Student and faculty feedback is one of the final hurdles for Ball State to renew its accreditation.
A peer review team from the Higher Learning Commission is on campus through Wednesday to inspect the school for the accreditation process. Ball State has been an accredited school since 1925 and was most recently accredited in 2004 for a 10-year accreditation period.
For the past two years, Ball State worked on a self-study report detailing how the university meets the HLC criteria. The criteria are the mission statement, integrity, quality of teaching and learning, evaluation and improvement of teaching and learning and resources, planning and institutional effectiveness.
“So they’re basically going to be talking to a bunch of folks and verifying that what is in our report is really who we are as a university,” said Marilyn Buck, associate provost and co-chair of the accreditation steering committee.
From Monday until Wednesday, the peer review committee will conduct interviews with President Jo Ann Gora, Provost Terry King, deans, department heads, faculty, staff and students, according to a press release. They also hosted an open meeting Monday with faculty, staff and students.
The peer review committee will ask students questions about their basic experience at the university — questions such as what it’s like to be a student, what are good things about Ball State, what could be improved and how the quality of the faculty is. They want to hear from as many people as possible to get as accurate of a representation of Ball State as they can.
Buck said being an accredited university is a federal requirement.
“Basically, if we are not accredited and approved, then all of the federal money we receive as a university is gone,” Buck said. “That includes all the programs, Stafford loans, research money, things of that sort. So then we don’t qualify for any of those student services and student money that is very critical for our students to succeed.”
Buck also said not being accredited hurts students ability to get into graduate school and get jobs they want since graduate schools and many jobs are looking for a degree from an accredited university.
“Those are probably the two most important reasons,” Buck said. “The other one that isn’t operationally important is the fact that it tells the students and the public that Ball State is a quality institution because we meet the standards necessary to be able to receive accreditation.”
After the visit to Ball State, HLC will announce its decision in the spring.
