Northcentral University
Motto	The better way to earn to your degree
Established	1996
Type	Private
Students	7407 [1]
Undergraduates	353
Postgraduates	7054
Location	Prescott Valley, AZ, USA
Campus	Suburban and Urban
Mascot	Roadrunner
Website	http://www.ncu.edu

Northcentral University is a regionally accredited distance learning university, located in Prescott Valley, Arizona. Northcentral (NCU) offers programs and degrees in business, education, and psychology. Northcentral is classified as a DRU: Doctoral/Research University by the prestigious Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching ^[2].

Contents 1 History 2 Accreditation 2.1 Graduate Level Programs in Management Information Systems and Computer Information Security 3 Rankings 4 Notable Alumni 5 References 6 External links

[edit] History

The University was founded in early 1996 as a for-profit,^[3] 100% distance learning university based in Prescott, Arizona. The vision was to combine academics with the convenience of distance learning. NCU began by offering degree programs in business administration and psychology. Today NCU offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees (PhD, EdD or DBA) in business, education, and psychology.

The University was the first distance learning university to have its business school accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs, whose mission is to develop practices that contribute to improvement of business education. ^[4] In its brief history, Northcentral University has had more than 600 graduates. Today NCU has a student body of more than 7,500 students worldwide. NCU students represent every U.S. state and territory and 52 other nations. ^[5]

On October 8, 2008, NCU announced the university was being purchased by Rockbridge Growth Equity, LLC. Rockbridge is affiliated with other businesses including Quicken Loans, One Reverse Mortgage, Title Source, ePrize, Veritix and the Cleveland Cavaliers. ^[6]

[edit] Accreditation

It is fully regionally accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The next reaffirmation visit by the Higher Learning Commission regional body is 2013. NCU's business school is accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP). NCU's business school is also accredited by the International Assembly of Collegiate Business Education (IACBE).

ACBSP and AACSB are recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) of the US Department of Education for accreditation of business schools in the United States. Only forty-two percent of business schools in the United States possess external specialty accreditation. There are three principal accrediting agencies for business programs - AACSB which is recognized by the CHEA and is a research and excellence in instruction oriented accreditation, ACBSP which is also recognized by CHEA and is a more business oriented accreditation, and IACBE is the premier international business school accreditation. These three accreditations represent the majority of specialty business accreditation

[edit] Graduate Level Programs in Management Information Systems and Computer Information Security

The Graduate programs in Management Information Systems and Computer Information Security are recognized by the National Security Agency (NSA) of the United States government based on its certification of the school’s curriculum for compliance with the requirements of NSA national training standards NSTISSI No. 4011 (Information Systems Security Professionals)^[7] . As a result of this certification, Federal civilian and military personnel will be permitted to take the school’s certified graduate courses under government sponsorship, and the school is authorized to issue certificates to students who complete such courses.

[edit] Rankings

• NCU is unranked in the current listing at U.S. News & World Report.^[8]
• NCU is ranked 38 among 'the most significant degree-granting undergraduate online colleges that operate nationally,' as compiled by the Online Education Database (OEDb) in 2009. ^[9]

[edit] Notable Alumni

• Darin King - a Canadian politician, and Minister of Education in Newfoundland and Labrador
• Brigadier General Olin O. Oedekoven - Assistant Adjutant General - United States Army/Wyoming Army National Guard.^[10]
• Command Sergeant Major Marvin L. Hill - Command Sergeant Major - United States Central Command - United States Army.^[11]
• Colonel David W. Smartt - Command Chaplain, Installation Management Command - United States Army.^[12]
• Colonel(ret) John M. House - United States Army, currently Executive Director for Army Wargaming and Operations Analysis for AgileCast Inc, Virginia.^[13]
• Lt. Colonel Robert Herz - United States Air Force.^[14]
• Lt.Commander(ret) Sherrill Stamey - United States Navy.^[15]
• Command Master Chief Petty Officer (SW/AW) Juan Morales - U.S. Fleet & Industrial Supply Center - United States Navy.^[16]
• Rafael Azuaje - Professor of Management Information Systems - Sul Ross State University, Texas^[17]
• Mary Bornheimer - Director of Institutional Research and Planning - McKendree University, Illinois
• Deb Coffey - Assistant Professor of Business Administration and E-Commerce - Dakota State University, Dakota.^[18]
• Mark Kendrick - Instructor of Marketing - Methodist University, North Carolina.

• Janice Robinson - Assistant Professor of Accounting and Business - State University of New York, Canton
• William Rankin - Professor and Chair of Business Administration - University of Central Missouri, Missouri
• Janet McClellan - Assistant Professor of Law - University of Alaska, Fairbanks.^[19]
• Mary Ragan - Assistant Professor of Pastoral Counseling - Fordham University, New York
• Richard Lee - Assistant Professor of Computer Information Systems - Barton College, North Carolina
• Frank Cervone - Vice Chancellor for Information Systems, Purdue University-Calumet, Indiana. ^[20]
• Karen Palumbo - Director of Graduate Programs, School of Business - University of Saint Francis, Indiana
• Brian Winrow - Professor of Business Administration and Education - Emporia State University, Kansas
• Ann Marie Yaros - Associate Professor of Human Services, Matanuska Susitna College - University of Alaska, Anchorage

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• [2] Northcentral University listing in the US Universities by State -> University of Texas at Austin Database
• [3]Northcentral University receives Reaffirmation of Accreditation status from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, June 2008, NCU to be rereviewed next in 2010-2011.
• [4] NCU evaluation data of NCACS is available to the general public.
• Northcentral University
• ACBSP body accrediting business schools in the Americas
• Rockbridge Growth Equity
• [5] Carnegie Classifications > Northcentral University