FOUNTAIN VALLEY : Coastline College Gets Accreditation

Fountain Valley-based Coastline Community College has received higher education’s official stamp of approval for the quality and effectiveness of its educational program.

The college, founded in 1976, recently received a full six-year accreditation from the Western Assn. of Schools and Colleges following a review conducted last fall by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, college spokeswoman Gail Jones said.

“It’s important to students because it allows them to seek financial aid and take courses that transfer to other colleges and universities,” Jones said.

Colleges voluntarily submit to periodic review, including a comprehensive self-review and an evaluation by a visiting team of peers every six years, Jones said.

Coastline conducted its self-evaluation during the past 1 1/2 years and published the results in a document called the “Self-Study Report.”

A 10-member accreditation team consisting of faculty and administrators from other community colleges visited Coastline in October to conduct interviews with college faculty, staff and students.

Based on the team’s findings, the college was given full accreditation until the year 2000.

Coastline offers a variety of educational opportunities and has an enrollment of more than 13,000 Orange County adults.