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Middle States reaccreditation under way
UB has begun work on a significant project to renew its Middle States accreditation, a major institutional undertaking that examines all facets and programs of the institution—from the undergraduate, graduate and professional academic enterprise to business operations, student services, distance learning and offshore programs.
UB’s decennial accreditation expires in 2013-14.
UB is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the unit of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools that accredits degree-granting colleges and universities in the middle states region. Accrediting bodies, through their periodically revised standards, affirm that institutions meet basic academic standards and are moving forward in achieving the prescribed educational outcomes for their students.
Accreditation offers an institution the opportunity “to formally state its mission, identify the population it serves and demonstrate the extent to which it is achieving its institutional mission and goals,” says Michael Ryan, director of university accreditation and assessment.
“I really view it (reaccreditation) as a process of continuous self-improvement.”
Ryan, a former vice provost and dean for undergraduate education, is leading the process, bringing his own experience as an external reviewer for the Middle States commission. Other members of the coordinating committee are Jason Adsit, director, Teaching and Learning Center; Kathleen Bissonnette, coordinator for evaluation, assessment and planning, Division of Student Affairs; Carol Tutzauer, director of assessment, Teaching and Learning Center; Carol VanZile-Tamsen, research analyst, Office of Institutional Analysis; and John Wood, associate vice provost, Office of International Education.
The key component of the two-to-three-year reaccreditation process is the self-study, an extensive report in which the university outlines its institutional goals and the progress it’s made in reaching these goals in light of key standards of excellence that the commission expects of institutions of higher education.
Six larger working teams will address 14 standards of excellence outlined by Middle States. Ryan says the standards have changed slightly since UB’s last decennial review in 2003, with a greater emphasis on assessment. While two standards speak specifically to assessment—institutional assessment and assessment of student learning—the concept is “infused” in all 14 standards, he adds.
Other standards cover such topics as institutional mission and goals; planning, resource allocation and institutional renewal; institutional resources; leadership and government; administration; integrity; student admissions and retention; student support services; faculty; educational offerings; general education; and related educational activities.
All but one of the working teams already has held preliminary meetings. The teams, whose members were appointed with input from the vice presidents, deans and vice provosts, will develop a document providing evidence of how UB is meeting their respective set of standards; all documents will be assembled into the final self-study document that will be sent to Middle States.
Ryan says that in an effort to make the reaccreditation process more efficient and effective—“and lead to a better result”—he and other members of the coordinating committee will provide substantial assistance to the working teams.
During the spring semester, each team was given a charge and a set of research questions “to provide guidance” when considering its standard. “We believe that by addressing those research questions in the self-study document, we also will address Middle States’ expectations,” Ryan says, noting that in undertaking their research, the teams are free to modify or edit the questions, or may develop or pose new questions as they deem appropriate.
The coordinating team also has put together an inventory of resource materials—data, reports and other information—that might be helpful for these teams in doing their work.
During the summer, the coordinating committee will address any further questions or requests for information from the working teams, assemble additional resource material as needed and then draft a working document that the teams can modify and enhance with relevant detail and evidence.
“So rather than starting from a blank sheet of paper, we’ll have drafted something that they can begin with as a kind of foundation in order to make more effective and efficient use of everyone’s time and effort” Ryan says.
Beginning in the fall, the working teams will review, research and revise their self-study drafts; compile data; and assemble evidence and relevant documentation that UB meets the 14 Middle States standards for excellence.
A steering committee with broad representation from across the campus and from the six working teams formally will be constituted in the fall to oversee the business of the working teams as they refine their final documents.
Ryan expects to hold a mock accreditation review sometime next year, during which experienced Middle States evaluators will come to campus and focus their attention on two key areas: general education and assessment. Their feedback will be used to strengthen elements of UB’s self-study document, he says.
Once UB submits its self-study document to Middle States—sometime in 2013—an official team of evaluators will visit campus and meet with various constituents. The visit, which likely will occur in spring 2014, will offer an opportunity for the evaluators to obtain further information, confirm evidence submitted through the self-study or address questions that might be based on the materials UB has submitted, Ryan says.
The evaluators will hold an “exit debriefing” at the end of the campus visit, offering UB administrators a glimpse into their findings. “We will pretty much know any of the major issues that might be raised in the formal report,” he says. Once the formal report is released, UB will have an opportunity to respond. The report then will go to the full Middle States commission, which will make a final determination on UB’s reaccreditation status.
Ryan points out that having the campus informed and broadly engaged in the reaccreditation process is critical. To foster campus engagement, a website is being created, a communication plan is being developed and town meetings will be conducted to gather feedback, he says.
“The more that faculty, staff and students are informed with regard to the intent and purpose of accreditation, the better it is for the institution,” he says. “Accreditation is about moving forward and it is in our own self-interest. It is consistent with our institutional values of academic excellence and support of academic excellence.”
Ryan notes that his experience as a Middle States evaluator can be helpful. “I’ve seen the process from the other side as an evaluator and I have attended a number of Middle States workshops. UB’s administrative leadership and the coordinating committee have a good understanding of Middle States’ expectations and how evaluation teams look at institutions,” he says. “So I think that having this insight and strong support from the institutional leadership positions us for a successful outcome. The project will identify opportunities for improvement and work to be done, but we will have a clear understanding of what it is we need to do and how we need to go about doing it.”
Ryan stresses that accreditation is not an adversarial process. “The evaluators are our peers,” he says. “The intent is to help the institution meet its full potential, operate as effectively and as efficiently as possible, and effectively meet the unique challenges that confront the university in the 21st century.
“It is important for us to realize that the evaluators are not coming as auditors; they are coming to provide constructive and reflective advice on our comprehensive self-study as a major public research university.”
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