Dominican, St. Mary’s and Academy of Art face accreditation warnings

WASC Senior College and University Commission put Dominican University of California, St. Mary’s College of California and Academy of Art University on accreditation warning, a status that can shake student confidence and put federal aid, program continuity and campus planning under pressure. Dominican’s commission action is dated June 26, 2026, and Academy of Art’s is dated Feb. 13, 2026.

At Dominican, the commission said the San Rafael university had seen "multiple years of declining enrollment and deteriorating finances resulting in ongoing operating deficits" that endangered its ability to meet standards. The status page lists Dominican as "Accredited on Warning" and shows 1,000 undergraduate full-time-equivalent students and 979 graduate FTE students, a campus size large enough that even small cuts can affect course schedules, advising and professional-preparation programs.

Dominican’s accreditation page says accreditors review whether universities have sufficient resources, faculty and student services. The commission informed the university on July 9. The school has already navigated earlier pressure: in 2023 it was preparing to absorb students from Holy Names University as that East Bay school shut down after saying it was struggling with rising operational costs, and a May 2024 site visit report documented an accreditation visit for Dominican’s professional preparation programs.

Academy of Art University, at 79 New Montgomery Street in downtown San Francisco, is also listed by WSCUC as "Accredited on Warning." The commission said the for-profit university fails to meet required standards for finances and academic progress. That makes its warning especially consequential for students in San Francisco County, because it points to both financial strain and the risk that degrees or course sequences could slip off track.

St. Mary’s College of California was placed on warning in June for its "ongoing operating deficits." Together, the three cases show where fallout tends to land first: student trust, enrollment decisions and the ability of Bay Area campuses to keep programs stable enough for current students to finish what they started.