Post on 14-Dec-2015
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Understanding and Adapting to the New SACS/COC Process:
The APSU Accreditation Review Project
SACS/COC 2004 Reaffirmation of APSU
Presentation to Western Carolina University
September 23, 2004
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Facts About APSU
• Member of the 2004 Cohort– Compliance Audit, August 2003– Quality Enhancement Plan, January 2004– On-site Review, April 2004
• Public, Comprehensive University• Headcount = 8,000• Located in Northern Middle
Tennessee (40 miles NW of Nashville)
• Governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents (nation’s 6th largest system)
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
President’s Perspective
• President’s past experience with SACS/COC– Commission member and
Executive Council member– Visiting Team Committee Chair– President of institution that
successfully completed an alternate self-study
– HIGH expectations
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Process - Initial Concerns• Senior executive team and academic
leadership’s limited direct experience with SACS process
• Institutional effectiveness– Lack of centralized documentation
• Credentials of selected faculty– Decentralized adjunct file locations– Lack of standardized process for
exceptions• Library resources
• Documentation, Documentation, Documentation
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
SHOCK
At the December 2001 SACS/COC Annual Meeting…
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
ANGER
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
DISMAY
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Academic VP
I’ve been on the job for less than a year. . .
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Faculty Co-chair
What have I gotten myself into?
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
SACS Liaison
I’d better think of a way to get this done right!
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
ProcessRethinking Our Strategy
• Scrapping of old process and team structure
• New team leadership• Attend orientation and training
sessions• Speed up the redesign of IE
program & documentation• Organizing for dual processes
– Compliance Audit• Web-based Reporting
– Pluses and minuses
– Quality Enhancement Plan
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
IETSDocumenting Existing Activities
• Over 20 yrs of Performance Funding in Tennessee
• Program accreditation or 5-yr program reviews
• General education testing• Major field testing• Student, Alumni, and Employer
surveys at institutional level and some disciplines
• Strategic planning process up-to-date
• Department annual reports
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
IETSDocumenting Existing Activities
• APSU was failing to document assessment and results
• APSU was failing to meet the spirit and intent of institutional effectiveness– “Closing the loop” at all
levels of the institution
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
IETSDetailed Information for Each Unit
Objective• Objective• Implementation Strategy• Assessment Criteria• Actual results• Action taken• Barriers to Achievement• Need for further action• Further resources needed
Access to sample IETS pages through http://www.apsu.edu/sacs/iets.htm
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
IETSObservations After Three Cycles
• System can be and is very flexible and constantly “tweaked”
• University has managed to take the potentially abstract concept of IE down to a process that incorporates day-to-day activities of units … rather than the opposite
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Organizing and Completing the
Compliance Audit
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Compliance AuditHuman Side
• “Streamlined” Internal Review– 1993 APSU Self-Study
• 48 members in 8 committees
– 2003 APSU Comp. Audit• 19 members in 9
subcommittees
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Compliance AuditHuman Side
• Subcommittees– Core Req.; CS on Mission,
Governance, and Admin– Institutional Effectiveness– Educational Programs
• Advising– Faculty– Library & Learning Resources– Student Affairs and Services– Financial and Physical
Resources– Federal Mandates
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Compliance AuditThe Essentials
• Each Core Requirement and Comprehensive Standard– Statement of requirement/standard– Judgment of compliance (Yes,
Partial, No)– Proof/Explanation– Plans for compliance– Documentation
Done Twice: “Dry-run” and “Official”
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Compliance AuditHuman Side
• Timeline and Process– Inst. Orientation w SACS (Spring ’02)– Organizational Mtg. (Aug. ’02)– Progress Report Meetings (Nov. ’02)– Draft Deadline (Dec. ’02)– Proofing and Editing (Spring ’03)– Dry-run of CA (May ’03)– Final Edits (Summer ’03)– Submission of CA (Aug. ’03)– Off Site Review (Sept. ’03)– Conference Call (Oct. ’03)– Follow-up Reports on 16 Items (Feb. ’04)– On Site Visit (Apr. ’04)
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Compliance AuditTechnical Details
• Web-based Reporting
• Standardized Template for Compliance Audit
• Faculty Credentials System
• Institutional Effectiveness Tracking System
Access to all info through http://www.apsu.edu/sacs
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Responding to the Off Site Review of the Compliance Audit
The “Optional” Focused Report
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Focused ReportThe Essentials
• For Each Core Requirement and Comprehensive Standard Judged as “Not Compliant” or “Unable to Determine Compliance” by the Off Site Review Team– Statement of
Requirement/Standard– Institutional understanding of oral
report from SACS/COC staff– Institutional response– Supporting documents referenced
in response
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
The Quality Enhancement Plan
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Quality Enhancement PlanHuman Side
• Leadership Team
• QEP Planning Committees– Freshman Course– Advising– Student Life & Support Services– Data Analysis– Early Alert
• Network of Support
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Quality Enhancement PlanHuman Side
• “Broad-based” Planning Committee– 46 members in 5
subcommittees
– Administration, Faculty, Staff, and Student Representation
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Quality Enhancement PlanThe Essentials
• Required of the entire plan and reflected in all action items– Widespread participation in development– Increase the effectiveness of some
aspect of educational programming relating to student learning
– Grounded in assessment and use of empirical data and analysis
– Sufficiently broad in scope to be viewed as significant to the institution
– Proof of resources to deliver on promise– Detailed plan for assessment of the QEP
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Quality Enhancement PlanHuman Side
• Timeline & Process– Discussion of QEP w Campus
Constituents (Aug.-Sept. ’02)– Organizational Meeting (Oct. ’02)– Committee Work (Nov.-May ’03)– Reports & Recommendations (May
’03)– Drafting & Editing (June-Nov. ’03)– Final Edits (Dec. ’03)– Submission of QEP (Jan. ’04)– Onsite Review and Approval (Apr. ’04)– QEP Follow-up Report (2009)
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Reflecting upon the Experience
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
Major Changes to Day-to-Day Campus Activities
• Centralization of Academic Personnel Files
• Integration of Faculty Teaching Credentials System
• Emphasis on Academic Audit• Integration of the Institutional
Effectiveness Tracking System• Documentation system to continue
through 2014• Quality Enhancement Plan: 2006,
2009, 2014 (possibly)
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
In Reflection
• Started too late to prepare (only 2 years in advance of visit)– As an institution, we had not consistently
monitored SACS compliance since the last 10-year reaffirmation
• Failed to recognize that off-site review team would not access all electronic documents or could not ask for hard copies
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
In Reflection
• Did not adequately monitor the progress of the QEP and CA committees to ensure that all were on the right track
• QEP– Made some assumptions in
advance of data analysis, thus not achieving the full benefit of the process and restricting the outcome
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
In Reflection• Take advantage of two key
publications– Handbook for Reaffirmation of
Accreditation• Matrix in the back serves as a
“cheat sheet” for reviewers on CA• QEP “must statements” all are
found in the booklet as well
– Handbook for Review Committees
Sadly…neither of these publications were available during CA or QEP development for APSU
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
What We Did Right• Selection of team leaders
– Commitment to quality report– Writing ability– Technological expertise
• Development of user-friendly IETS• Selection of QEP topic that
addressed a major institutional weakness
• Broad-based involvement in QEP• Attention to Details
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
What We Did Right
• APSU completed SACS Reaffirmation on April 6-8
–Received ZERO recommendations in Compliance Audit and Quality Enhancement Plan
Austin Peay State University
SACS Accreditation
Review Project
September 2004
Dr. Houston D. Davis
The Leadership Team AFTER the SACS Visit