a "phony operation" offering "totally worthless [degrees]...to enrich its unprincipled promoters."[9]

On December 2, 1999, Judge Lynn Duryee ordered the school be shut down, also levying $10,000 in fines against CPU for its "deceptive and unfair practices" in operating without authorization, and failing to disclose its status to prospective students, during the appeals process. Judge Duryee noted in her decision that "The decision is not whether or not the students are dissatisfied... I mean that is not the test. It's like saying, you know, that prostitution should not be illegal because the customers are satisfied. It's not the test."[8]

This appeal was lost in 2000 and CPU was ordered to close. The Supreme Court of California upheld the denial of CPU's approval to operate.[4]

[edit] Columbia Commonwealth University

Soon after CPU's closure in California, founder Les Carr relocated the school to Missoula, Montana and subsequently changed its name to "Columbia Commonwealth University" (CCWU).[11][12][13] As Columbia Commonwealth University, the school obtained approval from the Republic of Malawi to operate as an educational institution in the African nation.[12][14][15] In 2001 CCWU moved to Jackson, Wyoming[12], and is currently based in Rock Springs, Wyoming. CPU founder Les Carr still serves as president of CCWU.[16][17] In 1993 Carr established Senior University International in Evanston, Wyoming, later known as Rutherford University.

[edit] Legal status of CPU degrees

California recognizes CPU degrees earned before June 25, 1997 as "legally valid" for use in the state. CPU degrees earned on or after June 25, 1997 are "not legally valid" for use in California.[4] Michigan, for state civil service jobs only, does not accept degrees from CPU[18] Oregon lists degrees from both CPU and CCWU as "unaccredited degrees", and thus prohibited for various uses under Oregon law. The use of "unaccredited degrees" in violation of this prohibition can result in civil penalties.[19] Texas lists degrees from both CPU and CCWU as "fraudulent or substandard", and thus prohibited for various uses under Texas law. The use of "fraudulent or substandard" degrees in violation of this prohibition is a Class B misdemeanor in Texas.[20]

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] References

  1. ^ Columbia Pacific University website, archived February 1999.
  2. ^ HMS Grad To Run On-Line University, The Harvard Crimson, September 16, 1998
  3. ^ Lewis University website, Leadership
  4. ^ a b c d e California Supreme Court Upholds Denial of Columbia Pacific University's Approval to Operate, December 1, 2000.
  5. ^ Columbia Pacific University, posting by Earon Kavanagh, CPU Information Officer, on degreefinders.com (accessed August 24, 2007)
  6. ^ CPU Updates (accessed 17 June, 2007)
  7. ^ [1]
  8. ^ a b Chileno man's 'diploma mill' ordered shut By Gregory Foley, Point Reyes Light, December 30, 1999
  9. ^ a b Chileno doctor in trouble over 'phony' university By Paul Neimann, Point Reyes Light, December 24, 1997
  10. ^ a b Columbia Pacific University Response to the Report of the Visiting Committee, November 15, 1995
  11. ^ Ex-Chileno man moves ‘diploma mill’ to Montana, By Gregory Foley, Point Reyes Light, March 22, 2001
  12. ^ a b c Sparsely, Sage and Timely, Point Reyes Light, January 29, 2004
  13. ^ [2], By David V. Mitchell
  14. ^ International Higher Education-24/3
  15. ^ Malawi.PDF
  16. ^ Columbia Commonwealth University - Staff
  17. ^ NETNOTES: Columbia Pacific University Alumni Info » * Former Chief Academic Officer and Founder of CPU Breaks His Silence
  18. ^ http://www.michigan.gov/documents/Non-accreditedSchools_78090_7.pdf
  19. ^ Office of Degree Authorization
  20. ^ THECB > Academic Affairs and Research > Private Colleges and Institutes > Fraudulent Institutions
  21. ^ Jerry Bergman, A Successful Attempt by California to Close a College: Was Intelligent Design Involved in the Closure of Columbia Pacific?, Revolution Against Evolution website (accessed May 22, 2008)
  22. ^ Four Arrows (Don Trent Jacobs), PhD , EdD, Fielding Graduate University website
  23. ^ NETNOTES: Columbia Pacific University Alumni Info
  24. ^ NETNOTES: Columbia Pacific University Alumni Info: John Gray, PhD, recognized by Columbia Pacific University alumni for contributions to public discourse
  25. ^ Biographies of Anodea Judith as author at The Illuminated Chakras - A Visionary Voyage into Your Inner World (promotional website for a DVD she created) and Fostering Healthy Chakras in Children (Alternative Journal of Nursing March 2006, Issue 10) state: "Anodea's background includes a Master's degree in Clinical Psychology from Rosebridge School of Integrative Therapy, a doctorate in Health and Human Services, (focused on mind-body health) from Columbia Pacific University, with additional doctoral work in Systems Theory at Saybrook University."
  26. ^ Bernard Meltzer, Dispenser Of Advice on Radio, Dies at 81, New York Times, March 27, 1998

[edit] Additional references

  • Bears Guide to Nontraditional Education, 1982 Edition
  • California Department of Education Approval Document, 1983
  • California Department of Education Approval Document, 1986
  • California CPPVE Re-approval Document, 1991
  • Independent Educational Consultant's Review of CPPVE Re-approval Process, 1995
  • Report of the CPPVE Committee Site Visit, 1990
  • Report of the CPPVE Committee Site Visit, 1995
  • Schevitz, Tanya. 1999. "Marin Judge Orders University in Novato To Cease Operations". San Francisco Chronicle, December 25, p. A21.
  • Stewart, David W., and Henry A. Spille. 1988. Diploma Mills: Degrees of Fraud. New York, NY: American Council on Education and Macmillan Publishing Company.
  • Testimony of Dr. Betty Dow: Court of Appeal of the State of California, First Appellate District, Division One. The Appeal # is AO 89826, in reference to Marin Superior Court Case No. 172634

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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