President’s Blog
Accreditation
November 05, 2007
I have just returned from Korea, where we were celebrating the 60th anniversary of our sister institution, Dankook University. While I was away, I continued to think about our recent site visit from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. I am very thankful to the many folks who participated in the self-study and extremely proud that SOU fared so well in the evaluation process.
Putting together a university–wide accreditation self–study in the same year that we were going through retrenchment took tremendous dedication, hard work, and focus. The self–study document is a balanced, careful snapshot of SOU in 2005–2006, the year before retrenchment, and also includes the key documents explaining the transitions we have gone through since that academic year.
The campus conversations that took place with evaluation team members on October 24 and 25 were wide-ranging and dynamic. The team appreciated the openness and candor of the SOU faculty, staff, students, and external folks with whom they spoke.
The commendations we received were well–deserved. I’m delighted that the visiting team noted our effective teamwork over the past difficult year as well as our strong student focus and our outreach to the diverse populations of southern Oregon.
The recommendations we received were very much what we expected. We know we need to continue developing our mission statement, working toward a strategic plan, improving assessment and evaluation practices, and developing a strong budgeting process that aligns with University priorities and provides a reasonable reserve.
When we receive the written document, we will learn more details about these and other areas on which the Commission wants us to focus. We will also begin immediately to ensure that we effectively address their recommendations.
It takes a whole university to be reaccredited. Thank you again for all the teamwork that created a successful self–study and site visit.
Mary Cullinan
