ABOUT PICCOLO INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (PIU)

History

Two teams, five people, with different backgrounds, had a shared vision: to transform real estate education. In November 2005 both parties incorporated their respective educational entities.

The Institute of Construction Management & Technology (ICMT) was the inspiration of Dr. Ham Shirvani and Mr. Hadi Makarechian, world renowned academic leader and land developer respectively. Nouveau University was the creation of Jim and Mary Piccolo, and Bob Snyder, business leaders renowned for their transformation of the real estate investing seminar business.

March, 2007: ICMT admits its first students

October, 2008: Nouveau University, acquires ICMT

December, 2008: Nouveau University becomes Piccolo International University

Diploma Mills

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation’s (CHEA) report entitled, “Toward Effective Practice: Discouraging Degree Mills in Higher Education” states, “We are likely to be dealing with a degree mill when the operation is accurately described by some or all of the following. Any one of these descriptors should be cause for concern:

• Lack legal authority to operate as higher education institutions or award degrees:
  Piccolo International University is licensed in the State of Arizona by the Arizona State Board for Private Postsecondary Association: http://azppse.state.az.us/Licensee/LicenseeDetails.aspx?id=gJiyvjyQSf8%3d
• Require little if any attendance, either on-site or online:
  At Piccolo International University we require that students participate continuously throughout the entire eight week terms.
• Require little if any coursework or few if any assignments to obtain a credential:
  At Piccolo International University our courses require a lot of work on the part of our faculty and students. Students much complete weekly discussion questions as they interact regularly with a faculty member and other students. Each course has assessments that may include, but are not limited to quizzes, term papers, group projects and examinations.
• Do not provide information about location of incorporation, ownership or governance:
  Piccolo International University is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Camelback Education Group, Inc. Our board members are listed in our catalog.
• Provide little or no contact information other than telephone or email address:
  Piccolo International University’s contact information is located on our website: http://www.onlinepiu.com/contact-us/default.aspx
• Publish false or exaggerated claims of external quality review (accreditation or quality assurance):
  Piccolo International University is not accredited. We are in the process of applying for accreditation.
• Issue degrees that are not accepted for licensing or entry into graduate or professional programs in the degree mill’s home country:
  Piccolo International University only offers degrees in business and construction management.
• List academic staff whose degrees were issued by degree mills or are unable to provide verifiable lists of academic staff and their qualifications:
  All of our adjunct professors must possess a graduate degree from a regionally accredited university, plus have practical work experience in their field of study. The names and academic credentials of all of our faculty are listed here: http://www.onlinepiu.com/about/faculty/default.aspx. Moreover, the credentials of our executive team are displayed here: http://www.onlinepiu.com/about/leadership/default.aspx.
• Plagiarize material from legitimate institutions for inclusion on degree mill websites:
  Plagiarism by our faculty, staff and students will not be tolerated.
• Feature Websites with Internet domain registration that is obscured by a privacy service rather than being publicly accessible:
  Our domain www.OnlinePIU.com was registered through GoDaddy.com: http://domains.whois.com/
• SOURCE: http://www.chea.org/pdf/degree_mills_effective_practice.pdf