2012 ACCSC Community Service Award Finalists, Stanbridge College

IRVINE, CA, November 07, 2012 (Press-News.org) Stanbridge College, a technical college that offers Masters, Bachelor and Associate of Science degrees and diploma programs in Allied Health and Information Technology, was named a 2012 ACCSC Community Service Award Finalist by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges. The award is designed to recognize ACCSC-accredited institutions that have made outstanding contributions to their local community through service initiatives. Stanbridge College was recognized for its REACH - Beyond the Classroom Service Learning and Civic Engagement Initiative and its wide variety of community service partnerships in 2011 and 2012.

"ACCSC is very proud of the continuing efforts made by Stanbridge College to be a force of positive change in the Irvine, California metropolitan area. The dedication of staff, faculty, and students to make a difference in their local community is worthy of recognition," noted Christopher Lambert, ACCSC's Director of External Affairs.

"We are pleased to be recognized as a finalist for the 2012 ACCSC Community Service Award," stated Yasith Weerasuriya, President of Stanbridge College. "Stanbridge is dedicated to helping the poorest of the poor in our community. Engaging our students with our community is an integral part of our identity and program curriculum. We thank the ACCSC for recognizing our program with this honor."

For the 2012 Community Service Award, ACCSC considered several compelling aspects such as the scope and impact of community service initiatives, the commitment of a school to its community, and a demonstration of how the initiatives touched the personal lives of students and members of the community alike.

Stanbridge College REACH - Beyond the Classroom Service Learning and Civic Engagement initiative, Stanbridge College encourages its students, alumni, and staff to give back to both the Southern California and global communities. The Service Learning component of Stanbridge College REACH enables students to apply their knowledge and skills learned in the classroom to community service while earning credit in a structured learning environment.

Since January of 2011, Stanbridge College REACH hosted and participated in 32 fundraising, volunteering and service learning events. Staff, students and alumni provided over 3,467 man hours of community service, raised over $46,000 for global disaster relief and local charities and donated over 4,022 items to those in need in Orange County and around the world. These projects include packing care packages for US Marines overseas, serving a meal to over 250 homeless people monthly and assisting over 2500 people with medical services at free public health fairs.

Stanbridge College partnered with over 29 non-profit organizations to help distribute funds and donations including Second Harvest Food Bank Orange County, Lestonnac Free Clinic, Toys for Tots Marine Foundation, Veterans First Orange County, and Mariners Outreach. As part of its service learning program, Stanbridge College Allied Health students have worked with the County of Orange and the Orange County Medical Reserve Corp to help deliver medical services to the public.

Stanbridge College was recognized with the award from ACCSC at the 2012 Professional Development Conference hosted on September 10-12, 2012 in San Diego, California.

To learn more about Stanbridge College REACH outreach efforts, please visit http://www.stanbridge.edu.

About Stanbridge College
Based in Irvine, CA, Stanbridge College is a co-educational, technical college with an annual enrollment of over 900 students. Founded in 1996, Stanbridge is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC). Stanbridge College offers Masters, Bachelor and Associate of Science degrees and diploma programs in Allied Health and Information Technology.

In 2009, 2010 and 2011, Stanbridge College received an award from Institutional Research & Evaluation, Inc., as one of America's Best Technical Colleges. Stanbridge has also been named to the 2009, 2010 and 2011 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement. In 2008-2009 Stanbridge College was the recipient of the School of Excellence Award from the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC), and since 2007 it has maintained one of the highest continuous pass rates in California on the NCLEX-PN nursing exam, with a 96% five year average pass rate. For more information, please visit http://www.stanbridge.edu or call (949) 794-9090.

About ACCSC
The Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges ACCSC) is dedicated to ensuring a quality education for more than 250,000 students who annually pursue career education at 800 accredited institutions located across the United States.

ACCSC's scope of recognition with the U.S. Department of Education includes the accreditation of private, postsecondary, non-degree-granting institutions and degree-granting institutions, including those granting associate, baccalaureate and master's degrees, that are predominantly organized to educate students for occupational, trade and technical careers, and including institutions that offer programs via distance education.

Read more about ACCSC online at http://www.accsc.org.