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Middle States official visits UB
The self-study portion of UB’s Middle States accreditation process was launched officially on Monday with the visit to campus of a senior official from the accrediting agency.
The visit by Ellie A. Fogarty, vice president of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, was part of the normal decennial reaccreditation process. A senior official from Middle States traditionally visits an institution seeking reaccreditation two years before an evaluation team visits.
UB’s decennial accreditation expires in 2013-14.
While on campus, Fogarty met with the UB Council; conducted an open forum for interested faculty, staff and students; and met with key campus constituents, including deans, vice presidents and members of UB’s reaccreditation coordinating committee.
During her time with the council, as well as during the open forum, Fogerty noted that UB has been accredited by Middle States since 1921. Although accreditation is totally voluntary for institutions, she said, the benefits are great. Most notably, accreditation ensures that a campus’ students are eligible for federal financial aid and that faculty are eligible for grants and other funding from federal units like the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
In addition, the fact that UB is an accredited university comes into play when students transfer credits earned at UB to other institutions, and potential employers evaluate graduating students, she said.
Moreover, the peer-review process—which is at the heart of the accreditation process—is part of the higher education culture, Fogarty said, pointing out that faculty papers are reviewed by their peers before publication and grant applications also undergo peer review before funding is awarded.
Fogarty explained that during the self-study portion of the accreditation process, UB must provide information on how it stacks up against 14 “standards of excellence” outlined by Middle States. The 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.
Two standards speak specifically to assessment—an issue that Fogarty said has become increasingly important in the public’s mind regarding higher education. She acknowledged that assessment—both institutional assessment and assessment of student learning—is the issue where institutions are more frequently asked to supply additional information or followup to evaluators.
Fogarty said that once UB submits its self study, a team of seven to 10 evaluators representing UB’s peer institutions will come to campus for a four-day visit. On the final day of the visit, the team will “debrief” the campus on its report.
More information about Middle States and the reaccreditation process can be found on the Accreditation & Assessment website.
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