Northcentral University - Ncu Learner Portal

Northcentral University is a virtual, for-profit university established in 1996. Under the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, Northcentral is classified as a Doctoral Research University. The corporate headquarters is based in San Diego, California. It is currently owned by Rockbridge Growth Equity, LLC and Falcon Investments, LLC.

Northcentral offers bachelor's, master's (MA, MBA, and MEd), specialist (EdS), and doctoral (PhD, PhDOL, DBA, and EdD) degrees in Business and Technology Management, Education, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Psychology.

In 2013, Northcentral received a five-year accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) for its Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy (MAMFT) degree program. Northcentral University’s MAMFT was the first of only two programs with distance education to receive COAMFTE’s accreditation, ensuring that the University’s program aligns with national accreditation standards. (The second is Capella University's MS in Marriage and Family Counseling/Therapy.) In 2015, Northcentral received a five-year accreditation from COAMFTE for its PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy degree program.

History

Northcentral University was founded in 1996 by Dr. Donald Hecht. In 1978 Hecht had established California Southern University, formerly known as Southern California University for Professional Studies (SCUPS).

In 2003 the University received regional accreditation from The Higher Learning Commission.

In 2007 the headquarters was established in Prescott, Arizona. In that same year, the school received ACBSP accreditation.

On October 8, 2008, Northcentral announced the university was being purchased by Rockbridge Growth Equity, LLC.

Accreditation

Northcentral is regionally accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC).

Northcentral's business school is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP).

Northcentral's master's and PhD programs in Marriage & Family Therapy are accredited by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, through their accrediting body COAMFTE and required by most US states for licensing in the field. The MFT program was the first distance education program to gain AAMFT accreditation.

Academics

Northcentral consists of three schools:

• School of Business and Technology Management (Degrees offered BBA, MBA, DBA, PhD, Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications in Business and Technology Management)
• School of Education (Degrees offered BEd, MEd, EdD, PhD, Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications in Education)
• School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Department of Psychology: Degrees offered BA, MA, and PhD in Psychology. Department of Marriage and Family Sciences: Degrees are MA and PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy; Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications)

Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) Course Certification

Northcentral is one of the higher education institutions to have some of its individual courses certified by the CNSS. According to the National Security Agency's Central Security Service website, "The goal of the Information Assurance Courseware Evaluation (IACE) Program is to expand the use of national standards in information assurance education and training throughout the nation. IACE systematically assesses the degree to which courseware from commercial, government, and academic sources maps to the national standards set by the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS)." Accordingly, Northcentral's courses have been certified as meeting "the minimum standards for the duties and responsibilities of Information Systems Security (INFOSEC) Professionals, NSTISSI 4011."

FEMA Emergency Management Institute

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of the United States Department of Homeland Security includes Northcentral's Business Administration PhD, Homeland Security Specialization in its list of "Colleges, Universities and Institutions Offering Emergency Management Courses."

Rankings

• In the edition of OEDb's Online College Rankings, Northcentral University was ranked 29 out of 65 institutions.
• Ranked 7th on Guide to Online School's "2012 Online College Rankings".
• Ranked 148th out of 205 on U.S. News Best Online Programs ranking for its Bachelors Programs among National Universities in 2013 "U.S. News Best College Rankings".

Notable alumni

• Darin King - Minister of Justice in Newfoundland and Labrador, (PhD Business Administration/Human Resources, 2002)
• Melissa Stutz - Associate Vice President of Student Engagement, Roosevelt University, (EdD in Higher Education Leadership, 2014)
• Nancy Ann Olson RN-BC, BSN, MBA Asst. VP / Chief Nursing Informatics Officer, Carolinas Healthcare System, (PhD in Business Administration/Health Care Administration, 2008)
• Michael Wachala Vice President Research and Development, Fender Musical Instruments, (MBA, 2010)
• Samuel Sudhakar Vice President for Information Technology & CIO, California State University at San Bernardino, (PhD in Business Administration, 2013)
• Phillip Price Director of Achievement, Edison learning, (MEd, 2011)
• William Koster Vice President, Protective Life, (PhD in Business Administration, 2010)
• Judy R Colwell Vice President of Academic Affairs, Northern Oklahoma College, (EdD, 2011)
• Chris Wallace Vice President â€" CPM, Regions Bank, (MBA, 2011)
• Randy L. Edridge Vice President for Finance and Administration, Rosemont College, (DBA, 2012)
• CJ Mitchell Command Master Chief, US Navy, (MEd, 2008)
• Nancy Jennings Director, Performance Services, VHA, (DBA, 2011)
• Darren Hargrove Pacific Region Dental Command Sergeant Major, US Army, (MEd, 2011)
• David Moody Vice President of Human Resources, Salina Regional Health Center, (PhD, 2003)
• Phebe McKay Chief Nursing Officer, Wesley Medical Center, (MBA, 2004)
• Robert Abel Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, DeVry University, (PhD, 2012)
• Mark Ramsey Vice President, Business Analytics & Optimization, Growth Markets, IBM, (MBA, 2007)
• Louis Fletcher Regional Director, Troy University, (EdD, 2008)
• H. Mark McGibbon Visiting National Defense University Professor, National Defense University Information College (iCollege), (PhD in Business Administration, 2009)
• Dr. Bette Daoust Directory of Technology Operations, TMMI, (PhD in Business Administration, 2004)
• Rebecca Collins Special Education Administration/Project Director, Cooperative Educational Services Agency #9, (PhD in Education - Exceptional Student Education, 2013)
• David Stout Dean, Freehold Campus, Brookdale Community College, (PhD in Psychology, 2010)
• Joel Fitzgerald Chief of Police, Fort Worth, Texas, (PhD in Business Administration, 2013)

Solvency

In 2011 the US Department of Education determined Northcentral was one of 75 US institutions failing its 2009-2010 financial responsibility test (a measure of the institution's financial solvency), and would be required to post a letter of credit in order for students to receive federal financial aid. Northcentral also failed its 2010-2011, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 financial responsibility tests, scoring zero for 2010-2011 on a scale of -1 to 3, lower than the 0.2 it earned the prior term; 0.2 for 2011-2012; and 0.2 again for 2012-2013. In 2015 the US Department of Education placed Northcentral on "HCM-Cash Monitoring 1" status because of its financial issues.

References

External links

• Official Northcentral University website
• Rockbridge Growth Equity, Northcentral's parent company