Accreditation Visiting Team Written Report
Columbia College - Commendations and Recommendations
January 2006

Commendations:

1. The college is to be commended for the excellent job that was done in preparing faculty, staff, and students for the visit of the accreditation team.

2. The college is to be commended on the dedication and enthusiasm of its faculty and staff toward the teaching and learning process, the students, and the institution.

3. The college is to be commended on the quality, accuracy, and thoroughness of its publications (the schedule of classes, the catalog, the student handbook) as they present honest and complete information that guide students through application, assessment, and enrollment in support of reaching their goals.

4. The college is to be commended for providing a physical facility that supports student learning in a natural environment that maintains the spirit and history of the area.  The college is to be commended for the planning of the new library facility – it is beautiful, functional, and the hub of learning and student life.  

5. The college is to be commended on the development if its budget handbook for faculty and staff that provides a clear description of the college’s budget process. 

6. The college is to be commended for being committed to a learning environment that fosters positive student attitudes and opportunities for personal growth.  During the site visit the student population expressed positive feedback on the quality of the instruction, the dedication of the faculty and staff, and the physical environment of the campus.   

Recommendations:

1. Communication - The team recommends that the college and district develop a concrete and systematic process to improve collaboration, communication, and cooperation.  The process should include, but not be limited to, an examination of whether any current functions provided by the district office should be centralized or decentralized to better serve student needs (I.B.1; I.A.4; III.B IV.A; IV.B).
    

2. Planning - The team recommends that the college establish an integrated comprehensive planning process in all areas of the college by emphasizing and strengthening the link between planning, budgeting, and Program Review.  Particular focus should be in the following areas (I.A.4; I.B.2; I.B.5; II.A.2; II.C; III.B):
    
   • Communication of a planning calendar complete with timelines and delineated with the person(s) responsible
   • Instituting and communicating processes that produce evidence that program evaluations lead to the improvement of college programs and services
   • Development of a strategic plan that will guide the college in integrating its planning processes that result in the college meeting its goals set forth and in line with its mission
      

3. Resource Allocation - The team recommends that in order to best serve the needs of students, the district and the college engage in a collaborative process to ensure a transparent and equitable allocation of financial resources and that the district and the college implement a process to communicate budget issues with each other on an ongoing basis (IIIC.1a; IIIC.1d; IIIC.2; IIID.1a,b,c; IIID.2a; IIID.2b; IIID.2d; IIID.2e; IIID.2g; IIID.3; IVB.2d; IVB.3d; IVB.3g).
    

4. Research - The team recommends that the institution adopt a culture of evidence by developing and implementing, with timelines, responsibilities, and evaluations, a research process based on quantitative and qualitative analysis that assesses institutional effectiveness and documents the need for resources, technology, staffing, programs, and facilities which best serve the students needs (I.A.; I.B; II.B.1,3.4; II.C).
    

5. Student Learning Outcomes - The team recommends that the college adopt an aggressive approach with specific timelines and responsibilities for developing student learning outcomes including documentation and assessments at the course, the program, and the institutional level and demonstrate that evidence is being used for institutional improvement.  All employees of the college must assume responsibility to improve student learning outcomes (II.A.1, II.A.2; II.B; II.C).

In conclusion, during the visit and the review of the self-study some of these same issues were highlighted as well as a number of other issues that also need to be addressed.  The team hopes that these recommendations will provide emphasis and support the college’s efforts to address them.  We also noted a number of other observations and suggestions which will be included in our final written report.