Self-Study Process

The Self-Study Process began in February, 2008, when President Sechrist announced to all employees that it was time to begin the formal process of preparing our next self-study document. In the ensuing six months, members of the Steering Committee were named as well as subcommittees for each of the criterion areas. In August 2008, Dr. Sechrist discussed the accreditation process during Convocation and a formal "Kick-Off" was held on August 15, 2008, featuring a visit from Dr. Andrew Lootens-White, Vice President of the Higher Learning Commission and the college's liaison. Dr. Lootens-White provided an overview of the process of accreditation and a successful self-study. During the Fall of 2008, the Steering Committee and the subcommittees for each criterion of the self-study were convened and began meeting regularly.

Each subcommittee developed its own working strategy. The subcommittee developed statements for each core component of their criterion and statements of evidence for each. These were submitted to the self-study writer. The writer met with the subcommittees as requested, and there was frequent communication with the subcommittee members to request clarification or elaboration of the statements of evidence. The draft of the self-study was reviewed by the Steering Committee, the President and his Cabinet. The document was also placed on the College's Website for all employees to review.