Higher Education Institutions including Two-Year Colleges in the United States and some foreign countries are accredited by six regional accrediting associations. These accrediting agencies accredit the institution as a whole, unlike professional accrediting agencies that accredit degree programs within the institution.
Each of these agencies is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education http://www.ed.gov/index.jhtml and the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) http://www.chea.org/.
New England Association of Colleges and Schools accredits institutions in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and American and International Schools Abroad. http://www.neasc.org/
Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools accredits degree-granting colleges and universities in the Middle States region, which includes Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and several locations abroad. http://www.msche.org/
The Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools is the recognized regional accrediting body for post secondary institutions in eleven U.S. Southern states, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia and in Latin America for those institutions of higher education that award associate, baccalaureate, master's or doctoral degrees. http://www.sacscoc.org/
A copy of the Commission’s accreditation standards Principles of Accreditation: Foundations for Quality Enhancement is posted at the website: http://www.sacscoc.org/principles.asp
Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools accredits institutions in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. http://www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org/
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) accredits institutions in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. http://www.nwccu.org/
The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) conducts accrediting activities through three commissions and covers institutions in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Samoa, Federated States of Micronesia, Replubic of Palau, Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, the Pacific Basin, and East Asia, and areas of the Pacific and East Asia where American and International schools and colleges may apply for accreditation.
http://www.wascweb.org/
The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), a commission of WASC evaluates and accredits public and private postsecondary institutions that offer two-year education programs and award the associate degree. http://www.accjc.org/