The U.S. Department of Education last Friday ended recognition of a troubled accreditor of for-profit colleges, the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, giving the institutions under its purview 18 months to find a new accrediting agency or risk losing access to federal funding. ACICS used to accredit more than 230 colleges — including now-shuttered for-profit giants, such as ITT Technical Institute and Corinthian Colleges. Today, the beleaguered accreditor only oversees about two dozen institutions. Collectively, they enroll about 3,800 students, according to the Education Department.
