Accreditation

Library TTIP Funding

Whereas, In lieu of using district funds, many California community colleges (CCC) have relied on the Telecommunications and Technology Infrastructure Program (TTIP) to provide funding to their libraries for periodical databases and/or other electronic information resources, and TTIP funds have now been completely eliminated for this purpose;

ACCJC Communications

Whereas, The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) states in its bylaws that its purpose is to assure "that an institution has clearly defined objectives appropriate to higher education; has established conditions under which their achievement can reasonably be expected; appears in fact to be accomplishing them substantially; is so organized, staffed, and supported that it can be expected to continue to do so;"

Ongoing Concerns with the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has adopted at least eight resolutions expressing concerns about the processes followed by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) since 2007 and has communicated its concerns both independently and through a 2009-2010 Consultation Task Group on Accreditation;

Developing Processes for Faculty Participation on Accrediting Teams

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges and the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) have recognized the need for faculty participation on the ACCJC visiting teams;

Whereas, Resolution 2.04 F04 asserts the faculty desire to participate on visiting teams and asks that the ACCJC "ensure that faculty comprise a minimum of 25% of the site visiting teams";

Whereas, There still is no consistent process to assure all visiting teams include faculty; and

Use of Outside Researchers in Accreditation

Whereas, Budget cuts at the California community colleges have led to increasingly dwindling staff, including full-time faculty;

Whereas, Certain processes such as accreditation take a monumental amount of work and expertise that may lead some schools, especially the smaller ones, to hire out significant portions of areas such as the self study process;

Whereas, In addition to depending upon outsiders to gather data, many schools may also commit to using technology, including particular data bases, that requires expensive upkeep; and

Federalization of Higher Education

Whereas, The U.S. Department of Education appears set on shifting the oversight of American higher education from institutions of higher learning and regional accrediting agencies to the federal government;

Whereas, Efforts by the U.S. Department of Education to regulate higher education are evidenced by its stated goal of establishing a credit hour that requires measurable outcomes for every class hour;

Making ACCJC Correspondence and Recommendations Public

Whereas, Faculty members are concerned about the accreditation process and recent accreditation outcomes related to meeting the 2002 Accreditation Standards and the viability of their colleges;

Whereas, Every member of a college community has a stake in a successful outcome based on meeting the 2002 Accreditation Standards and a responsibility to assist in addressing any recommendations, particularly if those recommendations place the college on sanction;

Influencing Federal Accreditation Outcomes

Whereas, The Higher Education Act of 2008 has called for the establishment of a new committee, the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, Advisory Committee (in this section referred to as the "to assess the process of accreditation and the institutional eligibility and certification of such institutions of higher education (as defined in section 102) under Title IV";

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has a long history of working closely and successfully with other constituency groups and agencies; and

Accreditation and Support for Local Senates

Whereas, Title 5 53200 provides that the Academic Senate means an organization whose primary function is to make recommendations with respect to academic and professional matters including accreditation, which is item seven within the ten-plus-one areas requiring collegial consultation;

Whereas, Accreditation is an unfunded mandate that negatively impacts the busy work schedules of faculty who are already responsible for academic and professional matters, instruction, and programs; and

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