SACS

SACS Meeting Minutes

November 17, 2004

Members Present:
Stephen Tomasovic, Ph.D., Committee Chair
Michael Ahearn, Ph.D.
Weldon Gage
Marilyn Greer, Ph.D.
Dr. Toya Candelari
Donna Hemphill
Kathy Hoffman
Robert Jenkins
Shreya Kant
George Stancel, Ph.D.
Jon Wiener, Ph.D.

Members Absent:
Shaun Caldwell
Victoria Knutson, Ph.D.
Janet Price, Ph.D.

I. Review of Minutes

The committee was asked to review the minutes of the last meeting and forward any changes to the minutes to Maxine Stredic.

II. Consultant's Visit to MDACC, January 2005

Dr. Tomasovic discussed use of a consultant from the Consultant Network. The Consultant Network is housed in the SACS office and receives referrals from SACS, but is not directly affiliated with the SACS organization. The Consultant Network consists of individuals from around the country which are available to assist institutions with their Compliance Report. Dr. Margaret Sullivan is the head of the Consultant Network. She has been involved in The University of Texas Health Science Center's accreditation in past years and has agreed to be the consultant to review our initial application as well as our compliance report. The SACS application, the letter from Dr. Rodgers concerning the outcome of the application review, and the strategic plan were all forwarded for her review.

Notes of extended telephone calls between Dr. Sullivan and Dr. Greer are provided in the handouts. Dr. Sullivan's initial comments were regarding assessment and strategic planning. Dr. Sullivan also pointed out that SACS is requiring that institutions show that students are competent in general education courses. The institutions can no longer rely on the fact that the students took the courses and received grades for them, but must begin testing the students. A question from a committee member was posed as to whether this procedure would be enacted in the Graduate and Professional Schools. It was concluded that it would not likely be enacted.

In December, Dr.'s Tomasovic, Ahearn and Greer will be meeting Dr. Sullivan at the SACS National Meeting in Atlanta, GA to obtain initial feedback from her regarding the compliance areas she feels the institution should strengthen. They are also preparing for her visit to the institution January 18th and 19th. A meeting with the entire committee may not be necessary. Dr. Tomasovic does not expect any big issues for Finance or Library, but is expecting a majority of time to be spent on assessment and strategic planning. In regard to the availability of guidelines to follow for general education assessment upper division undergraduate programs, committee members were directed to the handout "A Programmatic Approach to General Education Assessment: Successful Implementation and Documentation which is a workbook from a previous SACS workshop.

III. Review of Core Requirements

Dr. Tomasovic has been working on the Compliance Report which consists of two parts, the Core Requirements and the Comprehensive Standards. He indicated that he has reviewed the Core Requirements and revised, added and deleted various documents. A handout was provided to each member of the substantial changes made to the Core Requirements Section of the Compliance Report. Dr. Tomasovic stated that he was careful to document and respond to each phrase and/or component. Members were asked to review the document and provide any improvements or suggestions. Dr. Tomasovic requested that Dr. Candelari review the Student Services Programs and Activities section in Core Requirement 2.10. Dr. Tomasovic indicated that this will be a complex area to explain because the students have access to student services at both institutions.

Dr. Tomasovic briefly went through the Core Requirements handout making note of Core Requirements that needed revisions and those that should be of no issue.

Core Requirement 2.1, Degree-Granting Authority did not sustain any significant revisions. Dr. Tomasovic wanted to verify that the name of the graduate school was documented correctly.

Core Requirement 2.2, Governing Board; not an issue.

Core Requirement 2.3, Chief Executive Officer; Dr. Greer indicated that in the last discussion with Dr. Sullivan, Dr. Sullivan she requested that more documentation be provided on why the president is considered a good president. Dr. Tomasovic referred Dr. Greer to Adrianne Lang to obtain a short bio.

Core Requirement 2.4, Institutional Mission; not an issue.

Core Requirement 2.5, Institutional Effectiveness; more complex and requires more details on strategies and outcomes.

Core Requirement 2.6, Continuous Operation; updated for 2004-2005 academic year.

Core Requirement 2.7.1, Program Length, not an issue.

Core Requirement 2.7.2, Program Content, text added.

Core Requirement 2.7.3/2.7.4, General Education; revised to achieve better clarity.

Core Requirement 2.8, Faculty; Dr. Greer indicated that faculty form has changed. SACS now wants the number of publications, awards and citations. Review will be necessary.

Core Requirement 2.9, Learning Resources and Services, not an issue.

Core Requirement 2.10, Student Support Services, Dr. Candelari will review.

Core Requirement 2.11, Financial Resources, not an issue.

IV. Timetable for Completion of DRAFT Compliance Report

Dr. Tomasovic has contacted Dr. Jack Allen to confirm the date that Dr. Allen will need to receive the Compliance Report to ensure an accreditation visit by June 2005. A response has not yet been received, however, once the date is confirmed a timetable can be established for completion of the Compliance Report. Dr. Tomasovic indicated that he is expecting to have a site visit by the consultant in January and will also receive some guidance from her in December and will work actively on whatever issues she brings forth. He expects that the Compliance Report would need to be submitted in March and no later than April 1. Dr. Tomasovic indicated that the Compliance Report will be submitted in hardcopy and on the web. Dr. Greer's staff is currently in the process of setting up the Core Requirements on line along with documentation to enable the university community to review the documentation and provide any comments or suggestions as well as for Dr. Margaret Sullivan and others to review for navigation and functionality. Dr. Tomasovic indicated that the goal is to receive the site visit in the summer so that the institution can potentially receive the accreditation report, respond to any recommendations and attempt to have the report added to the Commission on Colleges agenda for the December meeting. If the report is not added to the December agenda the next available opportunity would not be until June of 2006. Provided there are no major recommendations, the process of submittal may be as early as September. Dr. Tomasovic expects to get more clarity on the dates from Dr. Allen.

V. Additional Discussions

Dr. Candelari and Dr. Ahearn discussed the time frame for an open house to make students aware of the new Student Affairs Office. Dr. Ahearn indicated that a date had not been provided as to when the space would be available for use, but he does concedes that the open house should occur at the same time that the space becomes available for use and all students are present. The target date is January, but may be later.

The meeting adjourned at 10:54 a.m. The next meeting is scheduled for:
December 15, 2004, 10:00-11:00 a.m., HMBB.116
Submitted for review by Maxine Stredic, Education Research and Assessment

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