ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – Winthrop University’s accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) was reaffirmed at the group’s annual meeting on Dec. 6.
Winthrop seeks institutional reaccreditation every 10 years.
Preparing for the review took two years and included the submission of two reports, a Compliance Certification Report and a Quality Enhancement Plan.
Many faculty and staff across campus were involved in the generation of these reports across two academic years, according to Noreen Gaubatz, the executive director of institutional effectiveness who led the effort.
The Compliance Certification Report assures that the institution is in compliance with, and documents that compliance across, 72 standards. The Quality Enhancement Plan reflects the institution’s commitment to enhancing the overall quality of the student experience. The plan chosen by the university for the next five years is Flight Ready which will enhance career readiness for students through the first-year experience, through faculty training and alumni mentoring.
Winthrop’s reports were reviewed by a SACSCOC Off-Site Committee and then a SACSCOC On-Site Committee, with both of these committees consisting of members from peer institutions. The review process culminated with the On-Site visit in March. Those recommendations were then sent to the SACSCOC Board of Trustees which conducted its final review last week.
Gaubatz said SACSCOC accreditation signifies to the public that the institution has a mission appropriate to higher education; has resources, programs and services sufficient to accomplish and sustain that mission; maintains specific educational objectives that are consistent with its mission and appropriate to the degrees it offers; and assesses its success in achieving its stated objectives.
Accreditation also allows the institution access to federal money, which is awarded to students as financial aid.
Peter Judge, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs, said, “I am so proud of the work of the team led by Dr. Gaubatz who, over a two-year period, gathered a tremendous amount of data from across all the divisions in the university and put together a report that earned us this extremely important reaffirmation. Noreen is to be especially congratulated for her thorough knowledge of the standards and reaffirmation process, for her leadership, and her attention to details and deadlines. This is a moment to celebrate for the Winthrop University community.”
For more information, contact Gaubatz at gaubatzn@winthrop.edu.
