1603 CCE Accredits Sherman & Bridgeport
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Dynamic Chiropractic – February 27, 1995, Vol. 13, Issue 05

CCE Accredits Sherman & Bridgeport

By Editorial Staff
January 28, 1995 marked a special day for both Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic and the University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic (UBCC). This was the day that the two colleges were seated as members of the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE). While the colleges took two completely different paths, the end result was the same: becoming voting members of the CCE.

The University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic

The University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic began its journey to CCE accreditation by obtaining a license from Connecticut's Department of Higher Education in December 1990. The college opened its doors to chiropractic students September 5, 1991. Bridgeport completed its self-study for the CCE's Commission on Accreditation (COA) on October 1, 1993. The college was accredited on June 17th of last year (see "CCE Accredits U. of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic," July 29, 1994, "DC"). UBCC Dean Frank A. Zolli, DC, had this to say:

"The University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic is honored to be part of the Council on Chiropractic Education. I think this is a very exciting time for the chiropractic profession. For the first time in history, all chiropractic institutions in this country are part of the CCE. This provides the academic leadership of the profession with the opportunity to impact the profession.

"With respect to UBCC, we are growing. We have graduated our first class and have our second commencement scheduled for the spring. Our original trimester curriculum has been revised and students starting the program in fall 1994, and after are being trained in a four year semester-based program. With the summers off, students can work to defray the cost of their education and faculty can focus on research. We look forward to the growth of our program and our ability to contribute to the chiropractic profession."

Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic

Sherman took a different route to CCE accreditation. The college was founded in 1973 and applied for CCE accreditation in 1974. After a long and arduous effort, Sherman College was denied accreditation by the council. Sherman college did finally accomplish accreditation via SCASA (Straight Chiropractic Academic Standards Association's), and was recognized by the US Department of Education (USDE) on August 30, 1988 (see "U.S. Secretary of Education Approves SCASA as Second Chiro College Accrediting Agency," September 15, 1988, "DC").

However SCASA lost USDE recognition on September 4, 1992 after a long appeal process. The Secretary of Education's decision called for SCASA to loose its accreditation status on June 4, 1993. This put Sherman College back on the road to CCE accreditation.

Sherman's accreditation by the council is historic in that they are the first SCASA college to gain CCE accreditation. Thom Gelardi, DC, president of Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic, commented:

"The attitudes of the (CCE) staff, visiting teams and Commission members were positive, helpful and encouraging. The CCE definitely has high academic standards. The process is necessarily detailed and labor intensive, but quite fair. It was very similar to the process we had been through many times with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and the Straight Chiropractic Academic Standards Association." (Please see our exclusive interview with Dr. Gelardi in this issue on page xxx.)
Marino "Bud" Passero, DC, chairman of the Commission on Accreditation remarked:
"This brings the number of accredited chiropractic colleges to 16 institutions. This is truly an historic time for the chiropractic profession, when all factions, both political and philosophical, of chiropractic education are represented within the CCE."
CCE President Carl Cleveland III, DC, added:
"CCE, now in its 21st year as an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, has become a family of institutions with different faces and philosophies united around a common core of clinical competencies and educational standards. The University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic and Sherman College of Chiropractic as institutional members of the Council on Chiropractic Education will add to and enrich our ranks within chiropractic education and accreditation. I look forward to their involvement with the council and wish them success."

Dynamic Chiropractic editorial staff members research, investigate and write articles for the publication on an ongoing basis. To contact the Editorial Department or submit an article of your own for consideration, email .

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