Accreditation Update: March 8, 2013

As the College moves into the final year of its self-study and continues to make preparations for the Higher Learning Commission Comprehensive Evaluation, the Self-Study Steering Committee has been not only considering the Criteria for Accreditation, but also those areas that the Higher Learning Commission listed as "topics requiring institutional attention" during its last visit.  As part of our preparation, we are expected to reflect seriously on those issues and provide evidence to the Commission documenting the extent to which we believe they have been addressed.  The evaluation team indicated that five topics should receive attention by Concordia; the Commission expects us to have made progress in each.  This update and the previous four campus updates have provided a brief overview about each of those topics.  Information about the first, second, third, and fourth topics can be found here, here, here, and here.

The final topic listed by the Higher Learning Commission for attention by Concordia College was the "coordination of expenditures and oversight structure in administrative and academic technology."  The Commission noted that significant needs in this area existed in 2003 and recommended greater communication among the various offices responsible for technology, as well as better planning in the use and implementation of academic and administrative technology.  Anecdotally, those with sufficient institutional memory will in fact recall carrying your computer across campus over to computer services whenever support was needed.  That was 2003, but no doubt all on campus appreciate the progress that has been made since the 2003 report cycle.

The College will note that in 2007, Bruce Vieweg was appointed as the College's first Chief Information Officer and, significantly, was also included as part of the President's Cabinet. This appointment has created the coordination and oversight called for by the Higher Learning Commission. In the report, the College will highlight the significant expansion that has occurred in the past decade, with major initiatives including the adoption and implementation of Banner ERP, dramatic increase in available bandwidth, campus-wide wireless coverage, substantial renovations in classroom technology, and a five-fold increase in the use of Moodle by faculty. The biggest challenge for the College in 2013 is to find ways to sustain and expand the many technology needs during a time of relatively flat budgets.

A booklet describing all of the requirements of the Higher Learning Commission can be found here. If you have questions about the Higher Learning Commission or Concordia’s approach to the self-study, please direct them to either of the coordinators - Kristi Loberg or Michael Wohlfeil - or to any of the members of the Self-Study Steering Committee.

Information For:

current students
faculty and staff		 parents
alumni		 high school students
admitted students