2012 was a great year for Northcentral University: from new programs, specializations and team members; a new Poster Session event at our annual graduation ceremony; and a successful HLC Reaffirmation for Reaccreditation Site Visit. Each of the initiatives we accomplished in 2012 fits right in with NCU’s strategic plan for continued growth and success by fulfilling our mission and realizing our vision of becoming a global leader in providing unprecedented access to U.S. regionally accredited higher education globally.
We want to take this opportunity to go back and highlight some of the major initiatives that were accomplished in each of our schools in 2012, and how those initiatives fit in to the University’s strategic plan as a whole.
School of Business and Technology Management | Launch of Accelerated MBA Track
The School of Business and Technology Management launched its Accelerated MBA Track in mid-September. An MBA is the degree of choice for many business professionals looking to expand their business credentials and skills. In fact, several of NCU’s administrative leaders, including CEO and President George Burnett, and COO/CFO Chris Lynne, have earned their MBA.
“Northcentral is proud to add this outstanding track to our existing MBA program, and we’re excited about the doors this accelerated degree can open for our graduates,” notes Dr. Lee Smith, dean of the School of Business and Technology Management. “Our Accelerated MBA Track has the same academic demands as our traditional MBA track, but is completed in a compressed amount of time, making it a great choice for the most committed students.”
School of Education | New Ed.S. Degree Program and Accelerated M.Ed. Track
The School of Education made numerous enhancements this year, including a new Education Specialist degree option, an Accelerated M.Ed. Track for Educational Leadership and Leadership in Higher Education specializations. Much like the Accelerated MBA Track, the Accelerated M.Ed. Track helps education professionals who are passionate about pursuing leadership positions in their field advance their knowledge and skills.
The Ed.S. is a post-master’s degree designed for education professionals who want to develop specialized knowledge and skills in a specific area, and potentially pursue doctoral studies in that same subject. “The national and international need for professionals trained in these diverse specializations is widespread and continues to grow,” explains Dr. Cindy Guillaume, dean of the School of Education. “Northcentral University can now provide education professionals with a specialist degree option to help meet that need.”
Anytime there is a gap between student needs and NCU programs, it is up to our academic and administrative leaders to analyze and determine how we can bridge the gap to provide our students with the best academic opportunities. The Ed.S. program helps fulfill a student need, while supporting NCU’s commitment to growth and developing quality, high demand, academic programs.
School of Behavioral and Health Sciences | First Online School to Host a COAMFTE Site Visit
The Marriage and Family Therapy program hosted a COAMFTE site visit in Prescott Valley from April 30 to May 1 in its quest to successfully receive COAMFTE accreditation for its MAMFT program. It’s hard to believe that just five years ago, COAMFTE wouldn’t even consider accrediting an online institution. Thankfully, MFT Chair Dr. Branden Henline never gave up and remained actively involved with COAMFTE.
The turning point came in 2008. From 2007 to 2008, Dr. Henline served as a member of the Distance Education Ad Hoc Committee for COAMFTE, which ultimately resulted in the policy change that allowed distance-based programs to apply for accreditation.
“From the beginning, our primary focus for the MFT program has been to provide an accessible, well-designed program that meets COAMFTE accreditation standards and serves as a viable alternative to a campus-based program,” reveals Dr. Henline. “The COAMFTE site visit was the culmination of almost seven years of working with the Commission to allow the possibility for distance-based programs to apply for accreditation, and then reviewing and refining NCU’s MFT programs to meet these standards of quality.
“Achieving COAMFTE accreditation is a demonstration of the dedication and commitment of the University, with its 100 percent doctoral faculty, to provide the best possible educational experience to NCU students by becoming a leader in the field of distance education for MFT,” shared Dr. Heather Frederick, dean of the School of Behavioral and Health Sciences.
At present, almost half of the states in the U.S. have a provision in their licensing laws automatically approving graduates from COAMFTE-accredited programs for licensure. Even in states that do not have this provision, graduation from a COAMFTE-accredited program is looked upon favorably in the licensure process. COAMFTE is also recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
“COAMFTE accreditation is an indication to the public that a program has met the accreditation standards and demonstrates quality in marriage and family therapy education. The Commission on Accreditation congratulates the Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy Program and Northcentral University in achieving COAMFTE accreditation. We are very pleased to add the first program with distance education to our family of accredited programs,” shared COAMFTE Chair, Dr. Jennifer Hodgson, LMFT, professor of Marriage and Family Therapy, East Carolina University.
The Graduate School | Transitioned to Full-Time Dissertation Chairs
During the past year, The Graduate School has continued to establish its role in the NCU dissertation process by enhancing critical policies, procedures and faculty credential requirements necessary to help our doctoral candidates successfully reach their end goal. This played a major role in the decision to hire full-time faculty to serve as dissertation chairs. We now have more than 30 full-time chairs, who have demonstrated dissertation chair and committee experience, extensive research backgrounds plus scholarly publication records.
“Our full-time dissertation chairs have substantial experience guiding doctoral students through the dissertation process,” says the Dean of The Graduate School, Dr. Greg Bradley. “It’s not always black and white – research data often exhibits many shades of gray – but our full-time chairs provide direction with the objective of helping students make the critical transition from student to independent scholar.”
Ideally, this shift will enable The Graduate School to build and maintain excellent relationships with doctoral candidates, and relieve student anxiety related to managing the dissertation process. “We are early in the process, but are already witnessing many student success stories,” notes Dr. Bradley. “Moreover, we have very high expectations for continuous improvement in this area and fully expect to compete with all doctoral-granting institutions worldwide as we move forward.”
To 2013 and Beyond!
As we look forward to 2013, we can expect a continued expansion of the NCU community, with new full-time faculty, new administrative team members, and new NCU students to serve. This growth will make it even more important for all of us at NCU to work together as a team and uphold our values of integrity, innovation, diversity, excellence, and accountability.