Brenau University’s business program will join an elite international group after receiving an initial accreditation from a respected council.The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs, based in Kansas, is a “specialized accreditation association for business education supporting, celebrating and rewarding teaching excellence.”“What business students look for in an institution is that their diploma will mean something once they get into the world,” said Bill Lightfoot, dean of the College of Business and Mass Communication. “This is an assurance of quality — that Brenau measures up to a higher standard in the business school world.”About 5 percent of the world’s business schools have the ACBSP accreditation and fewer than 10 of the 70 or so master’s in business administration programs in the Atlanta area have the distinction.“This really expands the relationships that we can have globally with other colleges and universities and strengthens the bond that our students can have with students from those institutions,” Lightfoot said. “Other institutions simply prefer to partner with peer institutions sanctioned by the same accrediting body.”The university currently partners with three universities in China and is seeking to improve those relationships.Two school officials recently visited the country to strengthen those ties.Brenau currently offers M.B.A. and various bachelor’s degrees, including a bachelor’s in business administration and a B.B.A. in accounting.“With some 2,400 business schools in the United States, ACBSP is an important distinction,” said Suzanne Erickson, associate dean for assessment and operations.