The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) has promoted standards in student affairs, student services, and student development programs for over 20 years.CAS helps you create a culture of assessment while preparing you for regional accreditation. Your institution can leverage CAS to ensure an excellent review by using its program to focus on mission fulfillment, collect constructive data, and enact quality action plans for improvement.

Recently Weave convened a group of accreditors to talk about the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic on accreditation site visits. The five panelists shared their experiences so far, and discussed future planning for virtual and hybrid site-visits.

Decades ago, setting up annual assessment plans to assess student learning outcomes was the focus of much of our work. As we move forward, we recognize the potential value of stepping back from that annual cycle to take a broader look at program effectiveness. It’s the view from 10,000 feet so to speak, and it allows us to take a less iterative look at how programs contribute to the overall mission of the school, as well as how students learn both inside and outside of the classroom.

Are you involved in accreditation success for your institution? Wish you could hear from someone who’s been there? We talked with colleagues from three Texas community colleges about their accreditation struggles and success stories, and their challenges, successes, and surprises are useful to anyone working on this project.