Spring Break is over, spring is here, but winter is not gone—all signs of March Madness. March also signaled the first major review of the Middle States Self Study Draft by the Steering Committee.

After the seven self-study teams compiled detailed reports on the seven standards, the tri-chairs combined those reports into one narrative with the help of Carol Boll, a writer and researcher with Public Affairs and the Office of News Services.

Over spring break, the Steering Committee members read the draft and submitted their feedback. On Monday, March 20, it met to discuss the draft to ensure the working groups’ ideas and findings were incorporated as well as recommendations and ideas for continuous improvement.

Later this month, the University Senate will review the draft along with officers and administrators of the University. The Middle States tri-chairs will present to the Senate on March 29, before the draft is opened for a five-month public comment period.

To kick off the public comment period, the University will host the Middle States Self Study Kick-Off Forum on April 18 to help the University community to learn more about accreditation, assessment, and institutional learning outcomes before reviewing the document online.

For now, March Madness is editing for the Steering Committee, and hopefully it will usher in April’s showers of comments and feedback from the University community on the Middle States Self Study.

By Rochelle L. Ford
rlford@syr.edu