AALE was formed in 1992 with the stated purpose of "supporting and recognizing excellence in undergraduate liberal arts teaching and learning through accreditation." Founders included Jacques Barzun, retired philosophy professor from Columbia University, E.O. Wilson of Harvard University, historian Elizabeth Fox-Genovese of Emory University, and Lynne Cheney, former U.S. Secretary of Education. Its initial focus was on undergraduate education, which Barzun said had become "confused, misdirected or not directed at all." In July 1995, the U.S. Department of Education granted AALE official recognition as an institutional accreditor for colleges and universities. This recognition allowed AALE-accredited institutions in the United States to participate in student financial aid programs authorized under the Higher Education Act and other U.S. federal programs. In December 2006, the U.S. Department of Education suspended AALE's authority to accredit new institutions and programs. This restriction was lifted in December 2007. In the ruling that lifted the restrictions for a period of three years, Education SecretaryMargaret Spellings wrote of "continued concerns stemming from AALE's being cited consistently since 2001 for either not having clear standards with respect to measuring student outcomes or not collecting and reviewing data on how institutions it accredits measures student outcomes." In November 2010, AALE voluntarily withdrew its request for renewal of U.S. Department of Education recognition as a higher education accreditor. For institutions accredited by AALE in 2010 or earlier, accreditation remained valid through July 1, 2012 for purposes of federal governmentfinancial aid to students under Title IV of the Higher Education Act.
Accreditation
AALE provides two types of accreditation for higher education institutions that offer general education programs in the liberal arts. It provides institutional accreditation for universities and colleges that want AALE to be their sole accreditor and it provides program accreditation for liberal arts programs within higher education institutions that are institutionally accredited by another accreditor. AALE accreditation activities are not limited to the United States; the organization works with institutions and programs worldwide that emphasize liberal education and the liberal arts. The organization also is an accreditor of K–12charter schools and independent schools throughout the United States. As of August 2009, AALE had accredited about 20 institutions within the United States, and another dozen members outside the country. Several AALE-accredited institutions follow a "great books" approach.
Leadership
Since January 2011, AALE has been led by acting president Charles E. Butterworth, an emeritus professor of politics and government at the University of Maryland.
