Honolulu–The Commission of the Council on Occupational Education (COE) has granted accreditation to the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI APCSS). An announcement of the action was made by Dr. Lois Gackenheimer, Commission Chair, following the Commission Meeting of the Council on Occupational Education on September 16, 2021.

The award of accreditation status is based on an evaluation to demonstrate that DKI APCSS meets not only the standards of quality of the Commission, but also the needs of Fellows, the community, and employers.

The Commission’s evaluation process includes an extensive self-study by the Center and an intensive review by a visiting team of professional educators representing the Commission’s member institutions from other states.

DKI APCSS began its self-study in July 2020 and underwent a team visit in June 2021. The visiting team chairperson was Dr. Darline Glaus.

The Council on Occupational Education, based in Atlanta, Georgia, offers quality assurance services to postsecondary technical education providers across the nation. Organized as a non-profit corporation, the mission of the Council is to assure quality and integrity in career and technical education. Services offered include institutional accreditation as recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, program quality reviews for states and technical education providers, and informational services. Most of the Council’s work is carried out by qualified professional volunteers who are experts in technical education.

Institutional membership in the Council is voluntary but can be achieved only by becoming accredited. The Council’s current membership makes it unique. Members include postsecondary public technical institutes, specialized military, and national defense schools, Job Corps Centers, private career schools, non-profit technical education providers, corporate and industry education units, and federal agency institutions. No other agency accredits and serves the diversity of organizations served by the Council. There are over 500 institutional members at the present time.

The Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies is a U.S. Department of Defense institute that officially opened Sept. 4, 1995, in Honolulu, Hawaii. DKI APCSS addresses regional and global security issues, inviting military and civilian representatives of the United States and Indo-Pacific nations to its comprehensive program of executive education and workshops, both in Hawaii and throughout the Indo-Pacific region. More than 14,500 Fellows have attended courses at DKI APCSS.