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SACSCOC FIFTH-YEAR INTERIM
REPORT
DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS—
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Jerry Legge
Associate Provost for Academic Planning
Allan Aycock
Director for Assessment and Accreditation
Today’s discussion
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

Overview of accreditation
UGA approach to Fifth-Year Interim Report for
SACSCOC
Specific implications for UGA Student Affairs
Division
US Higher Education System
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HEA—Federal Reauthorization ~5 years;
next up in 2013 + FEDERAL REGS
CHEA—”Recognizes” Accreditors
SACSCOC—Regional Accreditor
UGA—Accredited
Why does accreditation matter?
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$$$
Federal aid for students
 Federal grant funding for
researchers


Also, general recognition of level of
quality
How does UGA maintain accreditation?
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Annual reporting and constant vigilance
Decennial reaffirmation (2020-2021)
 Compliance
Certification—
 Documents
compliance with 100 + “Principles” of
accreditation
 Quality
Enhancement Plan
 Major
project emerging from institutional assessment to
improve student learning or the environment supporting
student learning
Fifth-Year Interim Report
SACSCOC—Fifth Year Interim Report
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History—new requirement
Elements
 Abbreviated
Compliance Certification—about 20
principles
 QEP Impact Report—First Year Odyssey Seminars
SACSCOC—Fifth-Year Interim Report
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Opportunities and Challenges for UGA
Timeline
 Reports
cover 2011-2016
 Reports due in early 2017

Responsive to changes in federal regulations
FYIR—Student Affairs Division
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The Compliance Certification Principles involving the
OVPSA are:
 Principle
2.10 (Student Support Services)
 Principle
3.3.1.3 (Institutional Effectiveness—Academic and
Student Support Services)
 Principle
4.5 (Student Complaints)
Resources
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UGA SACSCOC Reaffirmation of Accreditation
2010-2011 Compliance Certification:
https://sacs.uga.edu/compliance/index.html
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SACSCOC website Fifth-Year Interim Report section:
http://www.sacscoc.org/FifthYear.asp
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SACSCOC Resource Manual:
http://www.sacscoc.org/handbooks.asp
SACSCOC Principle—FYIR
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Principle 2.10. Student Support Services. The institution
provides student support programs, services, and
activities consistent with its mission that are intended to
promote student learning and enhance the
development of its students.
And closely related:
 3.3.1.3
Institutional effectiveness. The institution
identifies expected outcomes, assesses the extent to which
it achieves these outcomes, and provides evidence of
improvement based on analysis of the results in . . .
Academic and Student Support Service.
FYIR 2.10 Checklist
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UGA has Student Support Programs and Services that
serve all levels of students (undergraduate—graduate)
 are accessible to extended campus and distance education
students
 promote the mission of the institution for all students
 have clearly defined outcomes that demonstrate their
intention to promote student learning and enhance the
development of students

And assessment processes are in place to
determine student needs and interests
 measures attainment of outcomes and use the information to
improve

Ongoing 3.3.1.3 Checklist
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 student
outcomes are defined for programs and
services
 outcomes are focused on learning and development
 outcomes are related to UGA mission and goals
 assessment processes are in place, along with periodic
review
 mature data and evidence that it is used for improving
programs and services are available
 extended campuses and distance education students
are included
FYIR 2.10 Good news . . .
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SACSCOC FYIR Statistics for Principle 2.10
Referrals for 2016 Track B Institutions (those with
graduate programs)
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Only three of 34 Track B Institutions (9%) failed to
demonstrate compliance with Principle 2.10 in their
initial FYIR review.
3.3.1.3 Bad news
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SACSCOC Decennial Review Statistics for 3.3.1.3
Annual Meeting in December 2012 indicates that of
all institutions undergoing reaffirmation of
accreditation during the prior year, 54.8% received
citations for 3.3.1.3 during their off-site review, and
23.1% during the on-site review
Made the top 5 !!!
SACSCOC Principle
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4.5 Student Complaints
The institution has adequate procedures for addressing
written student complaints and is responsible for
demonstrating that it follows those procedures when
resolving student complaints.
 Increased
focus from federal regulation
 Especially with regard to distance education students
 Related SACSCOC Policy
FYIR 4.5 Checklist
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Written student complaints are addressed in a fair and
professional manner
 The policies and procedures are well publicized and
provide clear and consistent guidelines for complaint
resolution
 Policies and procedures are followed
 Individuals/offices with responsibility are clearly identified
 Records of complaints with consistent elements are
maintained
 Evidence/examples of resolved complaints are available

FYIR 4.5 Fairly good news …
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SACSCOC FYIR Statistics for Principle 4.5
Referrals for 2016 Track B Institutions (those with
graduate programs)
 Only
four of 34 Track B Institutions (12%) failed to
demonstrate compliance with Principle 4.5 in their initial
FYIR review. However . . .
 8 of those institutions (24%) failed to demonstrate
that their record of student complaints was in
compliance.
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Questions?
Thank you.
Office of Academic Planning
http://www.oap.uga.edu/