You may recall that our NCATE visit last November resulted in continuing accreditation for both our initial and advanced educator programs. However, we were assigned one condition focused on some graduate degree programs with very small enrollments for which we had limited data in Standard 2 (Assessment System). We submitted a response to NCATE on October 1 detailing with data our case for having the condition removed.  I am pleased to tell you that Dean Rider and I received an email from the NCATE office yesterday informing us that the condition has been removed.  We will receive a formal notice of this action (which also goes to the chancellor) sometime during the next couple of weeks. This final acknowledgement of our full, continuing national accreditation is the result of the work of many of you over a period of approximately three years. This was our first visit under NCATE's new and much more demanding standards with accompanying assessment data accountability.

Once again I want to express appreciation to the Assessment Committee, the faculty of involved programs and our students who live up to the standards by which we are judged. Special graditude to Judy Boser and Bill Wishart who did the "heavy lifting" for all phases of our accreditation activity.

While there is considerable pleasure and relief to have successfully met this challenge, our assessment data collection and our need to use data to improve programs goes on and on.  By the time we are visited again (perhaps virtually) we will be expected to have a much larger mass of data and evidence that we have examined those data for making changes in our programs and operations. So, we cannot enjoy this accomplishment for very long!  The Assessment Committee continues to function with monthly meetings and they will be making recommendations back to program faculty for strengthening our assessment process over the next few months.

But, for the moment, let us all take pride in this very positive signal of the value of what we do.

Thanks,
Lynn Cagle