Over the past five years I have had the opportunity to work with almost 20 different institutions on various projects related to accreditation and the answer to this question from my clients has gone both ways. Most of my work is in the SACSCOC region so I will focus on the Principles of Accreditation, but much of this content will apply across the board.
Let’s start with door number one. There are certainly proscriptive elements woven throughout the Principles, and this list is not meant to include all of them. Mission statements must be reviewed by the board “regularly”. Performance evaluations must be completing in an ongoing manner independent of rank or position type. The President must, either directly or indirectly, have control over everything that happens at the institution. Academic programs and disciplines must be overseen by faculty with appropriate credentials. Planning and evaluation processes must be an ongoing part of the fabric of the institution. Institutions must evaluate program quality and student learning. Institutions must look out for their students and provide resources to foster student success. Institutions must be financially viable and must employ sound financial practices. Put that way, this does sound proscriptive and all these things take time away from serving our students.
Now, door number two. While there are requirements, SACSCOC has moved well beyond the old “must” statements and have left the institutions to approach the standards any way they want. Beyond this approach that goes beyond allowing creativity and innovation to actually encourage it, once you look at the Principles with an objective eye and consider some of the really bad institutional examples out there, you can see the logic. Over the next bunch of months I will focus the blog on a section by section trip through the Principles of Accreditation discussing hard requirements and areas where the door is wide open to a creative approach to compliance.
At Southeastern Accreditation Consultants, we’re ready to collaborate and support your accreditation journey. We bring best practices, proven strategies, and experienced process review to the table. We offer individualized services to best meet your needs during the adventure to come. Contact us to get started.