Progress Update

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Accreditation Steering Committee
Progress Update 2007 Changes February 5,
2007 400 to 500 Beto Conference Room
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Agenda for February 5th

• Opening Prayer
• Comments by President Cedel, Chair
• Accreditation Process Overview
• QEPChairs Cathy Brigham Don Christian
• ComplianceChairs Joel Heck Bill Driskill
• First draft arguments due in March
• Changes to the 80 Principles SACS-COC Policies
  
• Marriage Matrixadjustments
• Revised Interactive Compliance Workbook
• Update on Due Dates Milestone Events
• Nominating a Lead QEP Evaluator
• Decisions Finances
• Electronic format
• QEP working funds long term financial
  commitment
• Discussion items
• Outcomes assessment CAAP
• SACS-COC Small College Initiative
• Risk assessment
• Closing Comments

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Opening Comments from President Cedel,
Accreditation Steering Committee Chair

• Goal today is
• To review where we are in building the Compliance
  Certification
• To move forward with the full development of the
  QEP
• To review the changes to the Principles of
  Accreditation the impact on us
• To update key due dates milestone events
• To discuss financial corporate support for
  accreditation
• To appreciate where risk exists
• We have 7 months to resolve issues prior to
  submission of Compliance Cert in Sep 07

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Compliance Certification

• Comments by Joel Heck and Bill Driskill
• First draft of 79 Narrative arguments due in
  March 2007

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Quality Enhancement Plan

• Comments by Cathy Brigham Don Christian
• Topic Selection
• Presidents Forum
• The Road Ahead
• Changes in committee membership

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2007 Changes to The Principles

• Adds a new Principle 1.1 Integrity with 3
  related comprehensive standards dealing with
  Substantive Change, Policy Compliance, and
  Publication of Accreditation Status
• Core Requirements
• 2.5 Institutional Effectivenessrelegates program
  outcome assessment to 3.3.1 focuses the core
  requirement on the institution level of strategic
  operational planning
• 2.8 Faculty shifts credential issue to a
  guideline but adds CS 3.5.4
• 2.9 Adds services to learning resources
• 2.11 Divides resources into two core
  requirements
• 2.12 Expands the wording of the QEP principle

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2007 Changes to The Principles

• Comprehensive Standards
• Learning Outcomes3.3.1, 3.4.1, 3.5.1
• Education Programs3.4.10 deleted 3.5.3 3.5.4
  (new) deal with undergrad3.6.2 3.6.4 deal with
  grad/post-bac
• New areas about relationship with the COCadds
  3.12.1, 3.13.1 and 3.14.1
• Federal Standards
• Program length issue expanded in 4.4
• Old 4.7 shifted to 3.14.1 and expanded

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2007 Changes to SACS-COC Policies Guidelines

• Added 2substantively changed 10 most notably
• Reaffirmation of Accreditation and Subsequent
  Reports Divided the former section on the review
  of distance learning and of off-campus sites
  during the reaffirmation process into separate
  sections and outlined additional procedures for
  the review of off-campus sites.
• Substantive Changes for Accredited Institutions
  of the Commission on Colleges Incorporated a
  statement that requires an institution to host a
  substantive change committee within six months of
  the establishment of an approved off-campus site
  at which a student can earn at least 50 percent
  of the courses of an educational program, defined
  the term notification, and added the
  requirement that an institution notify and gain
  approval from the Commission when it planned to
  offer 50 percent or more of its first degree
  program via distance learning.
• Edited others to accommodate 2007 changes
• Faculty credentials now a published guideline25
  rule on terminal degreed faculty now a
  comprehensive standard

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Who are the facilitators?

• 15 Topical Categories

Graduate Programs Bob Otey
Integrity COC Relationship Joel Heck
Policies Eric Silber
General Education Donna Janes
Governance Joel Heck
Financial Physical Resources Clyde Duder
Mission Joel Heck
Contractual Arrangements Linda Lowery
Student Academic Support Services Bill Driskill
Administration Employees Shirley Carey
Faculty Credentials Larry Meissner
Institutional Effectiveness Mike Moyer Gayle
Grotjan
Staff Rosters Stan Kruse
Library Learning Resources Curt Giese
Degree Programs Yusheng Feng
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Who are the owners?

Financial Physical Resources Bus Univ Serv
Graduate Programs Acad Serv
Integrity COC Relationship President
Governance Pres, BOR, Adv Services
General Education Acad Serv
Staff Rosters Acad, Student Serv Pres/VPs
Contractual Arrangements Acad Serv
Mission Pres BOR
Administration Employees Pres, BOR, Acad Bus
Serv
Faculty Credentials Acad Serv
Institutional Effectiveness Acad Serv plus
Student, Univ, Bus Serv
Degree Programs Acad Serv
Policies Acad Student Serv
Library Learning Resources Acad, Univ,
Student Serv
Student Academic Support Services Student Serv
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Marriage Matrix

• Product of the Steering Committee tasking from
  its last meeting
• Linkage of corporate officers as owners,
  directors as program managers, and Compliance
  Committee members as facilitators
• Dynamic document, recently changed to reflect
  realignment associated with changes to The
  Principles

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Interactive Compliance Workbook

• Essentially the SACS Resource Manual in an
  online, electronic format
• Substantive changes made in the last week
• Red boxes reflect SACS-COC notes
• Blue comments reflect my view
• SACS handbooks have not been updated
• 2007 Interim edition of the Brown Book available
• ICW has to be treated as the source document now
  in place of the Green Book (Resource Manual)
• Blue and Red Books have to be tempered with
  knowledge of the changes
• I dont expect new releases of these resources
  (Green, Blue Red) in the short term
• 3.3.1, 3.4.1, and 3.5.1 are wild cards at this
  point

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Due Dates Milestone Events

• Compliance Certification due to SACS on
  September 7th, 2007
• Off-site evaluations begin in late September
  committee convenes November 5th-8th, 2007
• Focus report due Feb 1, 2008
• QEP due six week prior to March 18th, 2008
• On-site visit March 18th-20th, 2008
• Rebuttal period TBD, but typically within a few
  weeks of the on-site visit
• SACS-COC review December 5th-8th, 2008
• Results of Reaffirmation announced Dec 8th, 2008

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QEP Evaluator

• We nominate ONE candidate to serve as the lead
  evaluator of the QEP
• An institution conducting its review leading to
  reaffirmation of accreditation is expected to
  nominate a candidate to serve on the On-Site
  Review Committee as the lead evaluator for the
  Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). The Commission
  welcomes nominations from outside the Southern
  Association region. The evaluator does not have
  to be employed by a college or university.
• SACS policy statement (revised June 2006)
  addresses the nomination rule set and process
• SACS will attempt to include a presidential level
  member on the On-site committee.

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Decisions Finances

• Nature format of the electronic compliance
  certification
• Budget considerations for Accreditation
• 33,500 plus 1 FTE
• Price tag of a QEP

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Discussion Items

• December 2006 SACS-COC annual meeting
• Products on sessions workshops available
• Faculty In-Service, Jan 2007 focused on
  accreditation issues
• CAAP testing for gen ed outcomes
• SACS-COC Small College Initiative Mar 2007

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Challenges Wild Cards

• Alignment linkage of programs
• Outcomes assessment
• Faculty Credentials
• Ownership Accountability
• Time management
• Closing the Looptwo cycles
• Substantive Change Distance Learning
• Demonstrating equivalency for all students in
  academic support programs services
• Approved pending changes to the Principles
• The INTEGRITY piece

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Closing Comments
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Thank you