Among the many exciting things happening around campus for Concordia, add one more: The university is in the process of obtaining reaccreditation with WSCUC. 

WSCUC – WASC Senior College & University Commission – was formally created in 2012-13, and receiving WSCUC accreditation is important to member institutions. Colleges go through a rigorous review process to ensure that their curriculum and school environment are up to standard so that the students who attend are getting the education they deserve. 

Being an accredited institution is essential for fostering growth and knowledge within students. According to their website, the WSCUC organization says that “Equity & inclusion, evidence and improvement, and national and global reach are the centerpieces of WSCUC’s Strategic Goals and Objectives to advance quality and student success.”

Concordia’s WSCUC Accreditation Liaison Officer, Deborah Lee said, “WSCUC accreditation is important because it ensures educational quality, supports the transfer of credits, enables access to federal financial aid, enhances an institution's reputation and encourages continuous improvement.” Lee continued, “There is an assurance that you are getting a good education. This is also recognized by graduate schools and employers. In order to get into good graduate programs, you need a degree from an accredited school.”

Professor of Marketing Carolyn Shiery added to that sentiment, “It is important for a school to be accredited because high academic quality standards have to be met; this gives value to a student's degree."

Co-chair of the Educational Effectiveness Committee and a member of the WSCUC steering committee, Barbara Howard, has been a big part of getting students involved in the excitement surrounding the accreditation process. Howard has collaborated with Marketing students who helped to build the social media campaign, coming up with the hashtag #builtgolden and the concept of the Eagle Board. Fine Art students then drew the concept of the Eagle Board and Graphic Design students drafted the design on Adobe Illustrator. Then Engineering students constructed the board using lasers to cut the pieces of the board out of wood. 

Students can now see the handiwork of their fellow students. Howard said, “ASCUI is hosting our Eagle Board out in front of the Caf each week on Wednesdays.” When you visit, you can write on a sticky note what it means to be #builtgolden. Once that is done, “The Engineering students will be engraving all the comments received on post-it notes onto feathers to place on the Eagle,” said Howard.

You can visit and post your thoughts on the Eagle Board outside of the cafeteria every Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Howard encourages students to get more involved. She said, “We ask that students pray using the 40 Days of Prayer Calendar for our accreditation review and our dedication to Lutheran Christian education.” She added that “We would love for students to use the hashtag #builtgolden and post as much as possible about how they are built golden!”

To view the 40 Days of Prayer calendar visit the link below. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VuBK_3AcX2rodh-baBylQOWaEc19qs1r/view

Look out and stay tuned for information on the WSCUC accreditation process as the visit from the accreditation committee will be taking place from March 6 through 8 so there will be a lot happening between now and then.

Tags: community

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