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Comprehensive Evaluation

The Commission requires institutions to undergo a comprehensive evaluation at least every ten years. The comprehensive evaluation process has three components:

• an institutional self-study, in which the institution evaluates how and how well it meets the Commission’s Standards for Accreditation;
• an on-site evaluation by a group of peers; 
• a review and decision by the Commission.
  
  

Self-Study: 

Self-study is at the heart of accreditation. Both a product and a process, effective self-study serves accreditation’s dual purposes: quality assurance and institutional improvement. The self-study presents a concise picture of the institution as a dynamic entity with a sense of its history, an understanding of its present, and a vision of its future. By clearly identifying strengths and challenges, the institution demonstrates its ability to use analysis for improvement.

Commission staff provide assistance to institutions preparing for their comprehensive evaluations through an annual fall workshop and individual campus visits. Institutions are strongly encouraged to submit a rough draft of the self-study for review by Commission staff. Drafts can be submitted to staff via the NECHE Institution Portal.

Resources:

• Self-Study Guide 2021
• Commission Policy Statement on Institutional Effectiveness
• Focusing on Outcomes: Some Examples
• Checklist of Self-Study Components
• Supportive Materials for the Team Workroom
• Sample of Supportive Materials for the Team Workroom (.xlsx)

Components of the Self-Study:

1. Cover page 
2. Table of Contents
3. Institutional Characteristics Form (.docx)
4. Table of NECHE Actions, Items of Special Attention or Concerns
5. Introduction (brief summary of self-study process, participants, and goals, and identification of areas the institution was asked to focus on) 
6. Institutional overview (including summary of principal self-study findings)  
7. Narrative (100-page response to 9 Standards in Description, Appraisal, Projection format) plus NECHE Finance Forms bound into the relevant chapters.
     NECHE Finance Forms (Spring 2025 and later) (.xlsx)
8. Appendix
   • Completed Affirmation of Compliance (.pdf), Affirmation of Compliance (doc), signed by the institution’s CEO
   • Most recent year’s audited financial statements
   • Auditor’s management letter containing specific recommendations to the institution on its financial controls and practices. 
   • List of supporting documents available in the workroom and/or URLs
   • Student Achievement and Success: Making Assessment More Explicit (E series) (.pdf) Required
   • Statement on Student Achievement and Success Data Forms (.pdf)

Self-studies are to be a single-searchable PDF file. For further guidance, the Self-Study Guide, “Supportive Materials (68) for the Team Workroom,” and all required forms are available above.

Six weeks before the team visit, the institution submits its self-study (including all items above) as a single, searchable PDF file to the Commission office via the NECHE Institution Portal. If team members request a paper copy, the institution is asked to send that directly to them.

On-site Evaluation: 

The on-site evaluation by a group of faculty and administrators provides the institution and the Commission with a valuable external perspective. Team members are selected because of their experience at an institution comparable to the one being evaluated. They are trained by Commission staff to validate the self-study in light of the institution’s mission. The Evaluation Manual may be a helpful resource to understand the approach and perspective of the visiting team.

After the Visit: 

After the visit, the team chair, using material submitted by the team members, will produce a draft report, first reviewed by the team and the Commission staff. The staff review is designed to help ensure that the report can stand on its own and that important areas are sufficiently addressed. Following any changes made in that initial review, the chair sends the draft report to the institution’s president for purposes of making sure the factual matters in the report are correct. Having made any appropriate changes based on that review, the chair sends the final version of the team report to the institution, which sends copies to the team members and to the Commission.

The institution’s president is asked to respond to the team report. Responses may indicate concurrence with the team’s findings, may provide a differing interpretive perspective on factual matters or may provide an update on how the institution has responded to the findings of the team.

Commission Review and Decision: 

Normally the Commission considers comprehensive evaluations the semester following the visit. The institution’s president (CEO) and team chair are invited to meet with the Commission for an interactive session to review the comprehensive evaluation. Included in the review are the self-study, team report, the confidential recommendation of the team chair, the institution’s response, and the history of Commission action with respect to the institution. In addition, in keeping with federal regulations, the Commission seeks and considers Public Comment regarding each evaluated institution.

The Range and Meaning of Commission Actions Affecting Institutional Status outlines the actions the Commission may take with regard to an institution’s accreditation status. In addition, the Commission specifies areas where an institution should endeavor to improve its effectiveness. Official written notification of the Commission decision is provided to the institution shortly after the Commission meeting.

Interim Reports ask institutions to reflect on progress since the last comprehensive review and to project areas of focus for the next five years leading up to the next comprehensive review.

• Institutions preparing Interim Reports are invited to attend an orientation session led by Commission staff and institutional representatives who have just completed the process.
• Institutions are strongly encouraged to submit a draft of the Interim Report for review by Commission staff.

Policies and Procedures pertaining to Interim (Fifth-Year) Report :

• Policy on Periodic Review of Accredited Institutions
• Procedures for Interim Reports
• Procedures for the Review of Off-Campus Sites At the Time of the Interim Report for Institutions with General Approval
• Policy on Student Verification and Transfer of Credit 
• Policy on Credits and Degrees 
• Policy on Dual Enrollment

Forms pertaining to Interim (Fifth-Year) Report :

• NECHE Finance Forms (.xlsx)
• Student Achievement and Success: Making Assessment More Explicit (E series) (.pdf) Required
• Statement on Student Achievement and Success Data Forms (.pdf)
• Affirmation of Compliance (.pdf), Affirmation of Compliance (doc.)
• Standards for Accreditation (pdf)

   

Submission of Report:

Electronic copy: a single searchable pdf file of the Interim Report, including all forms and appendices, should be submitted via the NECHE Institution Portal.

The Commission may request an institutional progress report at any time in order to follow up on issues of particular concern. Institutions are asked to use the guidelines below in preparing these reports and to consult Commission staff with any questions.

Guidelines for Preparing Progress Reports

Institutions asked to focus on finance and enrollment should include the Finance & Enrollment (F&E) Data Forms.

The focused evaluation provides a means of monitoring specific developments or concerns within an institution between comprehensive evaluations. When the Commission requires a focused evaluation, the institution submits a report on specified areas, and a small team visits the institution to validate the information provided in the report, evaluate the areas of focus, and report its findings and its recommendations to the Commission. The Commission considers focused evaluations the semester following the visit. The institution’s president (CEO) and team chair are invited to meet with the Commission for an interactive session to review the focused evaluation. Included in the review are the institutional report, the team report and confidential recommendation, and the institution’s response to the team report.

To view procedures for the Focused Evaluation Visit, please click here.

Institutions asked to focus on finance and enrollment should include the Finance & Enrollment (F&E) Data Forms.

Educational institutions are constantly changing. Most changes, such as developing new majors or concentrations, changing personnel, and adding and dropping courses, fall within the nature and scope of the institution and do not affect its accredited status. Other changes, however, affect significantly the nature of the institution, its mission and objectives, its educational program, and the allocation of its resources. Such substantive changes initiated subsequent to the most recent evaluation are not automatically included in the institution’s accreditation.

The Commission supports and encourages innovation and experimentation; it also has the obligation to determine the effect of substantive changes on the validity of an institution’s accreditation. Each year the Commission considers several substantive change requests from institutions for matters including new branch campuses or additional instructional locations; enrolling students in degree programs overseas; offering certificates or degrees where 50% or more can be taken entirely on-line; and moving to the higher or lower degree. Offering a prison education program, either a privately funded program or a Pell-eligible program is also a substantive change. More information on the approval process for prison education programs can be found here.

If you are in doubt about whether a change your institution is making constitutes a substantive change, please contact either Laura M. Gambino (lgambino@neche.org or 781-425-7751) or Carol Anderson (canderson@neche.org or 781-425-7713). Review of a draft proposal by NECHE staff is highly recommended.

Please note that, per federal policy, in approving a substantive change, the Commission will specify an effective date that generally cannot be retroactive.

Submission of Substantive Change proposals:

Deadlines for submission of Substantive Change proposals to the Commission are as follows:

August 15, 2024 for consideration at the September 2024 meeting
October 15, 2024 for consideration at the November 2024 meeting
January 15, 2025 for consideration at the March 2025 meeting
March 14, 2025 for consideration at the April 2025 meeting

Institutions are requested to provide a cover page that includes the CEO’s signature on all Substantive Change proposals. Please use the NECHE Institution Portal to submit 1 single, searchable PDF file of the proposal to the Commission office by the deadlines specified above.

Resource Webinar: If the Time Comes: Closing a College Wisely

Please consult the Policy on Substantive Change for further assistance.

After an institution has received approval for a substantive change, the Commission will specify follow-up monitoring. For certain substantive changes – typically moving to the higher or lower degree; establishing an off-campus location; undertaking an expansion of scope; undergoing a change of ownership, including a merger –the follow-up will include a campus visit to assess initial implementation of the change. The visit is generally conducted by one or two evaluators and takes place over a period of one to two days.

Click here for the Procedures for the Substantive Change Evaluation Visit.

For information about how to submit a substantive change proposal, click here.