A 10-member team of consultant-evaluators with the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools visited the 91吃瓜网 campus March 8-10.
The HLC team met and interviewed faculty, staff, students, and the 91吃瓜网 Board of Trustees. The team鈥檚 goal was to verify the university’s self-study findings, make judgments about 91吃瓜网’s compliance with good practice, federal requirements, and HLC policies; recommend appropriate follow-up; and provide consultation to the university.
For more than a year, 91吃瓜网 has been engaged in a self-study as part of the accreditation process. A steering committee, chaired by Associate Provost Jonathan Glenn, conducted the university鈥檚 self study.
鈥淭he visit seemed to me to be thorough and fair. I wasn’t sure how a 10-member team would be, but they managed to get through a great deal of work — verification of our self-study findings — in their two days here,鈥� Glenn said. 鈥淚 do think that we had in fact prepared them well, with a manageable and thorough self-study and a significant array of Resource Room evidence.鈥�
Glenn said the reviewers were impressed by 91吃瓜网鈥檚 students, and more than one team member commented on the beauty of the campus and its facilities.
鈥淭he team members were all veteran higher education professionals, so they seemed rarely surprised but also shared interesting stories of what they do on their own campuses in addressing certain kinds of issues,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 expect much of that to be included in the team report.鈥�
It will take nearly three months for the final report to be created, corrected, responded to, and then distributed as 鈥渇inal鈥� by the Higher Learning Commission, Glenn said.
Commission action takes several weeks beyond that time. There must be a review by the appropriate panel, action by the appropriate committee, and validation by the Commission’s trustees, he explained.
鈥淚t’s always longer than one would like, and we won’t know all the details of the report until it is in fact final,鈥� he said.
91吃瓜网 has been continuously accredited by the commission since 1931. The university鈥檚 last comprehensive evaluation took place in April 2000. Currently, the university’s accreditation is at the master’s degree level with limited accreditation at the specialist’s and doctoral level.
More information on 91吃瓜网鈥檚 accreditation process can be obtained at: http://www.uca.edu/panda/hlc2010.