In preparation for the October 8-10, 2012 Comprehensive Visit, the Northcentral University Institutional Self-Study was recently completed and submitted to our accrediting body, The Higher Learning Commission (HLC).The planning for this document started in May 2011 with the creation of the Institutional Self-Study Steering Committee made up of academic and administration leaders. This committee worked cooperatively with the self-study chairs to identify members for each Criterion Work Group. The Criterion Work Groups included faculty members from each school, administrative department heads, and team members from numerous departments within the University.
Our Self-Study is really the "Northcentral University Story" told within the guidelines provided by the HLC. These guidelines divide the Self-Study into five Criterion for Accreditation described below and followed by a summary of the evidence provided to support the statement.
Criterion 1 - Mission and Integrity: The organization operates with integrity to ensure the fulfillment of its mission through structures and processes that involve the board, administration, faculty, staff, and students.
Northcentral University operates with integrity to fulfill its Mission and Vision by living out our Values. While our mission and related documents have evolved, the fundamental principles have remained the same. Further, the refresh of the Mission documents provided an additional opportunity for the entire community to be involved in a process of improvement. The refreshed Mission, Vision, and Values consistently guide each individual community member and the overall University through its strategic plan and all institutional policies and processes.
Criterion 2 - Preparing for the Future: The organization’s allocation of resources and its processes for evaluation and planning demonstrate its capacity to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of its education, and respond to further challenges and opportunities.
Northcentral engages in strategic planning and budgeting processes that are mapped directly to our Mission and are responsive to the needs and investments defined by academics. The capacity to invest is driven by the sustained and consistent financial growth achieved since the last Comprehensive Visit. Our strategic planning process is forward-looking and takes into account environmental scans and assessments of academic quality and institutional effectiveness.
Criterion 3 - Student Learning & Effective Teaching: The organization provides evidence of student learning and teaching effectiveness that demonstrates it is fulfilling its educational mission.
Northcentral is dedicated to fulfilling its educational Mission by assessing student learning and supporting effective teaching. We have processes in place that allow us to clarify what students are expected to learn and achieve, and also assess that learning. When appropriate, we make changes to improve student learning. Since our last Comprehensive Visit, we have made significant changes to our APR process, dissertation outcomes and Foundations Courses. We hire, train and support a well-qualified faculty and regularly evaluate their effectiveness. Since our last Comprehensive Visit, we have created the Center for Faculty Excellence which better supports these efforts. We have a rich learning environment and our courses and processes work efficiently to help students learn and achieve what is needed within their programs of study.
Criterion 4 - Acquisition, Discovery, and Application of Knowledge: The organization promotes a life of learning for its faculty, administration, staff, and students by fostering and supporting inquiry, creativity, practice, and social responsibility in ways consistent with its mission.
At Northcentral University, we demonstrate through the actions of the Board of Trustees, administrators, students, faculty and team members that we value a life of learning and that we have integrated the acquisition of a breadth of knowledge and skills in our educational programs. We assess the usefulness of our curricula to students who live and work in a global, diverse, and technological society and we provide support to ensure that faculty, students, and team members acquire, discover, and apply knowledge responsibly.
Criterion 5 - Engagement and Services: As called for by its mission, the organization identifies its constituencies and serves them in ways both value.
Focused firmly on its Mission to help students achieve academically and become valuable contributors to their communities and within their professions, Northcentral University provides a model of stewardship through its engagement and service efforts. The needs of its constituents are continuously examined through survey and assessment, and institutional strategies to “continuously improve our students’ experiences” and “build and maintain excellent relationships” with constituents direct our resources and energies.