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University receives another 10-year accreditation

May 7, 2009 By Dennis Chaptman

Following two years of preparation and self-study, a visiting team of consultant-evaluators has told campus officials that the university will be reaccredited for the next 10 years.

A site visit from a team assembled by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools was held April 27–29, and consultant evaluators reported that they liked what they saw.

Interim Provost Julie Underwood says the process successfully incorporated strategic planning and provides the university with a roadmap for the campus’s future.

“The reaccreditation process created broad-based alignment, defined our priorities and provided a lens through which we could assess where we are and create our future as a great public research university,” Underwood says. “I want to extend my thanks to the accreditation, self-study and theme teams for their tireless and excellent work in this effort.”

Nancy Mathews, who led the campus’s reaccreditation effort during the past two years, says the site visit team held 48 meetings across campus attended by more than 380 faculty, students and staff and reviewed in detail a 317-page self-study.

“They indicated that we have met all of the criteria for reaccreditation and that the self-study and visit were superlative,” Mathews says. “The chair of the panel told us that the meetings held around campus breathed life into the work of the self-study.”

Officials expect written confirmation of the reaccreditation to arrive in about six weeks.

Accreditation is the primary means of assuring accountability and improving the quality of higher-education institutions. It is required for federal and state funding and is a prime authority for private-sector financial support. The university has been continually accredited since 1913.

Mathews also expressed her gratitude for the work done by those involved in compiling the self-study and those who took time to attend meetings with the site-visit team.