Spring 2009
Transkript
Spring 2009
TheEvaluator Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools Volume II, Issue II Spring 2009 CEO Roundtable ACICS hosted executives from career colleges and career college organizations for a roundtable discussion in February in Washington, D.C. The discussion allowed the Council and ACICS’ new Executive Director and CEO, Dr. Albert C. Gray, to better understand the needs and interests of member institutions and involved parties. The dialogue focused on major issues affecting ACICS and the career college sector. Of primary concern for the participants was the stigmatic and inaccurate portrayal that career-focused schools persistently receive in the news media and during policy debates. As a premier accrediting organization of career colleges, the CEOs encouraged ACICS to assist its member institutions by continuing to create credible quality assurance measures and promoting appropriate policy formation at the local, state, and national level. Roundtable conferees also expressed a strong desire for ACICS to develop an intensive public relations and marketing strategy that reaches editorial boards, trade associations, chambers of commerce, policy makers, and other realms of influence. The strategy should encompass a “get out of D.C.” campaign in order to create and promote communications and relationships with those at the grass roots level, such as state career college associations. Among many other topics, the conferees recognized the rising concern over educational outcomes and the role that accrediting agencies play within that discussion. ACICS must stay ahead of the curve by tracking data and generating comprehensive analysis of our institutions’ learning outcomes and effectiveness, according to the CEOs. Dr. Albert C. Gray, ACICS Executive Director and CEO, greets guests at the reception for the CEO Roundtable. Message from the Executive Director In light of the discussion at the CEO roundtable, ACICS would like to take a moment to acknowledge our dedicated and talented evaluators. The role of the evaluator is crucial in promoting the good word and good work of ACICS. Most importantly, you must strive to produce fair and thorough reports which will benefit our students and enhance the integrity of the accreditation process. Furthermore, ACICS evaluators, by nature of their fields of expertise, interact with influen- tial organizations. It is ACICS’ hope that you will convey the ideals purported by our mission and our standards in those interactions. ACICS thanks all of our evaluators who have spent from days to months to years upholding the Council and the career college sector’s values of integrity, quality, and effectiveness. Sincerely, Accreditation Criteria Changes The following criteria have been recently reviewed and have been accepted as final by the Council: (The underlined portions are newly added language and the struck through portions are deleted language). A. Program Administration, Planning, Development, and Evaluation 3-1-511 Program Administration. The administration of the academic programs shall be assigned to individuals whose academic or experiential qualifications are related to the programs of study. The amount of time devoted to the administration of the program(s) must be commensurate with the size and scope of the institution and its program offerings. Within the administrative structure of the institution, program administrators or department heads shall have authority and responsibility for the development and administration of the programs and have adequate time and resources to fulfill these responsibilities. 3-1-515. Specialized Accreditation. If a program is accredited by a specialized accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council on Higher Education Accreditation, the Chief Executive Officer of the institution shall attest to ACICS and provide documentation that it is in compliance with the standards of the specialized accreditor. B. Visiting Teams, Selection, and Composition 2-1-403. Evaluation of Separately Accredited Programs. If, in compliance with Section 3-1-515, an attestation and documentation have been provided to ACICS that a program at an institution has been separately accredited by a specialized accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council on Higher Education Accreditation, ACICS at its sole discretion may accept those documents as evidence that the accredited program meets an acceptable level of quality. Continued on Page 2 Accreditation Criteria Changes Continued from Page 1 C. Redesignation of Campuses 2-2-202. Reassignment classification of campuses. Institutions seeking to reassign the classification of a campus must submit a written request that includes the rationale to the Council. If the grant expiration date of a reassigned branch campus and their new main campus are different, the campuses new expiration date will be assigned based on the original expiration date of the new main campus the earlier of the original grant lengths. However, the Council reserves the right to assign an on-site evaluation visit at either the main or branch campus at any time as it deems necessary. D. Standard of Academic Progress Appendix D Standards of Satisfactory Progress. Article 13. The institution has rules for students who change programs, as well as for students who seek to earn additional degrees credentials. For instance, an institution may have a policy that for a student who changes programs it will include in the determination of a student’s satisfactory academic progress standing the credits attempted and grades earned that count toward the student’s new program of study. Such a policy must be part of the institution’s written policy. The updated Accreditation Criteria is available on the Web site. The subsequent version of The Evaluator will include criteria accepted as final, effective July 1, 2009 in the Faculty Credentials for Academic Associate’s and Bachelor’s Degree Programs and the Educational Activities sections as well as any other changes deemed final and effective before September 1, 2009 by the Council. Please review the Memorandum to the Field posted on our Web site to gather further explanation on all changes to the Criteria. For any questions, you may contact a member of the travel staff, or Ms. Kimberlee Moore at kmoore@acics.org. The Written Report By Billie Joy Langston Evaluation visits involve a host of duties. There are meetings with students, faculty, and staff. Classroom observations are conducted and a generous number of files are reviewed. Of course, you can’t forget the lunch menu decision making process, as well. But as the first day of the visit begins to unfold, members of the evaluation team undoubtedly pull out their flash drives to begin the process of preparing and writing reports. Although the report is designed as a check-off template, there are sections requiring short narrative descriptions of what was observed and learned on-site as well as descriptions of any citations found. It is within these report sections that details of the visit are captured. The team evaluation report is the official ACICS document that memorializes the visit in perpetuity. Given the significance of the Report Templates report for current institutional assessment and historical purposes, evaluators are charged with the responsibility to document evidence in an institutional review. Information contained in reports must be accurate, factual, and relevant. The best reports are those written with correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation; complete and full sentences; no abbreviations; good diction; and proper names written out (e.g., cities and states). Evaluators are encouraged to EDIT, EDIT, EDIT. Team chairs are reminded of your responsibility to edit the final iteration of the report. By Perliter Walters-Gilliam Before you get to work on those report templates, please double-check the version. In the spirit of continuous improvement, we’re making additional revisions to Sections 1 – 9 of the New Grant/Branch Inclusion/Initial Grant/Credential Inclusion as well as the New Program Report and the Readiness Visit Report templates. As such, you should be using Ver. May 1, 2009 located on our Web site at http://www.acics.org/evaluators/ content.aspx?id=2438. This link can be found under the Evaluators tab and the Report Templates heading. As the spring travel cycle begins, take a few extra moments to carefully review the report you’ve prepared while conducting an evaluation visit. The report will reflect your extra efforts to produce a quality product both now and in the future. Clothes Encounters of the ACICS Kind By Jennifer Gwatkin “The finest clothing made is a person's skin, but, of course, society demands something more than this.” ~Mark Twain − All of us who participate in site visits are representatives of the Council. As such, we are expected to present ourselves as professionals. Dressing nicely and appropriately demonstrates respect for the people with whom we interact. Aim for “appealing,” not “revealing.” Steer clear of short skirts and low-cut tops. − Please avoid athletic or “summer” footwear. Socks should be calf-length or above. Try to have them match not only what you are wearing, but also each other (I struggle with that myself). − Exceptions may, of course, be made for religious or medical reasons. While we do not want to squelch your individuality or present you with cumbersome “absolutes,” we do wish to extend a few friendly reminders as we embark on a new travel cycle: − Business attire is different from weekend wear. While we all want to be comfortable, please no track suits and no denim of any color. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to run them past your visit coordinators. Technology Project grams, submit applications online, and receive automated updates at key points within the approval process. By Susan Greer Dear Evaluators. ACICS is excited to share with you some of the enhancements and additions that are underway for our technology systems. Some will benefit you directly, as valuable members of the ACICS accreditation family, while others will help us to improve our turn-around time when assisting our member institutions. In addition, on July 1 ACICS will launch a new expense reimbursement tool replacing the Business Portal. The first improvement is our static Web site. If you haven’t already done so, please log onto www.acics.org and take a look at the site. The look and functionality have been updated and we are very proud of the end results. That is just the beginning - there is more to come! On July 1 ACICS will launch our new dynamic Web site. Member institutions and evaluators will be able to access their records from our new database. What benefit will this provide to you? This means you will have ownership of your personal contact information. You will have the ability to log on and change your home/work/alternate addresses, telephone numbers, and email addresses. From now on you can make sure we always know how to contact you about visit information and where your reimbursement check should be sent! The new dynamic Web site will also provide you the ability to view your credentials. Member institutions will be able to view their pro- The new software is called Concur™ and it will be connected to our dynamic Web site. It was developed for and used by many major corporations, and we will all benefit from its greater flexibility and power. If anyone is curious and would like to take a look, the link is included below. Remember ACICS is customizing this product to fit our needs and benefit our customers, so the final product will be simplified in areas and enhanced in others. http://www.concurtraining.com/customers/concur/deployment/ corporateeditionT&Etoolkit/index.htm This is an exciting and busy time for ACICS. We will be contacting individuals and institutions asking for assistance with the testing and fine tuning next month, so please hold any feedback or comments for later. In June, we will have a demonstration of many different aspects of this new Accreditation Management System during our Annual Meeting in Orlando. If you haven’t already registered, please do so soon by logging onto our Web site. Finally, there will be instructions and additional information coming shortly, so check your e-mails and mailboxes. Evaluator Recognition Reimbursement Issues ACICS appreciates all of our professional peer evaluators for the dedication and service provided to the Council and its mission. ACICS each year will celebrate excellence in peer evaluation by recognizing and honoring the outstanding chair, student relations, and overall evaluator. By Tom Wickenden Evaluator of the Year Terry Campbell Chair of the Year Rogena Kyles Student Relations Evaluator of the Year Joyce Strout Those recognized in 2009 reflect the endorsements and accolades of their peer evaluators, site team chairs, and ACICS staff. The Evaluators of the Year will be recognized at the ACICS Annual Meeting. The three honored guests will be invited to the meeting to receive a formal appreciation for their diligent and inspiring efforts. EVALUATOR EVALUATIONS The future selection of Evaluators of the Year will be strengthened by an assortment of evaluations. ACICS staff requests that all evaluators participate in the process of evaluating the staff coordinator, peer evaluators, and the on-site visit itself. Forms for each of these evaluations now reside on the ACICS Web site. To find them please go to http://www.acics.org/evaluators/ content.aspx?id=2172 . This link can be found under the Evaluators tab and the Evaluator Resources heading. PLEASE PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE FOLLOWING ITEMS WHEN SUBMITTING REQUESTS FOR REIMBURSEMENT Most of the reimbursement requests we receive are accurate and welldocumented. However, a few items typically require extra analysis by our accounting staff and may involve contacting coordinators and/or evaluators for additional documentation. To expedite the reimbursement process and ensure your reimbursement request is accurate, please pay special attention to the items listed below: MEALS INCLUDED ON HOTEL BILLS – Our travel policy requires separate itemized receipts for all meals charged on hotel bills. Receipts should be submitted in the same format as those received during a normal restaurant visit, and should include the number of individuals in attendance. UNEXPECTED/PREAPPROVED EXPENDITURES – Staff Coordinator’s must complete an Approval Form for all unexpected/pre-approved expenditures. This includes car rentals, airfare purchased in excess of $1,000.00, additional night stays, and changes in flight plans that result in additional charges. Please be sure to get approval from the Staff Coordinator prior to booking/submitting for any of the above. Please review our travel policy for additional reimbursement requirements. CASH TIPS – The limit on tips related to housekeeping, baggage, and concierge services is $20.00 per visit. Any amount over $20 will not be reimbursed. This does not include tips for car/cab service and meals. SUBMISSION ERRORS – Any adjustment to amounts recorded in error will require the accounting department or staff coordinator to reject your submission. In order to move forward with payment, you must correct all noted errors. If your report is rejected by the accounting department for any reason, you will be notified via e-mail from our accounting system, Solomon. Please note that we cannot process any portion of your reimbursement unless the errors are corrected or the line item is removed from the submission. Stories from the Road Animal Encounters Edition The Evaluator is pleased to once again bring you our “Stories from the Road” segment. A Coyote Visit By Billie Joy Langston Is it a bird, a plane, or a coyote? If you’re site visiting in upstate Indiana, the answer is unequivocally “coyote.” During a recent evaluation visit to an ACICS school, my evaluator and I had the exhilarating experience of seeing and observing a coyote alongside the interstate. Our first glimpse of the animal occurred when we exited the highway for our hotel. We couldn’t figure out what this weird looking animal was that resembled a large dog. The fact that the moon was shining brightly added to the mystery of our coyote sighting. Neither of us had ever seen a real live coyote. We wondered what criteria we could use to adequately assess the coyote’s positioning within our designated path during a site visit. Maybe this stretch of highway was his off-site location. Or maybe he was searching for community resources. Then maybe there were evening classes he had to attend. Needless to say, wherever your travels take you, be on the look out for a coyote encounter while on the road (hopefully, not in the air). Olé By Sarah Parsons After a visit in Fresno, California, an evaluator and I decided to drive up in our Chevy Blazer to see the famous Giant Sequoia trees. On the way up the mountain we passed an animal standing on the passenger’s side of the road. I stopped the car in order to take a picture of this beautiful animal next to the enormous trees. The animal did not seem to find this moment as harmonious as myself: it glared back at us and began scraping the dirt with its front hoof. It then circled around the back of the vehicle where it turned to face us. The Augustus Mays’ Departure evaluator yelled “Drive, drive, it’s going to charge us!” I put the pedal to the metal and did not look in the rearview mirror until we were around the next bend. It may be a point of interest to mention that the bull was staring at our RED Chevy Blazer. I don’t think I will be visiting Pamplona anytime soon. This article relies on submissions from staff and evaluators. If you wish, please share one of your “stories from the road” with our Evaluator Management Team for possible inclusion in the next newsletter. Please send any submissions to iharazduk@acics.org. Vista and Business Portal All of you Vista users rejoice. Our Business Portal software is now compatible with Microsoft Vista. Those evaluators who had been utilizing the paper form entitled “Evaluator Request for Travel Reimbursement” are now to use the Business Portal. Dear Evaluators, It is with mixed emotions that I send this note. As some of you know, I have accepted a position at another company. It was not an easy decision to make because I truly enjoyed working with all of you over the years. The login procedure for those with the Vista operating system is detailed below (No change has been made to all other PC users): I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation to my friends and colleagues. I have learned a great deal from you and will miss your company. It has been a great pleasure working with you all. − Username: acicsmain\“00” + <Member Number> (Example: acicsmain\0012123) Best wishes to you all. − Sincerely, Password: “00” + <Member Number> (Example: 0012123) Augustus Mays Any questions regarding this issue may be directed to Ian Harazduk at (202) 336-6795 or iharazduk@acics.org. Evaluator Training Workshop Participants ACICS acknowledges the following new evaluators. These individuals attended an evaluator training workshop in 2009 and have completed their paperwork. Welcome Aboard! Ruth Abbott Monica Foote Michelle McCarthy Derrick Richardson Kathleen Bigelow Kim Gillepsie Darlene Minore Danita Sanders Josette Crebs Frederick Holland Joseph Molmer David Schaitkin Ruth Darton Lenny Davis John Knost Elisa Lima Necmi Mutlu William Norris Pat Schlotter Gilda Taylor Wyman Dickey Shawm McCartee Michael O’Donnell Nick Tex Paul Dietz The Evaluator staff thanks all those who provide editorial and contextual feedback. We would like to pay special thanks to those who have contributed articles for this issue. The Evaluator is maintained by Ian Harazduk, Evaluator Coordinator, any questions or concerns about the publication may be directed to him at iharazduk@acics.org.