Miami-Jacobs Career College
- Founded: 1860
- Accredited since 1957 by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) to award certificates, diplomas and associate degrees. Individual programs are accredited or approved by different organizations.
- College president: Darlene Waite
- Main campus: 110 N. Patterson Blvd., Dayton. Local satellite campuses in Troy and Springboro.
- Total enrollment: 2,500
DAYTON — Miami-Jacobs Career College is in trouble again for offering programs that don’t meet standards.
On Friday, April 9, State Rep. Clayton Luckie, D-Dayton, called for an investigation of Miami-Jacobs. Luckie said he will hold hearings on the college and its practices and will propose legislation that would require schools to notify students up front whether their programs are accredited.
Accredited programs meet certain standards set by governing organizations that are required for state licensing, especially in health care fields.
Under the proposed legislation, if a program is not accredited by the time a student graduates, the for-profit school would be required to repay that student’s grants and loans.
Like other higher education students, the people who attend technical colleges such as Miami-Jacobs often obtain loans totaling tens of thousands of dollars to pay for tuition and fees. Luckie will instruct the Ohio Board of Regents to put together a comparison sheet for colleges and universities.
“Know that a degree here (at Miami-Jacobs) may cost you $35,000. A degree at Sinclair Community College may cost you $7,000,” he said.
Miami-Jacobs President Darlene Waite said the school’s programs are currently accredited and the college is working with other approving bodies to address any issues.
A national board has voted to withdraw approval for the school’s respiratory therapy program, making it the second of the school’s health care programs to now face possible loss of license or accreditation. Last month, the state’s nursing board told Miami-Jacobs it could lose state approval to teach practical nursing.
The notices follow a lawsuit filed by Miami-Jacobs students in 2008 over the school’s surgical technology program. The students claim the for-profit school told them the program was accredited when it was not. The school and the students are in arbitration.
Waite said Miami-Jacobs will appeal the recent decision by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care to withhold initial accreditation for the college’s respiratory therapy program.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2419 or dlarsen@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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