Special to The Times
Miles College President George T. French Jr. has been elected for a second term to the Board of Trustees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC).
Dr. French was the first president in the history of Miles College to be nominated and elected to the SACSCOC Board of Trustees in December 2015. Now he will be serving a second term which will begin in January 2017.
“It is indeed an honor to be elected once again as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges,” said French, who was elected for a second term by the SACSCOC assembly at its December business meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.
“This extraordinary group of highly qualified and distinguished individuals certifies the accreditation of higher education institutions to ensure educational quality and improves the effectiveness of its member institutions,” states President French. “I am committed to the mission of SACSCOC and the more than 800 institutions represented within the region.”
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges is the recognized accrediting body for the 11 U.S. Southern states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia) and in Latin America for those institutions of higher education that award associate, baccalaureate, master’s or doctoral degrees.
The Commission on Colleges’ Board of Trustees is the representative body of the College Delegate Assembly and is charged with carrying out the accreditation process.
French served as Acting President for Miles beginning October 2005, and then as Interim President starting December 2005 when the Board of Trustees made the unanimous decision to appoint him the 14th President of Miles College in March 2006.
As President of Miles College, French led the largest Capital Campaign Fund Drive in the history of the College, helping the College to exponentially develop and expand raising more than $42 million, exceeding the College’s goal of $30 million. To date, French has secured approximately $100 million dollars of funding in support of Miles College.
French was the driving force behind a $20 million capital improvement project simultaneously building three new student oriented facilities on campus. Miles College is rated in the top three most underrated historically black colleges and universities according to HBCU Digest.
