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American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) |
Since 1920, the American Association of Community Colleges has worked toward becoming the leader and voice for the education offered through community colleges in the United States. The association was partially formed by a previous U.S. commissioner of education and was originally formed as a junior college accreditor, named the American Association of Junior Colleges. Since, the popularity of two-year colleges has changed the common term used to refer to them, from junior colleges to community colleges (though there are still many places in the country where they are most commonly called junior colleges). Nearly 95 percent of today's community and junior colleges are accredited by the American Association of Community Colleges. That means there are over 10 million students a year that earn an associate's, or certificate degree through AACC accredited education. The association's colleges are located both in the United States and throughout the world, in places like Puerto Rico, Japan, Great Britain, Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. Accreditation at the two-year college degree level is especially important since about 45 percent of all U.S. graduates are coming out of community colleges. The AACC is one of the six largest accreditation bodies, making it's influence on the trends and legislation concerning education very important. The AACC has ongoing interaction with many different federal departments to try to coordinate the quality of education with the goals and future of the country. |