Southeastern University (Washington, D.C.)

This article is about a defunct university in Washington, District of Columbia. For the university in Lakeland, Florida, see Southeastern University (Florida).

Southeastern University (Washington, D.C.)
TypePrivate
Active1879–2009
Address
501 I Street SW
,
Washington, D.C.
,
U.S.

38°52′46.7″N 77°1′10.2″W / 38.879639°N 77.019500°W / 38.879639; -77.019500
CampusUrban
Degrees offered:Associate, Bachelor, Masters
ColorsBurgundy, Gold    
MascotHawk
Websiteseu.edu (archive)
southeastern.edu (archive)

Southeastern University was a private, non-profit undergraduate and graduate institution of higher education located in southwestern Washington, D.C. The university lost its accreditation from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education on August 31, 2009. The Commission reported that the college lacked rigor and was losing faculty, enrollment, and financial stability. The 130-year-old school ceased offering classes after an extended summer session in 2009.[1][2] The closure was very likely linked to the Great Recession.

Southeastern University was established by YMCA and chartered by an Act of Congress in 1879. It had degree programs in Criminal Justice, Child Development, Public Administration, Business Management, Accounting, Finance, Liberal Studies, Computer Science, and Allied Health, a program initiated in 2006 at Greater Southeast Community Hospital. There were also certificate programs in entrepreneurship, property management, real estate, Web development, and others. It was a member of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area but lost this affiliation after the Fall 2009 semester.[3][4]

Through the spring of 2009, Southeastern University had a total enrollment of about 870 students, with 222 of those students pursuing postgraduate degrees. About 77% were locally based,[5] and a majority (60%) were female, but there was also a significant international enrollment.[6] International enrollment had been in decline after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, when the student population shifted from international students to primarily low-income District residents.[2] The university employed approximately 140 faculty and staff before the university was notified of its loss of accreditation.[7][8]

  1. ^ "SEU Press Releases (irrelevant page)". Southeastern University. Archived from the original on April 28, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ a b de Vise, Daniel. D.C. University Loses Accreditation: Southeastern Doesn't Expect to Offer Fall Classes. Washington Post. September 14, 2009
  3. ^ "Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area: Southeastern University (March 31, 2009)". Archived from the original on April 1, 2009.
  4. ^ "Home Page – Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area (February 26, 2010)". Archived from the original on February 26, 2010.
  5. ^ "Southeastern University – At a Glance". College Board. Retrieved May 22, 2007.
  6. ^ "About SEU". Southeastern University. Archived from the original on April 29, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ "Faculty". Southeastern University. Archived from the original on August 21, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  8. ^ "Staff and Administration". Southeastern University. Archived from the original on August 19, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)