St. Augustine’s University in Raleigh, North Carolina, has filed for bankruptcy and says it is abandoning its efforts to remain accredited.
The Raleigh News & Observer reports that because of incoming loss of accreditation, students will need to finish their studies at another university. The historically Black university owes between $50 million and $100 million to hundreds of different creditors, according to its bankruptcy filing.
St. Augustine’s says it will “continue to operate throughout the process, and a plan of reorganization is being developed." The university will focus on teach-out agreements for enrolled students and work on developing nondegree certificates and apprenticeships.
The bankruptcy filing states that St. Augustine’s biggest debt is to the IRS — the school owes $14.4 million. The school owes a significant amount to other federal agencies, with more than $7 million of debt between the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Education.
St. Augustine’s has marked each of its top 20 highest debt amounts as “disputed,” which means the university may try to argue about how much it owes.
