Frequently Asked Questions
What does HLC - NCA stand for?
Seminole State College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA).
The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is part of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA).
The NCA is one of six regional institutional accreditation agencies in the United States. It was founded in 1895. The North Central region includes Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, New Mexico, South Dakota, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Wyoming. The HLC - NCA is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
What is the HLC self-study and why is it important to the College?
To be accredited by the Higher Learning Commission an institution of higher education has to meet certain standards in five criteria. It is the purpose of SSC's self-study to address these criteria and to provide evidence that we have the attributes necessary for accreditation by the commission.
Accreditation:
- Ensures the quality and integrity of SSC's programs and services.
- Allows students to transfer credits to other accredited colleges and universities.
- Enables students to obtain financial aid and veteran's services.
- Allows the college to participate in projects funded by federal grants.
- Ensures that the college can recruit and retain quality faculty and staff.
The Criteria for Accreditation are organized under five major headings.
- Criterion 1: Mission and Integrity
- Criterion 2: Preparing for the Future
- Criterion 3: Student Learning and Effective Teaching
- Criterion 4: Acquisition, Discovery, and Application of Knowledge
- Criterion 5: Engagement and Service
Each Criterion has three elements: Criterion Statement, Core Components, and Examples of Evidence.
Criteria Statements define necessary attributes of an organization accredited by the Commission. An organization must be judged to have met each of the Criteria to merit accreditation. See the Criteria page for a more detailed explanation.
An organization addresses each Core Component as it presents reasonable and representative evidence of meeting a Criterion.
Overview of the accreditation process
Following an initial accreditation, colleges and universities are evaluated every 10 years and/or periodically as necessary. It involves conducting a Self-Study which is now underway at SSC. Following this process, a report is submitted to the HLC identifying strengths and challenges at the College.
SSC then will host a visiting team of peer consultant-evaluators representing the HLC. According to the HLC, these consultant-evaluators have two primary responsibilities: to offer advice to institutions to help them improve the quality of the education they provide, and to evaluate and confirm the quality of an educational institution. The team visit is scheduled for October 26-28, 2009 at SSC.
An complete overview of the process can be found on the Higher Learning Commission Web site. A direct link to the document appears below:
Institutional Accreditation: An Overview (PDF: 11 pages, 240K)
Since Web sites change from time-to-time, the direct link above may not work. You should still be able to find the document by going to the main site and searching for the title above.
What is meant by "evidence" in the self-study process, and who is responsible for gathering it?
Evidence is any kind of supporting data to be used in the Self-Study: hard facts and statistics, numbers, records, survey results, expert opinion, examples, explanations, reasoning, predictions, experience, and even history. Evidence is the proof or confirmation that supports a claim as to how well SSC is addressing a component of the criterion or section.
All the Criterion Members assist in data collection, information gathering, and drafting responses to the questions that arise from the HLC criteria for accreditation.
Is participation in the Self-Study voluntary?
Yes, participation is completely voluntary. However, participation is an integral part of the accreditation process. It is important that a majority of employees participate in the activity of the Self-Study.
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