Web U.S. Higher Education

Accreditation by one of these bodies is the basis for recognition of degrees and acceptance of transfer credit at UT Austin, and for inclusion in the Web U.S. Higher Education lists.

Middle States Association of Colleges & Schools – Commission on Higher Education …accredits institutions in Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, & Virgin Islands.
New England Association of Schools & Colleges – Commission on Institutions of Higher Education …accredits institutions in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, & Vermont.
North Central Association of Colleges & Schools – Higher Learning Commission …accredits institutions in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Mexico, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, & Wyoming.
Northwest Commission on Colleges & Universities …accredits institutions in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, & Washington.
Southern Association of Colleges & Schools – Commission on Colleges …accredits institutions in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, & Virginia.
Western Association of Schools & Colleges …accredits institutions in California, Hawaii, & the Pacific.

Bridging the Education Gap

Education in the United States is provided mainly by government, with control and funding coming from three levels: federal, state, and local. School attendance is mandatory and nearly universal at the primary and secondary levels (often known inside the United States as the elementary and high school levels). At these levels, school curricula, funding, teaching, and other policies are set through locally elected school boards with jurisdiction over school districts. School districts are usually separate from other local jurisdictions, with independent officials and budgets. Educational standards and standardized testing decisions are usually made by state governments.

The ages for compulsory education vary by state, beginning at ages five to eight and ending at the ages of fourteen to eighteen.^[4] A growing number of states are now requiring school attendance until the age of 18.

Students have the options of having their education held in public schools, private schools, or home school. In most public and private schools, education is divided into three levels: elementary school, junior high school (also often called middle school), and senior high school. In almost all schools at these levels, children are divided by age groups into grades, ranging from kindergarten (followed by first grade) for the youngest children in elementary school, up to twelfth grade, which is the final year of high school. The exact age range of students in these grade levels varies slightly from area to area.

Post-secondary education, better known as “college” in the United States, is generally governed separately from the elementary and high school system, and is described in a separate section below.

In the year 2000, there were 76.6 million students enrolled in schools from kindergarten through graduate schools. Of these, 72 percent aged 12 to 17 were judged academically “on track” for their age (enrolled in school at or above grade level). Of those enrolled in compulsory education, 5.2 million (10.4 percent) were attending private schools. Among the country’s adult population, over 85 percent have completed high school and 27 percent have received a bachelor’s degree or higher. The average salary for college or university graduates is greater than $51,000, exceeding the national average of those without a high school diploma by more than $23,000, according to a 2005 study by the U.S. Census Bureau.^[5] While the United States presently leads the world with over 5,000 Montessori schools, China has expressed ambitions to replace much of their school system with the Montessori method’s pedagogy. As part of a trial run towards achieving this objective, China’s Minister of Education called for 1,000 teachers to receive certification from the Association Montessori Internationale in 2007. The U.S. Department of Education has no formal plans to compete against China on similar initiatives at this time.

The country has a reading literacy rate at 98% of the population over age 15,^[6] while ranking below average in science and mathematics understanding compared to other developed countries.^[7] The poor performance has pushed public and private efforts such as the No Child Left Behind Act. In addition, the ratio of college-educated adults entering the workforce to general population (33%) is slightly below the mean of other developed countries (35%)^[8] and rate of participation of the labor force in continuing education is high.^[9] A 2000s study by Jon Miller of Michigan State University concluded that “A slightly higher proportion of American adults qualify as scientifically literate than European or Japanese adults”.^[10]