GEORGETOWN, Ky. (ABP) -- One year after being placed on probation by its accrediting association, Georgetown College has been "given a clean bill of health," according to college president Bill Crouch.

Georgetown was placed on probation in December 2004 by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools due to financial concerns. SACS' Commission on Colleges reported at the time that Georgetown "failed to demonstrate compliance" with the requirement of financial stability.

In 2004, Crouch and other Georgetown officials expressed disappointment with SACS' action, noting that the school had already made progress in addressing financial issues. The 2004 SACS report, which followed a two-year monitoring period, noted that the school "has demonstrated significant recent accomplishments in addressing non-compliance" and had provided evidence to indicate "it will remedy all deficiencies within the 12-month period."

In the wake of the post-911 economic downturn, Georgetown's net assets declined by more than $16.5 million, from $61 million to $44.5 million. Since that time, the school's net assets have increased to $52.4 million, according to James Moak, Georgetown's chief financial officer. The school's long-term endowment also has rebounded.

Affirming the school's efforts to address SACS' concerns, Crouch said, "We're just glad it's over with. It took a lot of our time and energy we could have used in other ways."

In addition to addressing the probation issue, Georgetown officials spent recent months negotiating with Kentucky Baptist Convention leaders about changing their financial and governance relationship. The plan, approved in November by KBC messengers, specifies that Georgetown will elect its own trustees beginning in 2006 and that the KBC will phase out Georgetown's $1.3 million convention allocation over the next four years.

Citing the school's successful efforts on both the SACS and KBC fronts, Crouch said, "We've had a really fine couple of months." Looking to the future, he added, "We think we're going to have our most successful year ever in terms of enrollment and fund-raising."

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