FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Representatives from universities across the U.S. will be on campus April 10-11 to evaluate the University of Arkansas as a part of its 10-year reaccreditation process. These peer reviewers, trained by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), will meet with members of the campus community and hold several open forums to garner feedback about the university. The Higher Learning Commission also gathered results from a survey of U of A students in March.

The Higher Learning Commission is a regional accreditation agency serving 19 states including Arkansas. In addition to assuring the quality of the institution, regional accreditation allows an institution to offer federal financial aid, enables its students to transfer credits to other accredited schools, and makes the institution eligible for specific research funds.

"I encourage the campus community to attend one or more of the open forums as a part of the HLC review team's visit," said Chancellor Joe Steinmetz, a member of the Higher Learning Commission's Board of Trustees. "The university has submitted a great deal of information to the Higher Learning Commission during the past several years but the first-hand feedback provided during the on-site visit is very important to the accreditation process."

The campus community is invited to provide feedback to the visiting HLC accreditation team through open forums Monday, April 10, focusing on the standards and criteria by which the university is being evaluated, and Tuesday, April 11, for more general campus groups:

Monday, April 10

• Open Forum on the Criteria on Mission and Ethics
  2-2:50 p.m. — Leflar Law Center, E.J. Ball Courtroom (LAW 240)
• Open Forum on the Criteria on Teaching and Learning - Resources and Evaluation
  3-3:50 p.m. — Leflar Law Center, E.J. Ball Courtroom (LAW 240)
• Open Forum on the Criteria on Resources and Planning
  4 - 4:50 p.m. — Leflar Law Center, E.J. Ball Courtroom (LAW 240)

Tuesday, April 11

• Open Forum for Faculty and Staff
  10-10:50 a.m. — Leflar Law Center, E.J. Ball Courtroom (LAW 240)
• Open Forum for Students
  10-10:50 a.m. — Arkansas Student Union (ARKU 504)

The university first received accreditation in 1924, and its last reaffirmation of accreditation occurred in the academic year 2006-07. Four years later the university submitted an assurance review to demonstrate that it was still meeting requirements, and then submitted a Quality Initiative Report focused on increasing graduation rates.

Institutions are evaluated to be sure they meet all federal requirements and also specific criteria developed from a set of guiding educational values.

These educational values are essentially basic and defining assumptions about higher education institutions:

• A focus on student learning
• Education seen as a public purpose
• Education intended to prepare students for a diverse, technological, globally connected world
• A campus culture of continuous improvement
• Evidence-based institutional learning and self-presentation
• Integrity, transparency and ethical behavior
• Leadership that promotes the well-being of the institution
• Sustainable management of the university's resources
• Mission-centered evaluation
• Accreditation aimed at assuring and advancing quality of the institution

Find out more about the Higher Learning Commission's guiding values.

These values are the foundation for the five criteria a university must satisfy to earn reaccreditation by the commission:

• Mission: it must be clear, publically stated, driving all programs and aimed at serving the public good
• Integrity: ethical and responsible conduct
• Teaching and Learning: quality, resources and support
• Teaching and Learning: evaluation and improvement
• Resources, Planning and Institutional Effectiveness: the institution's ability to fulfill its mission, improve and plan for the future

Read detailed explanations of the criteria for accreditation.

There are three "pathways" for an institution seeking reaccreditation. The University of Arkansas is on the Open Pathway, which includes the separate Quality Initiative, an opportunity for the university to pursue an independent improvement project. The peer review team is involved in each stage of this 10-year process.

The peer review team is drawn from more than 1,300 volunteer educators from institutions in the 19-state region.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.