University prepares for reaccreditation by Miriam Gottfried Assistant News The University is conducting a self-study in preparation for its 10-yearly re-accreditation, which is set to occur on October 6-9, 2002. On that date, a visiting committee of faculty and administrators appointed by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) will come to campus to perform a review partially based on the information in the study, according to a memo by University Vice President and Secretary Peter Patton and Senior Associate Provost and Dean of Continuing Studies Billy Weitzer. The self-study was written in response to 11 standards published by the NEASC’s Commission on Institutions of High Education (CIHE). These standards include: Mission and Purposes, Planning and Evaluation, Organization and Governance, Programs and Instruction, Faculty, Student Services, Library Information and Resources, Physical Resources, Financial Resources, Public Disclosure and Integrity. The same standards are applied to all of the lower school districts, colleges, and universities in the New England region that are members of the NEASC. Each of these institutions undergoes a similar process of re-accreditation every ten years. “It’s a form of self-regulation. We agree to go through this process to show that we deliver the kind of education we purport to deliver,” Patton said. He said that the University is not facing any threat of failing to be accredited, but recognized the process as beneficial nonetheless. “It’s nothing that we should be worried about, but it is something we should be engaged in,” Patton said. “For places like Wesleyan it’s an opportunity to reflect on what we’re doing, to summarize our planning, and to direct ourselves for the future.” Weitzer also saw the University as being able to use re-accreditation as a focusing tool for future planning. “We have to ask ourselves: ‘As long as we’re required to do this, can we turn this into something useful for the University?’ One way to do this is the self-study, which, with the addition of feedback, brings us to a common understanding of where we’ve come,” Weitzer said. Patton said that, though the University has always seen the re-accreditation process as a time for self-evaluation and growth, other institutions, mostly in lower education, have faced closure when review committees found them below the standard, and their accreditation was not renewed. The eight-member NEASC review committee to arrive on campus in October will be chaired by the president of a liberal arts college. It will include faculty members and administrators from other schools who have expertise in the standards. Patton served on the review committee for Bates College last year. The committee will review the self-study and will have access to a workroom with supporting documents. There will also be opportunities during this visit for members of the University community to make comments directly to the committee. A final report will be submitted to NEASC evaluating the University’s performance, and the CIHE will review the document in order to make a final recommendation for accreditation. In preparation for next fall, the University’s self-study has been drafted and is undergoing an extensive review process. The administrator responsible for each standard completed the first draft of the evaluation of the University’s performance on that standard. Both Patton and Weitzer were involved in writing the reports for some of the standards. Patton contributed to the Mission and Purposes and Physical Resources segments and Weitzer co-authored both the Planning and Evaluation section and the Faculty section. According to Weitzer, they drew on their knowledge of the University’s past and their evaluation of its current status. “It certainly is a historical perspective. For some portions we were able to look through past reports done by the University. But the standards also required us to do new documentation because of the specific nature of the questions,” Weitzer said. Other administrators involved included Chair of the Faculty Joe Rouse, Vice Chair of the Faculty Ruth Striegel-Moore, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Judith Brown, Dean of the College Freddye Hill, Vice President for Finance and Administration Marcia Bromberg, University Librarians Robert Adams and John Kelsey, Director of Communications Justin Harmon, and Director of Affirmative Action Kathryn Friedman. According to Patton, 28 faculty members and a number of trustees then reviewed these drafts, and the results have now been opened up for student and alumni comments, which will be collected until the end of this year’s final exams on May 17. The completed report is due to the NEASC at the end of July. Weitzer said that the inherently subjective nature of the evaluation process made the comments of students, faculty, alumni, and trustees necessary to create a fair picture of the University. “Something that comes from our own perceptions needs to be checked out. As much as we think we understand the issues, we need other input to come to a balanced consensus,” he said. To review and comment on the self-study, visit http://www.wesleyan.edu/accreditation/index.html.

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