NW FEMA director ran a coffee shop, got his degree from a "diploma mill"

the northwest regional FEMA director, John Pennington, who was a 4 time Republican state representitive ran a "mom and pop" coffee shop and got his degree from a "diploma mill" college the Seattle Times reports...he is in charge of the governments disaster response in Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Idaho, Just before his appointment, Pennington received a bachelor's degree in business administration from California Coast University in Santa Ana, Calif., which at the time was an unaccredited correspondence school. The school now is accredited, he makes $138,000 a year in his post...

Former state Republican Jennifer Dunn, who was Bush's 2000 chairwoman in Washington state reccomended Pennington for the job but said she didn't know that his degree came from a correpondence school....

well the beat goes on....i am reassured to know that when we get the Big earthquake, or mt st Helens or Ranier blow that we will be in the good hands of another member of the "good ole boy" network

seattletimes.nwsource.com...

Whats a correspondence school?

If it's what I think it is, what's the problem? We have the Open University here in the UK and you can do a (proper) degree there. You do most of your work from home and attend for certain seminars/courses and exams.

It is also well respected by business and education centres.

some correspondence schools are legit, many are not, since the government investigaters called this school a "diploma mill" this school wasn't one of the legit ones

In testimony before Congress last year, investigators for the General Accounting Office identified California Coast as a diploma mill.

The investigators were looking into California Coast and two other unaccredited schools that got $169,000 in taxpayer money to pay the tuition of 463 federal employees who enrolled as students

Regardless of the school issue he should not be in charge of this. I would rather have a police officer, firefighter, EMT, a civil engineer. Not this guy.

Like where I got my Doctorate in Bootyology and Arnold Schwarzenegger got his Masters degree in Government Finance & Administration with a minor in English.

OMG, then YOU'RE more qualified than he is or Ahnold

Seems to me that these correspondence schools in the US are not the same standard as the OU here if that is your opinion of them.

The OU do a pretty good selection on a range of solid subjects.

Thinking of doing a BSc in Physics myself through them.

I cannot afford to take time to attend Uni full time, I have a family to support, so I need to do my degree this way.

The cost is slighlty less (still looking at several thousand for the full BSc) and the standard of the award is as highly regarded by industry as if you attended the Uni physically.

I just hope that your attitude towards these schools in the US is well founded, as it seems you are showing little respect to those whose only choice of further education is via this avenue.

Most of those correspondence schools here are not acredited. In other words people would laugh when they saw your diploma.
I am sure there are some credible ones, but not many.

Totally different cultural and educational situation between the two. It's a well established joke in the US. It's not remotely open to interpretation around here.

Like the inspector said they're called "diploma mills" in the US for a reason. I'm sure it's very different elsewhere and quite a necessary option. Here it's usually something different.

This will help to explain to you how college accreditation works- www.ed.gov...



You can get a legitimate degree here in the U.S., same as you described of the U.K. The problem here is that Mr. Pennington went to an unaccreditated university (ie diploma mill), assumedly just to 'pad' his resume. When in reality the diploma isn't worth the paper it's written on.

It's comforting to know that any candidate for an important position, such as northwest regional FEMA director, is greatly scrutinized. And not just given to any hack claiming to be a bootyologist.

How do you think I got to be Dr Nerdling for only 49.95?

Ok, thought it would be the case of there being a fundamental difference.

Sorry if I came off a bit strong, but it made me a little unsettled to think that people would regard my (hopefully) new degree with disdain.

I don't think that would be the case now.