BBCC receives positive feedback on accreditation

MOSES LAKE - Two years of evaluating, developing curriculum, setting outcomes and revising annual goals have paid off for Big Bend Community College faculty and Valerie Kirkwood, director of institutional research and planning at BBCC.

Earlier this month BBCC was notified that positive progress had been made in addressing three instructional areas identified by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities during the college's scheduled 10-year accreditation evaluation in October 2002.

"Our faculty and deans worked to make everything come together," Kirkwood said. "It demonstrates BBCC's commitment to quality student learning, success and achievement."

The accreditation process is necessary for several reasons, including assuring students that credits earned at BBCC will transfer to other educational institutions. The process evaluates the college's faculty, administration, students, facilities, educational programs, mission statement and institutional integrity.

After the 2002 visit, NWCCU made three recommendations to BBCC pertaining to general education requirements for all professional technical programs, utilization of the Academic Master Plan and ensuring continuous assessment and improvement of all academic programs.

"We've added an evaluation component to the Academic Master Plan which will allow the college a systematic way to continuously plan for improvement," Kirkwood said. "Also, every single educational area has a program plan in place and published outcomes which will be evaluated annually.

"These are all efforts to improve the student learning environment."

NWCCU is scheduled to visit BBCC again during the fall of 2007 to ensure the college is making progress on recommendations and to check any major changes made to programs during the interim.