For the next two years, The University of Memphis will be working to renew its reaffirmation of accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).
Co-Chairs Daniel J. Poje and Donald R. Franceschetti head the steering committee for this process at The U of M.
SACS is a regional accreditation, and each region of the country has an accreditation process.
SACS has a list of about 75 standards for universities. For example, teachers must possess the right forms of accreditation and the chief executive officer of the university must report to a governing board. The organization governs institutions of higher learning which grant associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Latin America.
Poje said it is an overall assessment of whether The University is financially sound, has good practices in awarding degrees, has adequate hours offered for degree programs, practices good educational forms and possesses a strong structure of academic programs and services provided for students.
Schools must prove to SACS that they meet all the requirements.
The University has a lot of work to do — especially a large amount of documentation, Poje said.
“In the next year we will have 60 committees studying various issues of progress here at our university,” Poje said.
The 60 committees are composed of mostly faculty, but also have some staff and students. They are audit committees in charge of deciding what information is needed to support their reasons for the reaffirmation of the accreditation to SACS.
Franceschetti said it is the job of the steering committee to collect all information from the audit committees.
The steering committee will establish the committees this semester so they can begin work next fall, and subsequently be reviewed next spring, Poje said.
“Through the accreditation process we want to draw attention to The University,” Poje said.
Poje said the process is two-fold. Part of it is a checklist to see if The University meets the regulations, and the second part is a quality enhancement plan.
Poje said The University will take on a major project as part of the quality enhancement plan which will last for several years.
“It is geared to improve the students’ education,” Poje said. “It will take a lot of planning and implementation (by all involved such as students, faculty and staff).”
If The University does not meet certain regulations, they must also be prepared to present a plan to reach compliance.
“We want a clean bill of health,” Franceschetti said, adding that the role of the steering committee is very important. “It is a serious responsibility.”
