DATE: October 20, 2008
TO: Board of Trustees
FROM: Eloy O. Oakley, Superintendent-President
SUBJECT: Accreditation Site Visit Summary
On October 16th at noon, the accreditation site team gave their public exit meeting for the conclusion of their accreditation site visit. This was the conclusion of a two-year process of evaluating our institutional effectiveness, which produced the 2008 Institutional Self-Study. The site team was very impressed with the great work the college is engaged in and the dedication to the mission of student success that the faculty and staff showed. The team commended the college on its Long Beach College Promise, the Student Success Plan, the expansion of the Pacific Coast Campus, and its support from the community. However, as any good process of evaluation discloses, our college does have to expeditiously improve some of our processes. Most notably, the site team concluded that our process on Assessment and Student Learning Outcomes needs to become more comprehensive to include the development of outcomes at the course, degree, program, and institutional levels. That we assess the attainment of Student Learning Outcomes, include Student Learning Outcomes in our syllabi, and include the attainment of Student Learning Outcomes in faculty evaluations. The team strongly recommends that the college incorporate Student Learning Outcomes in its Program Planning/Review process and that it moves quickly to make progress on this recommendation.
The site team also recommends that the college immediately completes its revision of the Program Review process and begins implementation in a timely manner. It is important that the college begin developing plans to expeditiously implement these recommendations, as they will be critical to our ongoing accreditation status.
The site team’s recommendations now go to the Accrediting Commission for Community & Junior Colleges (ACCJC). The ACCJC will review the recommendations and prepare its report of findings and recommendations, along with its decision on LBCC’s accreditation status, and submit it to the college sometime in January 2009. I am confident that the college will retain its full accreditation, but perhaps be required to submit an interim report to describe the progress on the final recommendations.
I am very pleased with the results of this process and am proud to have the privilege of being President of our college. You should all feel very proud about the state of LBCC and the work that we accomplish on a daily basis. I have attached the full transcription of the site team’s commendations and recommendations for your review. Please note that the ACCJC may amend, delete, or add additional recommendations in its final report.
Thank you again for all of your great work.
