UH Hilo College of Business and Economics Earns National Accreditation

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
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Posted: Jan 11, 2005

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo College of Business and Economics (CoBE) has earned international business accreditation for the school‘s undergraduate business programs from the AACSB-International, the Association for the Advancement of Collegiate Schools of Business.

The decision by the Board of Directors of AACSB-International was announced January 7, 2005 by the chair of the AACSB Board of Directors, Doyle Z. Williams.

To achieve accreditation, business programs must satisfy the expectations of a wide range of quality, mission-driven standards relating to strategic management of resources, interactions of faculty and students in the educational process, and achievement of learning goals in degree programs. During the accreditation process, UH Hilo was visited and evaluated on October 28 and 29, 2004, by business school deans with detailed knowledge of management education applying accreditation standards that are widely accepted in the educational community.

"This is a tremendous achievement," said Dr. Marcia Sakai, director of the College of Business and Economics. "Our faculty and staff worked seven long years to lay the groundwork for last fall‘s visit, which led to the Board‘s decision. We also received countless contributions from the administration, Student Affairs, the Library, Academic Computing, Marketing and Alumni Affairs, and the Business and Industry Leaders Council, which made this a total team effort."

AACSB-International accreditation is considered the hallmark of excellence in management education and represents the highest standard of achievement for schools worldwide. A total of 482 institutions have earned business accreditation, and only 34 prior to UH Hilo are undergraduate-only programs. The University will now become one of just two institutions in Hawaiʻi that have this special accreditation.

"This is another important step that will help to position us as the State‘s leader in small business entrepreneurship," said Chancellor Rose Tseng. "When you add this to our existing programs, partnership with the Small Business Development Center and the recent opening of the Hawaiʻi Innovation Center in Hilo, it really gives us an outstanding story to tell."

The five-year accreditation period will commence in 2005, approximately one year after the College was officially established in January 2004. The programs, faculty and budget were formerly part of the School of Business in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS).

AACSB-International is a not-for-profit organization consisting of more than 900 educational organizations and corporations. Its mission is excellence in management education in colleges and universities. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, AACSB-International is the premier accrediting agency and service organization for business schools.