Business schools are at a crossroads, and it is time to seriously rethink or redesign business education. The purpose of this chapter is to cover the foundation of (business) ethics and the meaning of business ethics. In so doing, this chapter will cover the topic of accreditation in higher educational institutions, and the teaching of business ethics courses in higher educational institutions.
TopFoundation Of Business Education And Accreditation In Higher Education Institutions
In light of criticisms regarding business education in higher education institutions, it would be prudent for business schools to assure their stakeholders of quality and accountability. Accreditation is one method of holding a program or institution accountable and demonstrating that the program/institution meets at least a minimum quality threshold. The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) defines accreditation as “a process of external quality reviewer created and used by higher education to scrutinize colleges, universities and programs for quality assurance and quality improvement” (Eaton, 2011, p. 1). Accreditation serves several roles, two of which include “assuring quality and “engendering private sector confidence” (Eaton, 2011, p. 2-3). CHEA indicates that “accreditation in the United States is about quality assurance and quality improvement. It is a process to scrutinize higher education institutions and programs” (Eaton, 2011, p. 11).
The goal of CHEA is to assure “that accrediting organizations contribute to maintaining and improving academic quality” (Eaton, 2011, p. 9). CHEA’s role is to review and scrutinize the quality and effectiveness of accreditors and recognize them. CHEA does not accredit institutions or programs, rather, CHEA accredits that accreditors. CHEA recognizes sixty institutional and programmatic accrediting organizations, including three [levels (gold, silver, and bronze)] that accredit business programs: the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International, the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Program (ACBSP), and the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE). Hence, a higher educational institution receiving regional accreditation does not necessary translate to the same higher educational institution receiving one of the three levels of accreditation for its business program.
Currently, there are six regional accrediting agencies for educational institutions in the United States: