Middle States Commission on Higher Education
The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education to conduct accreditation and pre-accreditation (candidacy status) activities for institutions of higher education in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, including distance education and correspondence education programs offered at those institutions. MSCHE is also recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) to accredit degree-granting institutions which offer one or more post-secondary educational programs of at least one academic year in length in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and other geographic areas in which the Commission conducts accrediting activities.
MSCHE is a voluntary, non-governmental, membership association that defines, maintains, and promotes educational excellence across institutions with diverse missions, student populations, and resources. It examines each institution as a whole, rather than specific programs within institutions.
Why Accreditation?
Accreditation is a means of self-regulation and peer review adopted by members of the educational community. In the United States, there are six regional accrediting associations, each responsible for a specific geographic area. Institutions choose to apply for accredited status. Once accredited, they agree to abide by the standards of their accrediting organization and to regulate themselves by taking responsibility for their own improvement. In addition, the federal government requires that an institution be accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting organization in order for its students to be eligible to receive financial aid.
How it Works
Beginning in late Spring 2020, SUNY Morrisville will conduct a self-study to prepare for our Spring 2022 accreditation site visit and review by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). The first major step in the process is for the campus self-study co-chairs and steering committee to prepare and submit a Self-Study Design by April 2020 for MSCHE approval. The document will layout the full self-study process describing how our campus will assess compliance with Middle States Standards and Requirements of Affiliation.
The MSCHE Accreditation Standards and Requirements of Affiliation consist of seven standards and 15 requirements which serve as a guide for accredited institutions to engage in self-review and peer evaluation. The commission notes that “four principles guided the development of these standards: 1) the mission-centric standards acknowledge the diversity of institutions; 2) the focus of the standards is on the student learning experience; 3) the standards emphasize institutional assessment and assessment of student learning; and 4) the standards support innovation as an essential part of continuous institutional improvement.”
Each standard consists of a set of criteria that identify its fundamental attributes and are structured to focus on functions rather than specific structures. The MSCHE recognizes that there are many different models for educational and operational excellence and has formulated the standards to affirm that an institution’s mission and goals remain the context within which the accreditation standards are applied.
The self-study process gives us an opportunity to reflect on what we do, to ensure that we regularly assess and document the effectiveness of our work, and to demonstrate that we are actively engaged in identifying areas of improvement and responsive to the challenges posed by ongoing changes in higher education. Working groups, one for each standard, will be formed and tasked with gathering the evidence that demonstrates how we meet the criteria for each standard and with identifying any gaps in our evidence. The final report that each working group prepares will be combined into a single document that addresses how SUNY Morrisville addresses the Commission’s expectations for each standard as well as the campus commitment to continuous improvement.
General Timeline
January 2020 through March 2020 – Selection of working group members and chairs, formation of Steering Committee, draft Self-Study Design
April 2020 – Submission of Self-Study Design to MSCHE, MSCHE Liaison Self-Study preparation campus visit. The purpose of this visit is to allow MSCHE to learn more about the current status of the college, to discuss our institutional priorities, to acquaint the Steering Committee and various campus constituents with the commission’s expectations and resources, to provide feedback on the Self-Study Design, and to help the campus prepare for self-study and peer review.
September 2020 through December 2020 – Working groups gather and analyze data, Steering Committee monitors and coordinates working group activities, collection and organization of documents for the evidence inventory that will be used to support the final self-study document.
January 2021 through May 2021 – Evaluation visit dates set and visiting team chair selected, full self-study compiled, draft presented to campus community.
June 2021 through February 2022 – Self-Study report finalized, submitted to visiting team chair at least two weeks prior to campus visit.
November 18 and 19, 2021 - Visting Team Chair, George Payne, VP and Provost, Montgomery College, preliminary visit.
February 11, 2022 - Final Self-Study Draft and Evidence submitted to Middle States portal.
March 27 through March 30, 2022 – On site evaluation. Campus will receive a written visiting team report within 10 business days of the site visit, campus may respond, clarify or provide additional analyses in response to the visiting team report.
June 2022 through November 2022 – MSCHE meets to review all accreditation materials and determine final accreditation action, notifies campus.
Fall 2021/Spring 2022 Events and Deadlines
- First full Self-Study draft due to visiting team chair, George Payne, VP and Provost, Montgomery College: November 1
- Visiting Team Chair Preliminary visit (virtual): Novmeber 18 and 19
- Final Self-Study document and Evidence submission: February 11, 2022
- Visiting Team Campus Visit: March 27 - 30, 2022