TVCC completes reaccreditation process

A team of college administrators from several different states visited Trinity Valley Community College last fall. Their goal: To make certain the college was operating within the guidelines of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).

Last month, the final result of that visit to TVCC was wrapped up in a single sentence, contained in a letter from SACS to TVCC: "SACS (has) reaffirmed accreditation. "

Once a decade, colleges undergo a rigorous reaccrediation process. SACS - a group made up of colleges in 11 southeastern states - is in charge of reaccreditation for TVCC.

After a review process lasting almost two years. SACS has agreed to reaccredit TVCC for the next 10 years. The college received the final letter of reaccreditation in July.

"I am very please with the findings of the SACS committee and very proud of the employees continuing hard work to provide our students a quality education," said TVCC President Ron Baugh.

According to the SACS website, when an institution has earned accreditation by the SACS, it signifies that it has "a purpose appropriate to higher education and has resources, programs, and services sufficient to accomplish and sustain that purpose."

Dr. Jeremy McMillen, assistant vice president for academic instruction and institutional planning at TVCC, said the college is not only pleased that it received reaccreditation, but also with how well TVCC came through the review process. McMillen led the team of TVCC employees working with SACS during the reaccreditation process.

"Not only did we receive reaccreditation, but SACS did not require us to conduct any further follow-up procedures. Not many colleges get that," said McMillen. When SACS conducts a review, the organization typically identifies areas in which the college being reaccredited needs to improve. Many colleges are required to file follow-up reports after final accreditation to make certain that improvements are being made in those identified areas.

TVCC's most recent review began in 2006, when the college submitted thousands of pages of documentation to SACS. A team of SACS reviewers then went through the paperwork, requested more information where it was needed, and highlighted a few areas where more documentation was needed in order to determine if TVCC met compliance guidelines.

After reading the paperwork, SACS' primary request for more information was in the area of the college's measurement system. SACS asked TVCC to demonstrate that it had accurate measures in place to measure student learning and to measure the annual progress of each department.

Following the initial review, TVCC had a few months to respond. TVCC demonstrated to SACS that there were adequate measurement procedures in place. Those procedures had been put into place before the SACS review.

Following the paperwork review, a team of nine reviewers from SACS visited the TVCC campuses in late October 2006. Reviewers were from other colleges in SACS and the team was made up of presidents and other highranking college officials.

The group spent most of a week pouring over more TVCC documentation, visiting with faculty and staff members and talking to student focus groups.

When the team left, its response to TVCC was very positive. The college's Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), which addresses ways the college wants to improve student learning, received many positive comments from the SACS team, said McMillen.

"The team commented that it was apparent that we havc worked hard to improve our campus culture, which was evident in the quality of our QEP, its focus, and the involvement of the entire campus community," said McMillen. "It has been a twoyear road, but the employees of TVCC banded together to demonstrate to the SACS team how committed they are to learning and to this college. "

At the end of the October visit, the team recommended only two improvements to the college. Those recommendations were regarding the college's QEP. The team recommended the college make sure that the plan was more fully integrated into the college's long-term plan and that every department on campus be a part of the QEP.

Getting only two recommendations was much better than the college expected, said McMillen. The last time the college went through the reaccreditation process. TVCC received 17 recommendations.

"Only receiving two recommendations is a strong indicator that SACS believes in what we are doing here at TVCC," said McMillen. "The committee communicated a very strong message that we are going in the right direction. "

In the months following the October visit, TVCC has put plans into place to integrate the two suggestions into the college's planning process. Because those plans met SACS requirements, TVCC was reaccredited with no follow up reports required.

TVCC will undergo reaccreditation again in 2016.