Faculty, staff and administrators gathered in the Jade Ballroom on Tuesday, Aug. 16, to celebrate the university's highly successful Fifth Year Interim Report, required by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. UNT is accredited by SACSCOC to award bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees.
At the celebration, UNT President Neal Smatresk described the “extraordinary thing that happened” after the report was submitted by Elizabeth Vogt, assistant vice president of accreditation and institutional effectiveness, and the University Accreditation team: SACSCOC had no recommendations and required no follow-up on the report, a rare achievement among SACSCOC peer institutions.
“It was reviewed and found to be so successful that no response was required,” President Smatresk said at the event. “That only occurs when people work together and when a remarkably dedicated team really goes out of their way to write an incredibly good report.”
The campus-wide writing team, led by University Accreditation, began working on the compliance report in 2020, and institutional effectiveness (IE) plans from across the campus were included. The report, submitted in March, affirmed that UNT is in compliance with the SACSCOC Principles of Accreditation, and an Impact Report of the Quality Enhancement Plan, Career Connect, was highlighted.
“This accomplishment is only possible because of coordinated efforts by a number of individuals across this university,” Provost Michael McPherson said. “It was not an easy lift. It demonstrates our shared commitment to continuous improvement. It is part of our culture. It's part of our DNA.”
The provost also offered a special thanks to the Institutional Effectiveness Peer Reviewer Committees and those who work with IE plans “for embracing the call for evidence of effective practice.”
UNT will be up for SACSCOC reaffirmation in 2026, and University Accreditation will be forming the reaffirmation writing team in the coming months.
“Accreditation is never over,” the president said. “We don't want to lose our momentum. We are carrying in a good team and a lot of effort, and we need to make sure that we keep rolling.”
University Accreditation thanks all who contributed to the Fifth Year Interim Report.
“We do this work,” Provost McPherson said, “because we are deeply committed to providing a high-quality education that prepares our students to become thoughtful and engaged citizens of the world.”