Middle States Accreditation

About Middle States

Chesapeake College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (267-284-5000 or www.msche.org). Middle States is a voluntary, non-governmental, peer-based institutional accrediting membership association dedicated to educational excellence and improvement through peer evaluation and accreditation. Middle States is recognized by the United States Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education. As the MSCHE explains: “The accrediting process is intended to strengthen and sustain the quality and integrity of higher education, making it worthy of public confidence and minimizing the scope of external control.” Chesapeake College’s accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education serves as a stamp of approval that does a number of things:

demonstrates the College maintains academic rigor in their courses and programs;
reflects the institution’s commitment to “quality in higher education and its commitment to striving for and achieving excellence;"
enables students and employees of the College, alumni and donors, community members and employers to have confidence that the institution uses its resources wisely and fulfills its mission;
satisfies essential governmental criteria for students’ ability to receive financial aid;
builds students’ confidence in the quality and the value of their education;
serves as the foundation for the academic schools’ applications for program accreditation;
attests to the fiscal soundness of the institution relative to federal and state government; and
bolsters the College’s ability to compete with other colleges and universities for quality students and employees.

Chesapeake is approved by the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) to operate as a community college in the State of Maryland, authorizing the College to award associate degrees and lower division certificates (www.mhec.maryland.gov). MHEC has also approved Chesapeake College to receive Veterans' benefits. In 2010, MHEC sent a resolution to the United States Department of Education regarding the authority of Maryland community colleges, including Chesapeake, to operate in Maryland.

How is accreditation maintained?

The process for institutional accreditation became an annual one beginning in FY2018. An important part of this update to MSCHE States methodology includes expanded annual reporting. The Annual Institutional Update required of all Middle States accredited institutions reports data for a series of metrics of student achievement (academic progress and post-institutional) and financial stability/health. These metrics will become part of the Midpoint Peer Review in which a peer review team will evaluate those data at the midpoint of the accreditation cycle to determine if additional action is necessary.

Middle States identified seven standards that constitute excellence in the delivery of higher education. Their publications, Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation, describe these characteristics in detail. At the end of the accreditation cycle (now eight years), the college participates in an in-depth self-study evaluation. That evaluation consists of institutional narrative, document archive data, a site team visit of peer reviewers, and ultimately, Commission action. The focus of the narrative document is on institutional improvement in context of the seven Standards for Accreditation.

Accreditation Statement

Chesapeake College was first accredited in 1970 and through its most recent self-study was reaffirmed in 2015. A progress report, documenting the further implementation and communication of a comprehensive, organized, and sustained process for the assessment of student learning outcomes with evidence that results are used to improve teaching and learning, was accepted in 2017. The 2023-2024 Self-Study evaluation is currently underway. The statement of accreditation status is available at www.msche.org/institution/0156/

Self Study Process

Accreditation with MSCHE is incumbent upon the College’s demonstrated compliance with the Commissions’ Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation within the context of our institutional mission and goals. The College must also demonstrate that it meets federal requirements through a Verification of Compliance process. The MSCHE‘s eight-year cycle of review involves an extensive self-study and on-site evaluation by a team of external peer evaluators. The self-study requires the College to comprehensively assess its programs, services, and operations. The review results in a final report documenting the institution’s strengths as well recommendations for improvement and opportunities for innovation.

To conduct the self-study, four working groups, chaired by individuals who represent a cross-section of the institution, will identify and report evidence of the College’s ability to satisfy the following standards and requirements:

Standard 1: Mission and Goals
Standard 2: Ethics and Integrity
Standard 3: Design and Delivery of the Student Learning Experience
Standard 4: Support of the Student Experience
Standard 5: Educational Effectiveness Assessment
Standard 6: Planning, Resources and Institutional Improvement
Standard 7: Governance, Leadership and Administration

Steering Committee Structure & Members

A Self-Study Steering Committee will be led by three tri-chairs leading four working groups. Steering Committee members representing administration, faculty, and staff reflect the expertise of recognized leaders throughout the institution. Members of the Steering Committee have been assigned to lead each of four working groups using a standards-based approach. This will allow the College to form efficient and intentional Working Groups based around standards with similar focus areas. The make-up of the Working Groups reflects a cross-section of College constituencies while permitting content experts to elaborate on their specific areas.

Chandra Gigliotti, Tri-Chair, Dean for Teaching and Learning
Charles Lartey, Tri-Chair, Director of Assessment
Juliet Smith, Tri-Chair, Dean for Liberal Arts and Sciences
Cathie Mullikin, Administrative Support, Senior Administrative Associate VPSSEM
Kristy Floyd, Evidence Inventory Manager, Technical Services Librarian
Christle Foster, Director of TRiO Programs
Michelle Hall, Director of Constituent Engagement and Event Management
David Harper, Vice President for Workforce and Academic Programs
Marci Leach, Executive Director of the Eastern Shore Higher Education Center
Ann Reinecke, Director of Library and Academic Support
Lori Riley, Lead Writer, Associate Professor of English

Timetable for Self-Study

Year	Date	Activity/Task
2020	December	Finish preview of Standards criteria
2021	March-April	Begin planning with President
2021	Summer	Selection of self-study Steering Committee
2021	Oct. 5-Nov. 16	Self-Study Institute
2021	October- December	Assemble Steering Committee
2022	January	Remote meeting with Commission staff liaison (2nd and 3rd week)
2022	January	Begin to draft Self-Study Design (SSD)
2022	February	Self-study kick-off event
	February	Assemble Working Groups
2022	February – April	Compose SSD
2022	Before April 1st	Submit draft SSD by April 1 (2 weeks prior to SSPV)
2022	May	Commission staff liaison self-study prep visit to campus
2022	June - July	Evidence pre-loaded into local evidence inventory
2022	Summer	Faculty off
2022	June – September	Revisions and acceptance of SSD
2022	September 9th	Working Groups Report #1 (per Standard) Lines of Inquiry and Plan of Action
2022	September 23rd	Working Groups Report #2 Preliminary Assessment Information: Collection and evaluation of evidence in support of the Standards, Requirements of Affiliation, college mission, Strategic Plan, Institutional Priorities
2022	October 21st	Working Groups Report #2 Update
2022	November18th	Working Groups Report #3 Determination of strengths, weaknesses, and/or opportunities for growth for each Standard(s). Identify gaps in evidence.
	January 6th	Preliminary draft of Working Group including text and data features.
2023	January – May	Begin draft of self-study report
2023	January – May	Self-study evaluation team chair chosen
2023	January – May	Visit dates chosen
2023	January – May	Accepted SSD sent to chair
2023	January – May	Working Groups review of drafts. Continue to collect and revise Working Groups progress reports and refine evidence inventory.
2023	May	Share draft of self-study with campus community
2023	Summer	Faculty off
	Summer	Have work groups review drafts of report
2023	May - Aug.	Finalize draft of self-study report
2023	May – September	Self-study revisions and campus review
	September	Self-study report draft sent to team chair (No less than two weeks before visit)
	September-October	Team chair’s preliminary visit
2023	October-November	Self-study report finalized based on team chair feedback and shared with campus
2023	December	Final Self-Study Report/ Verification of Compliance/Evidence Inventory uploaded to MSCHE portal (At least six weeks before team visit)
2024	March - April	Self-study Evaluation Team Visit
2024	February – May	Team report
		Institutional response
2024	June/November	Commission meets to determine action
		Visits conducted after April 15 are acted on by the Commission at the November meeting

Intended Outcomes of the Self-Study

Our specific intended outcomes of the College’s 2023-2024 Self-Study are:

Demonstrate how the institution currently meets the Commission’s Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation.
Focus on continuous improvement in the attainment of the institution’s mission and its institutional priorities.
Engage the institutional community in an inclusive and transparent self-appraisal process that actively and deliberately seeks to involve members from all areas of the institutional community.
Guide the development of the next Strategic Planning process.
Gain a keen sense of practices and policies that may need to be revised.
Adapt to the changing landscape of higher education to facilitate growth in the future.