Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools

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Higher Learning Commissionof the North Central
Association of Colleges and Schools

• Continuing Accreditation
• 2005 Self-Study and Site Visit

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Accreditation at SMSU

• www.smsu.edu/accreditation.htm
• Lists 58 programs accredited by various
  accrediting organizations
  
•  

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Accreditation at SMSU

• Higher Learning Commission of the North Central
  Association of Colleges and Schools accredits the
  institution not individual programs 

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Higher Learning Commission (HLC)

• A voluntary, non-governmental, regional
  accrediting organization with over 1,000 member
  institutions in 19 states
  
• NCA was founded in 1895
• SMSU - by various names - has been continuously
  accredited by the NCA/HLC since 1915

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Higher Learning Commission
1,000 2- and 4-year, public and private
North Central Association prior to January 1,
2001
Covers 19 States . . .
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Focus of Accreditation by HLC

• To assess the quality of an institution and its
  effectiveness
  
• To assist the institution in making improvements
  in its operations and effectiveness
  
• To provide mission-driven accreditation

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HLC Mission Statement

• Serving the common good by assuring and
  advancing the quality of higher learning

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Self-Study and Site Visit

• Five Criteria
• Twenty-one Core Components
• Examples of Evidence
• Four Categories of Operational Indicators
• These must be addressed in our self-study

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Five Criteria

• Mission and Integrity
• Preparing for the Future
• Student Learning and Effective Teaching
• Acquisition, Discovery, and Application of
  Knowledge
  
• Engagement and Service

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Five Criteria

• 1. Mission and Integrity The organization
  operates with integrity to ensure the fulfillment
  of its mission through structures and processes
  that involve the board, administration, faculty,
  staff, and students.

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Five Criteria

• 2. Preparing for the Future The organizations
  allocation of resources and its processes for
  evaluation and planning demonstrate its capacity
  to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of
  its education, and respond to future challenges
  and opportunities.

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Five Criteria

• 3. Student Learning and Effective Teaching The
  organization provides evidence of student
  learning and teaching effectiveness that
  demonstrates it is fulfilling its educational
  mission.

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Five Criteria

• 4. Acquisition, Discovery, and Application of
  Knowledge The organization promotes a life of
  learning for its faculty, administration, staff,
  and students by fostering and supporting inquiry,
  creativity, practice, and social responsibility
  in ways consistent with its mission.

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Five Criteria

• 5. Engagement and Service As called for by its
  mission, the organization identifies its
  constituencies and serves them in ways both
  value.

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Cross-Cutting Themes

• The Future-Oriented Organization
• The Learning-Focused Organization
• The Connected Organization
• The Distinctive Organization

not a another set of criteria nor required. . .
but seem to fit SMSU
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Categories of Operational Indicators

• Demographics
• Educational Programs
• Financial Strength
• Scope of Activities
• Updated annually and addressed in self-study

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HLC Position Statements

• How SMSU addresses HLC position statements will
  be part of the 2005 Self-Study
  
• Commission Statement on Assessment of Student
  Learning
  
• Commission Statement on General Education
• Commission Statement on Diversity

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Basic Understandings
General Education/Assessment
STUDENTS
And are becoming
Are able to do
Have learned
What you have collectively defined
And intended for them to
Publicly committed to
Learn, do, and become
INSTITUTION
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Evidence of Assessment of Student Learning

• Assumption SMSU is assessing student learning
  (course, program, general education) and using
  results of assessments to improve student learning

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Assuring and Advancing Five Criteria
and Cross-Cutting Themes
Student learning effective teaching
Preparing for the future
Future-oriented
Mission integrity
Connected
Distinctive
Learning-focused
Acquisition, discovery, application of
knowledge
Engagement service
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Fundamental Shifts In Evaluation Process

• SMSU will be among the first institutions to be
  evaluated using recently revised and adopted
  criteria
  
• Experience from 1995 self-study and site visit
  will help but will not be duplicated

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Fundamental Shifts

• From inputs and resources to results
• From teaching to teaching learning
• From a look backwards to a future focus
• From autonomy to connection collaboration
• From uniformity/stratification to
  distinctiveness, flexibility, differentiation
  

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Fundamental Shifts

• Previous self-studies were snapshots of the past
  10 years
  
• 2005 self-study will show how SMSU is poised for
  the future

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Creating the Self-Study

• the overriding goal of the self-study is to
  show that SMSU is mission focused and guided by a
  long-range vision.

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How. . .?

• How do we create a self-evaluation process that
  is meaningful, useful, and will make a
  significant difference for SMSU?
  
• What forums do we use for raising the most
  important questions and holding the meaningful
  conversations that make this significant
  difference possible?
• How do we connect the self-evaluation to the
  criteria and the self-study process?

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How. . .?

• How do we write a self-study that assures peer
  institutions of our distinctive quality and
  advances the work and purposes of SMSU?

Serving the common good by assuring and
advancing the quality of higher learning.
HLC mission statement
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How. . .?
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How. . .?

• Use existing university committees to the fullest
  extent possible
  
• www.smsu.edu/acaaff/CommitteeHandbook2003-2004.pdf

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How. . .?

• Minimize duplication in 2005 self-study and next
  long-range plan
  
• Both will be 18-month process beginning January
  2004

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How. . .?
Long-Range Plan will be submitted as Part 1 of
the Self-Study Summary evaluation of the processe
s will be Part 2

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HLC Steering Committee
Dr. Jim Baker Assistant to the PresidentDr.
Sue George Teacher EducationDr. Barbara
Bushman Graduate CollegeDr. John Catau
University CollegeDr. Tom Dicke HistoryDr.
Frank Einhellig Graduate College Mr. Don
Simpson Enrollment Services
Dr. Tammy Jahnke ChemistryDr. Martha Kirker
AssessmentDr. Etta Madden EnglishDr. Pete
Richardson ManagementDr. Roger Sell Academic
DevelopmentDr. Lois Shufeldt Marketing Dr.
Bill Cheek Natural and Applied Sciences
HLC Review Committee (1997-present) and
Executive Committee Jim Baker, Frank
Einhellig, Martha Kirker, Lois Shufeldt, Bill
Cheek-Chair Also serving on UPAC Jim Baker,
Roger Sell, Lois Shufeldt, Bill Cheek
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HLC Steering Committee

• NCA/HLC Review Committee has been working since
  1997
  
• 2005 HLC Steering Committee has been working
  since 2002
  
• Now meeting twice monthly

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Self-Study Goal and Objectives

• While affirming that Southwest Missouri State
  University (SMSU) fulfills all criteria for
  continuing accreditation by the Higher Learning
  Commission, the overriding goal of the self-study
  is to show that SMSU is mission focused and
  guided by a long-range vision.
• Southwest Missouri State University is a
  multi-campus metropolitan university system with
  a statewide mission in public affairs whose
  purpose is to develop educated persons while
  focusing on five themes professional education,
  health, business and economic development,
  creative arts, and science and the environment.
  To what extent do these foci influence the
  Institutions many functions?
• SMSU-West Plains is an open enrollment, two-year
  institution separately accredited by the Higher
  Learning Commission and is not included in this
  self-study.

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Self-Study Goal and Objectives

• Objective 1. To evaluate the effectiveness of
  the Universitys continuous planning processes,
  performance measures, student learning outcomes
  measures, and the integration of those processes
  in support of the mission of the Institution.
• Objective 2. To identify strengths, issues of
  concern, and opportunities for improvement.
  
• Objective 3. To involve the Universitys many
  constituencies in the evaluation of institutional
  structures, processes, and programs, relative to
  the criteria for accreditation.
• Objective 4. To establish and implement a plan
  for systematic collection and evaluation of
  information that will facilitate future (1)
  accreditation activities for the Higher Learning
  Commission and programmatic accreditations and
  (2) continual improvement of university
  functions.
• Approved 11/14/03 by HLC Steering Committee

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Preparation for 2005 HLC Self-Study
andLong-Range Vision and Five-Year Plan
2006-2010
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Questions to Consider . . .

• Add two or three questions appropriate for the
  group