SACS preliminary report to be reviewed
Report to be checked for accuracy
By Sarah Chacko
Staff Reporter

The fate of TCU’s re-accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools now relies on the nitty-gritty details, as a whole host of administrators seek out factual errors in the SACS preliminary draft report, said Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Services William Koehler.

The draft report, which arrived April 6, is being reviewed strictly for accuracy of fact, said Assistant Provost Ann Sewell. Copies went out to the chancellor’s cabinet, all academic deans and the dean’s council, who were asked to respond based on their subject area, she said. Pages of errors and comments are now being pulled together, she said.

Koehler said SACS will review TCU’s corrections and make changes if they agree. A final report will be sent back to TCU sometime in early May, he said. TCU then has three months to respond, he said.

During this time, there will be consultation between the chancellor’s office, the vice chancellors and the steering committee, as they review and respond to each recommendation, Koehler said. Responses to the recommendations may differ, he said.

“We can acknowledge that the recommendations are appropriate, and that we will or have made changes to be in compliance,” Koehler said. “We also have the option to disagree and convince them that we have already complied.”

Disagreement with SACS recommendations may be because of misunderstanding or misinterpreting information, Koehler said. In that case, TCU has to provide information to support their claim of compliance, he said.

Sewell said TCU will also be responding in terms of changes that occurred after the report was issued and address other recommendations that are in the process of being completed. While TCU prefers to report that all the recommendations have been met, plan outlines will be provided for items that can only be implemented in the fall, she said.

The comments will be returned to SACS by mid-July, she said.
SACS will take its final report and TCU’s responses to its Commission on Colleges annual meeting in early December, Koehler said. TCU’s accreditation will be an action item on their agenda, he said.

SACS has three options regarding TCU’s accreditation: to accredit, accredit with provisions or to not accredit TCU at all, he said. While TCU is currently only in the preliminary stages of this whole process, Koehler said, TCU will do fine.

“Not to be cavalier, but we’re going to be re-accredited,” he said.

It is imperative for an institution’s financial status that it be accredited, Koehler said.

“In order to be eligible for federal funding and receive philanthropic gifts from various sources, we must be accredited by a regional accreditation association,” he said.

Schools that are not accredited can be denied student, state and federal aid as well as research grant funds, Koehler said.

SACS Associate Executive Director Gerald Lord said while he cannot comment on TCU’s chances of being re-accredited, TCU knows what needs to be done and can expect to hear a decision by mid-January.

“The committee report will speak for itself when it comes,” he said.

s.e.chacko@tcu.edu