Mindy McCallum, Dean of Instruction at MCC-Maple Woods, was recently selected as a consultant-evaluator for the Higher Learning Commission’s (HLC) Peer Review Corps. She will play an active role in the accreditation process of other community colleges and two-year institutions throughout the region, serving as an on-site evaluator of programs, processes and operations of institutions up for re-accreditation through the HLC.
McCallum will serve under the Program to Evaluate and Advance Quality (PEAQ) in her role as consultant-evaluator. Consultant evaluators must be full-time administrators or faculty members of a North Central Association (NCA) accredited institution. Currently, institutions are evaluated every 10 years after affirmed accreditation. Institutions engaging in the process must complete a self-study, a comprehensive visit by a team of evaluators and have the findings reviewed by an HLC Review Committee before accreditation or reaccreditation is awarded. MCC-Maple Woods recently completed the reaccreditation process in 2006.
The consultant-evaluator position, which is voluntary, will place McCallum on one to two evaluation teams per year, which will visit institutions and gain a comprehensive overview of its faculty, staff, administrators, programs, facilities and other key areas. Working as a team, the evaluators will collaborate and submit a report to the HLC with a recommendation to grant, renew or suspend the institution’s accreditation.
McCallum is especially looking forward to one of the perks of the evaluation procedure, which is the opportunity to observe institutional practices at other community colleges and consider their implications at MCC.
“It really is like professional development, in that I have the opportunity to see how other institutions do things,” she said. “There is also the opportunity to view different approaches and practices in action and to bring them back for consideration at MCC.”
McCallum will attend a training session later in the fall to learn the ins and outs of the peer review process. After completing the training, she will be able to serve on HLC accreditation teams for the North Central region. MCC currently has another HLC consultant-evaluator, Leo Hirner, Director of Distance Education Services at the Administrative Center.
McCallum will serve under the Program to Evaluate and Advance Quality (PEAQ) in her role as consultant-evaluator. Consultant evaluators must be full-time administrators or faculty members of a North Central Association (NCA) accredited institution. Currently, institutions are evaluated every 10 years after affirmed accreditation. Institutions engaging in the process must complete a self-study, a comprehensive visit by a team of evaluators and have the findings reviewed by an HLC Review Committee before accreditation or reaccreditation is awarded. MCC-Maple Woods recently completed the reaccreditation process in 2006.
The consultant-evaluator position, which is voluntary, will place McCallum on one to two evaluation teams per year, which will visit institutions and gain a comprehensive overview of its faculty, staff, administrators, programs, facilities and other key areas. Working as a team, the evaluators will collaborate and submit a report to the HLC with a recommendation to grant, renew or suspend the institution’s accreditation.
McCallum is especially looking forward to one of the perks of the evaluation procedure, which is the opportunity to observe institutional practices at other community colleges and consider their implications at MCC.
“It really is like professional development, in that I have the opportunity to see how other institutions do things,” she said. “There is also the opportunity to view different approaches and practices in action and to bring them back for consideration at MCC.”
McCallum will attend a training session later in the fall to learn the ins and outs of the peer review process. After completing the training, she will be able to serve on HLC accreditation teams for the North Central region. MCC currently has another HLC consultant-evaluator, Leo Hirner, Director of Distance Education Services at the Administrative Center.
Congratulations, Dr. McCallum! Sounds like a great opportunity to observe what is (and isn't) working at other colleges and bring that information back to MCC, in support of our goal of continuous improvement.
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