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To be an "accredited"
institution, UK must comply with standards set by the Southern Association
of Colleges and Schools (SACS). The Criteria for Accreditation published
by SACS emphasizes the central role of "institutional effectiveness" in
the accreditation process
"The concept of institutional effectiveness is at the heart
of the Commission's philosophy of accreditation and is central to
institutional programs and operations. It pervades the Criteria for
Accreditation. This concept presumes that each member institution is
engaged in an ongoing quest for quality and can demonstrate how well it
fulfills its stated purpose. The quality and effectiveness of education
provided by each member institution are major considerations in
accreditation decisions. Although evaluation of educational quality and
effectiveness is a difficult task requiring careful analysis and
professional judgment, each member institution is expected to document
quality and effectiveness by employing a comprehensive system of
planning and evaluation in all major aspects of the institution."
"The Commission advocates no single interpretation of the concept of
institutional effectiveness. It does, however, expect each member
institution to develop a broad-based system to determine institutional
effectiveness appropriate to its own context and purpose, to use the
purpose statement as the foundation of planning and evaluation, to
employ a variety of assessment methods, and to demonstrate use of the
results of the planning and evaluation process for the improvement of
both educational programs and support activities. Educational quality
will be judged finally by how effectively the institution achieves its
established goals." |
