By Dani Ruest and Will Adkins

Monday September 19, 2022 HLC came to GSU. Like every post-secondary education institution, Glenville State University is required to maintain accreditation; and the Higher Learning Commission is the organization that evaluates us for that accreditation.. As it is explained on the HLC website, “The Criteria for Accreditation are the standards of quality by which HLC determines whether an institution merits accreditation or reaffirmation of accreditation.” There are five criterions for accreditation:

1. Mission
2. Integrity: Ethical and Responsible Conduct
3. Teaching and Learning: Quality, Resources, and Support
4. Teaching and Learning: Evaluation and Improvement
5. Institutional Effectiveness, Resources and Planning 

HLC checks for the accreditation verification every 10 years and every five years they do follow up checks to ensure the institution is following their 10-year plan. As institutional assessment coordinator, Dr. Melody Wise has helped prep the faculty and staff for potential questions from the HLC members. Prior to the visit, Dr. Wise was confident that it would go well. “The visit has not been a secret,” she said. “It takes everyone to do their jobs.”

Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, Dr. Gary Morris, hoped the HLC’s main takeaway from their visit, other than how our university should remain accredited, is how student-centered and mission-driven our campus and community is. Morris stated, “Every decision we make has to be based on the institution’s mission, and that is what we have been demonstrating at Glenville State University. They look to see if we behave ethically, that the courses we offer are appropriate for an institution of higher education, and that our faculty is qualified and capable for the teaching of our students.”

Students were advised to simply go about their day as they would any other and if a member from the HLC committee asked them a question to answer honestly. The HLC held a student lunch on Monday.  Student Government Association Senate Majority Leader Will Adkins was one of the students chosen to attend this lunch meeting. “The lunch went really well; they asked many questions,” Adkins said.  “Things like, where we were all from, if we like the school, what things we would change, if we feel like our voices are heard, and would we ever consider leaving.” Adkins told the commission members that he has absolutely considered leaving for athletic reasons, but what always stopped him were the many opportunities he was given at this university. “Here, I can wear so many different hats and be a part of so many different things that I may have never had the opportunity to do at other universities

Adkins continued, “We all answered the questions very well and they seemed pleased with our honest answers. We also got to be the interviewer and decided to ask them some questions. Things like how did they become HLC members, and how they were chosen to come visit our school.” He explained that there are over 100 different schools that they have to review. The members’ backgrounds, from where they grew up to the university they went to, determine who gets sent to each school.

Following the visit, Morris emailed the campus community, saying, “The visiting team was impressed with the level of collegiality on the campus, reflected in how everyone engaged them throughout the visit. The visiting team was also impressed with development and implementation of our strategic plan. But most importantly, they were impressed with the way students spoke of their faculty and faculty spoke about their students." The results of the visit will be published here when they are available. 

For more information about HLC and the accreditation standards visit:

https://www.hlcommission.org/Policies/criteria-and-core-components.html