Overview of the Revised Accreditation Standards and New Oversight Process Ronald L. Baker Executive Vice President and Director, Standards Revision and Implementation Project

Intention Provide Update Provoke Thought Promote Dialogue

Incongruence Most of us do not look as handsome to others as we do to ourselves. Assiniboine Tribal Proverb

Definition Regional accreditation is a voluntary, non-governmental process of self analysis and peer review that assures educational quality and encourages purposeful improvement through evaluations based on institutional mission, accepted academic standards, and expectations of the public.

Stakeholder Interpretation Accreditation has not served to ensure quality, has not protected the curriculum from serious degradation, and gives students, parents, and public decision- makers almost no useful information about institutions of higher education. Anne D. Neal

Administrative Interpretation [Accreditation] is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy. Ernest Benn

Faculty Interpretation We put the ‘no’ in innovation. Post Shredded Wheat Commercial

Redirection When you discover you are riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount. Dakota Tribal Proverb

Impediment Tradition is the enemy of progress. Wilcomb Washburn (Seen in 1952 on Navajo Nation boarding school)

Substitution What we call ‘progress’ is the exchange of one nuisance for another nuisance. Havelock Ellis

Homo Academicus Most people are in favor of progress; it’s the changes they don’t like. Anonymous

Balance The art of progress is to preserve order amid change and to preserve change amid order. Alfred North Whitehead

Barometer You can judge your age by the amount of pain you feel when you come in contact with a new idea. Pearl Buck

Perspective The challenge is for us to see beyond the innumerable fragments to the whole, stepping back far enough to appreciate how things move and change as a coherent entity. Margaret Wheatley

Methodology 1) Analysis 2) Synthesis Method consists of two correlative and complementary processes: 1) Analysis of complex totalities into their parts; and 2) Synthesis of parts into their totality. However, the two processes by themselves are imperfect and require each other for the full development of knowledge and understanding. Joseph L. Esposito

Characteristics Analysis Reductionistic Take Apart Isolate Knowledge of Function Synthesis Holistic Put Together Correlate Understanding of Purpose

Standard An accreditation standard is a principle- based statement of expectations for institutional practice that concurrently: 1)Functions as an indicator of educational quality and effectiveness by which institutions are evaluated; and 2) Provides guidance for continuous improvement.

New Accreditation Standards Standard One: Mission, Manifestations, and Expectations Standard Two: Resources and Capacity Standard Three: Planning and Implementation Standard Four: Effectiveness and Improvement Standard Five: Mission Fulfillment, Sustainability, and Adaptation

Core Theme A core theme is a manifestation of a fundamental aspect of institutional mission with an overarching common purpose that guides planning for programs and services, development of capacity, and application of resources to fulfill that aspect of the mission.

Integration Communities of Function and Communities of Interest

Distillation Institutional Mission Core Theme Objectives Programs / Services Goals or Intended Outcomes Intentions of Contributing Components

Theme 1 Human Resources Education Resources Student Support Resources Library and Information Resources Financial Resources Physical and Technical Infrastructure Governance Theme 2 Theme 3 Theme 4 Theme N... Human Resources Education Resources Student Support Resources Library and Information Resources Financial Resources Physical and Technical Infrastructure Governance

Discernment Core Theme or Embedded Value

Examples Access Quality Student Success Faith Formation

Enforcement You can get more with a kind word and a gun than you can with a kind word alone. Alphonse Capone

Septennial Accreditation Cycle ProcessYear Standard

Year Three Committee Chair Mission, Core Themes, Objectives Governance Evaluator Education Resources Evaluator Student Support Resources Human Resources Evaluator Library and Information Resources Evaluator Financial Resources Physical and Technical Infrastructure

Year Seven Committee Chair Mission Fulfillment Adaptation Sustainability Evaluators One Evaluator for Each Core Theme

Reporting Structure Biennial reports reflect institutional reality throughout the accreditation cycle Approved changes incorporated in next scheduled report with previous chapters modified to reflect those changes Reduced need for interim reports/visits Year Seven report reflects current reality over all standards and provides a foundation for the next cycle

Pilot Institutions Carroll College Columbia Basin College University of Alaska Anchorage Wenatchee Valley College

Calendar for Pilot Institutions

a Institutions scheduled for comprehensive visits in 2009 or 2010 will be evaluated under the current standards and process b For 2011 reports and visits on all standards institutions may elect to be evaluated under the current standards or the revised standards Septennial Schedule Decennial Schedule Conversion Calendar - Accredited Institutions Revised February 12, 2009

Conversion Calendar - Candidate Institutions Septennial Schedule a For Fall 2010 reports and visits, institutions may address the current standards or the revised standards. b Beginning in spring 2011, only the revised standards will be used. Decennial Schedule

Accreditation Events and Cost Comparison *Average ten-year total for institutions with comprehensive visits; Does not include institutions with multiple comprehensive visits. 1 Combined total of progress reports and focused, regular, and comprehensive reports and visits. 2 Combined total of focused, regular, and comprehensive visit evaluators.

Year One Report Title Page Title of Report Institution Name Date Table of Contents Introduction (1 page maximum) Institutional Context (1 page maximum) Preface Brief Update on Institutional Changes Since Last Report Address Topics Requested By the Commission

Year One Report (continued) Section I: Mission (3 Pages Maximum) Mission Statement Mission Core Themes Definition of Fulfillment of Mission and, Within that Definition, Interpretation of an Acceptable Threshold or Extent of Mission Fulfillment. Date and Manner of Most Recent Review of Mission and Core Themes

Year One Report (continued) Section II: Core Themes For each Core Theme: [3 Pages Maximum Per Theme] Title and Description Objectives Indicators of Achievement of Objectives Rationale as to Why the Indicators are Assessable and Meaningful Measures of Achievement Section III: Chapter One Summary (1 Page Maximum)

Year Three Report Update Preface and Expand Year One Report to Include: Chapter Two (Standard Two: Resources and Capacity) Section I: Governance Section II: Human Resources Section III: Education Resources Section IV: Student Support Resources Section V: Library and Information Resources Section VI: Financial Resources Section VII: Physical and Technical Infrastructure Section VIII: Chapter Two Summary Report Summary (Chapters One and Two)

Year Five Report Update Preface and Expand Year Three Report to Include: Chapter Three (Standard Three: Planning and Implementation) Section I: Institutional Planning Section II: Core Theme Planning For each Core Theme: Integration with Strategic Plan Alignment of Resources and Capacity For Educational Programs within Core Theme: Undergraduate Programs Graduate Programs Continuing Education and Non-Credit Programs Section III: Chapter Three Summary

Year Five Report (continued) Update Preface and Expand Year Three Report to Include: Chapter Four (Standard Four: Effectiveness and Improvement) Section I: Assessment - For each Core Theme Alignment of Objectives, Resources, and Capacity Assessment of Achievement Core Theme Objectives and Goals/Outcomes of Programs and Services For Educational Programs Program Assessment Student Learning Assessment Use of Results for Improvement Core Theme Summary Section II: Chapter Four Summary Report Summary (Chapters One, Two, Three, and Four)

Year Seven Report Update Preface and Expand Year Five Report to Include: Chapter Five (Mission Fulfillment, Sustainability, and Adaptation) Section I: Mission Fulfillment Section II: Adaptation and Sustainability Section III: Chapter Five Summary Report Summary (Chapters One, Two, Three, Four, and Five)

Outstanding Issues All requests for 2011 or later ARFE, Progress, Focused, and Regular reports will be rescinded. Each institution will address the subject(s) of those requests as an addendum to its 2011 report under the new standards and process.

Timeline SpringRefine Standards Late SpringPenultimate Draft JulyFinal Board Review SummerFinalize Standards FallRegional Meetings Late FallMembership Vote January 2010Board Ratification January 2011Implementation

Final Thoughts Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore. Judy Garland as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum) Just when I knew all of life's answers, they changed the questions. Anonymous Change is not made without inconvenience Samuel Johnson If you’re going through hell, keep going. Winston Churchill

General Comments and Questions