Internal Letter sent from Dr. Sal Arria to the ISSA staff - RE: DETC Accreditation

Today marks a monumental event for the entire fitness profession. This time, the ISSA truly raised the bar for the fitness industry by becoming the first fitness organization in the United States to have earned accreditation through the distinguished Accreditation Commission of the DETC.

The Accrediting Commission of the DETC is listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency, and is a recognized member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

For the ISSA to earn this prestigious national accreditation, unlike any fitness organization in the United States, the ISSA passed rigorous onsite evaluations by DETC examiners. In addition to passing an institutional evaluation, ISSA's educational programs were subjected to the scrutiny of peer review by independent, third party examiners and passed with stellar grades.

The ISSA is also very proud to announce that we are the only fitness organization in the U.S. that has earned the right to register and utilize a .EDU domain. No other fitness organization has earned this respected honor.

Eligibility for a .edu domain name is limited to U.S. postsecondary institutions that are institutionally accredited, i.e., the entire institution and not just particular programs, by agencies on the U.S. Department of Education's list of Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies. These include both "Regional Institutional Accrediting Agencies" and "National Institutional and Specialized Accrediting Bodies" recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

The only accrediting bodies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education are listed below.

http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/accreditation_pg7.html

You won't find NCCA on this list. They aren't authorized by the U.S. Department of Education to grant accreditation.

The ISSA chose to pursue and meet the DETC's difficult standards for accreditation because the Commission is dedicated to fostering quality assurance, protection of the rights of the students and institutional self-improvement through voluntary accreditation via peer evaluation. DETC accreditation aims to instill public confidence in DETC institutions' missions, goals, performances, and resources through rigorous application and peer-developed accreditation standards.

I'm very proud to celebrate with each of you today and from here out, as we continue to provide high quality education, excellent student service and constantly strive to help each of our students and professional members succeed.

This is a monumental occasion for the fitness industry, for the fitness profession, for all ISSA Professional members. I thank you, the incredible staff and professors of the ISSA, for helping us prove yet AGAIN, that the ISSA is truly the World Leader In Fitness Education and Certification!!

Very sincerely,
Sal