University accreditation process culminates in campus visit
by Gary Frierson
UHCLIDIAN Staff

Representatives from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools will be on campus Tuesday and Wednesday evaluating UH-Clear Lakeıs accreditation process to determine the universityıs status for the next 10 years.

Faculty, staff and students anxiously await representatives from the association, commonly referred to as SACS, which accredits schools and universities through its Commission on Colleges in the southeastern United States, Mexico and Central and South America.

"The U.S. Secretary of Education recognizes accreditation by the Commission on Colleges," states the SACS Web site, "in establishing eligibility of higher education institutions to participate in programs authorized under Title IV of the 1992 Higher Education Amendments and other federal programs." According to the SACS self-study link on the universityıs Web site, accreditation helps assure graduate, employer and public confidence in the university and its awarded degrees. Furthermore, it serves to measure the university against itself for future development.

UH-Clear Lake was originally accredited in 1976 and is undergoing its third self-study. All indications point toward a successful reaffirmation; however, the accreditation teams visit remains paramount for completion of the process.

Members of the visiting committee, which includes 13 faculty and administrative peers from other SACS accredited institutions, arrive in Clear Lake Monday and will attend a welcome dinner at Bay Oaks Country Club. The committee is chaired by Dr. Virginia Falkenberg, associate professor of psychology at Eastern Kentucky University, and is supplemented by Dr. W. Donald Crump, associate executive director of SACS. The committee will be operating out of the South Shore Harbor Hotel.

Dr. Bruce Palmer is widely recognized on campus as the SACS reaffirmation director. Along with Dr. Edward Hayes and Dr. Fred Kierstead, he co-chairs the SACS Steering Committee, which is largely responsible for providing direction and leadership to the reaffirmation process. Palmer also chairs the Environmental Scan Committee and is coordinating the SACS visit.

Student ambassadors will play host to the visitors during their time on campus. "There will be at least three student representatives in the rooms [B2230 and B2231] at all times to basically be at SACS' disposal," explained Kimberly Barfield, Student Government Association president and a member of the SACS Student Sub-committee.

"These students have undergone training with Palmer and will assist the SACS personnel in acquiring documents, gathering faculty or staff members to answer their questions, or just providing useful insight about the campus and its amenities."

The visit culminates nearly four years of the reaffirmation process, which began in the fall of 1998 with the universityıs decision to choose the alternative model for accreditation. This model entails a rigorous self-study for compliance with SACS accreditation standards as well as the construction of a strategic plan for the universityıs future.

Members of the SACS Visiting Committee will focus on both components during their stay, studying reports and data compiled by various university committees dedicated to the reaffirmation effort. They will also meet with university personnel to ensure the institution functions at an expected level.

A substantial criterion for accreditation is response to numerous "must statements" necessary for compliance with SACS standards, explained Judy Smith, a member of the SACS Steering Committee. For example, "Each institution must have adequate procedures for addressing written student complaints." These are answered in the university compliance report, "Who We Are," organized by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and available online at the UH-Clear Lake Web site.

"Our main concern has been summarizing the compliance reports and providing documented support," said Smith, further noting that the SACS visiting committee will respond to the reports by recommending changes at which time the university can either defend or amend its policy.