The future of Raleigh’s St. Augustine’s University remains in question as it continues to fight for its accreditation and attempts to rectify financial problems that have plagued the school for years.
The historically Black university university is appealing an accreditor’s latest ruling to strip its accreditation, with a hearing expected in February. St. Augustine’s has remained accredited, albeit on probation, throughout multiple appeals.
The university’s ongoing issues have put the school in the local spotlight and attracted criticism from some alumni and others with ties to the campus. A lawsuit aiming to reconstitute the university’s Board of Trustees was dismissed by a judge, but the state attorney general’s office plans to look into the allegations against the board “in the coming weeks,” according to spokesperson Nazneen Ahmed.
This isn’t the first time the university has struggled with its finances or accreditation.
In 2004, for example, the university was on probation with the same accreditor because “it owed too much money, was failing to collect money it was owed and was relying too heavily on lines of credit,” The News & Observer reported at the time.