From March 7 to 10, a team from the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) visited College of the Canyons (COC) to evaluate the college’s standards.

A team from the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges visited COC this month to evaluate the college’s standards for accreditation purposes.

“We are extremely pleased with the team’s preliminary findings,” said COC Chancellor Dr. Dianne Van Hook. “At COC, we are committed to continuous improvement, innovation, an entrepreneurial spirit, the development of partnerships to meet our community and workforce training needs and focusing on removing barriers for our students. We are looking forward to receiving the Commission’s final report and implementing its recommendations.”

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During the evaluation, the 11-member ACCJC team validated the college’s Institutional Self-Evaluation Report by using virtual interviews with staff, students, faculty, administrators and community members.

The evaluation and its interviews were used to examine how well COC meets its standards, eligibility requirements and commission policies established by the accrediting commission.

“The positive preliminary feedback we have received from the ACCJC team is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our staff, faculty, and administration over the last two years,” Dr. Omar Torres, chief instructional officer at COC, said.

The ACCJC team was impressed by COC’s data visualizations, institutional research support, the COC Board of Trustees’ use of meetings with Associated Student Government, the expansion of noncredit programming and work aimed at addressing differential success rates among disproportionately impacted student populations.

After its review, the visiting team’s only preliminary recommendation made in its exit report was for COC to continue focusing on assessing and revising administrative procedures and board policies.

Accreditation is a voluntary process that colleges and universities will undergo to evaluate and assure the continued quality of the American higher education community, and to then make the information known to the public.

The ACCJC team accredits public and private postsecondary institutions offering two-year education programs and associate degrees.

This team is part of the Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACS WASC), an organization which “advances and validates quality ongoing school improvement by supporting its private and public elementary, secondary, and postsecondary member institutions to engage in a rigorous and relevant self-evaluation and peer review process that focuses on student learning,” according to WASC officials.

COC last reaffirmed its accreditation in 2015, with the WASC conferring on the college its highest accreditation status.

The final ACCJC report is set to be submitted on June 22, rendering a decision regarding COC’s accreditation status.

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