SACS Manuals:

The three most important SACS publications outlining the philosophies, goals and procedures associated with accreditation and reaffirmation are available online in pdf format or in hard-copy versions. As might be expected, the online versions are the most up to date and in several instances include corrections or clarifications of erroneous or potentially confusing material that is present in the latest hard-copy versions available on the NKU campus. Therefore, you are advised to consult the online versions of these documents rather than relying on hard-copies.
 

• The Principles of Accreditation: Foundations for Quality Enhancement (2007 Interim Edition) is a brief treatise on the principles and philosophy of accreditation in higher education that goes on to succinctly outline the basic requirements and standards for institutions seeking accreditation. It is surprising concise for such an important document. This 2007 Interim Edition includes the changes approved by SACS during its December 2006 annual meeting.
• The link above is tied directly to the SACS Web site. The following secondary link is to a copy of the Principles of Accreditation pdf file stored on an NKU server.
   
• Resource Manual for the Principles of Accreditation is a substantially expanded version (74 full-size 8.5 by inch pages) of The Principles of Accreditation that includes the rationale underlying many of the principles, questions that institutions ought to consider as they assess themselves in light of these principles, and an explanation of the types of documentation that are most appropriate in supporting their assessments. Note: This document is not fully consistent with the 2007 Interim Edition of the Principles of Accreditation because it has not been updated to reflect changes approved during the December 2006 SACS annual meeting.
• The primary link above is directly to the SACS Web site. This secondary link is to a copy of the Resource Manual pdf file stored on an NKU server.
   
• The Handbook for Reaffirmation of Accreditation is the overall guide to understanding the accreditation and reaffirmation process. Although it outlines the various steps and procedures the institution needs to go through in completing the process, it cannot stand on its own. The Handbook makes frequent reference to, and users will need to consult, details and explanations contained only in the Resource Manual cited above.
  • The primary link above is directly to the SACS Web site. This secondary link is to a copy of the Reaffirmation Handbook pdf file stored on an NKU server.

 
 
SACS Forms, Instructions & Guidelines:

• Faculty Roster Form is a word document for reporting a course-by-course list of all faculty members, the courses they teach, and their academic credentials for teaching each of those courses. A complete Faculty Roster of all full-time and part-time faculty must be submitted for at least the three academic terms immediately prior to the submission of the Compliance Certification.
  • The link above leads to the SACS Web site. This secondary link is to a copy of the Faculty Roster Form file stored on an NKU server.

• Directions for completing the Faculty Roster Form are contained in this pdf file on the SACS Web site.
• This secondary link is to a copy of the directions for completing the Faculty Roster Form on an NKU server.
• Faculty Credentials - Guidelines lists the minimum level of academic credentials that SACS expects faculty members to have based on the degree-level of the courses they teach.
• This link is to a copy of SACS's faculty credentials guidelines stored on an NKU server. 
  

 
 
Additional Background and Reference Material:

• Approved Quality Enhancement Plans from SACS Institutions is pdf file that lists all of the QEPs that were approved by SACS during the first two years that QEPs were required.
  • This secondary link is to a copy of the Other School's QEPs pdf file stored on an NKU server.
  • Although there is no single site where all of the QEPs are accessible, many are posted on their home institution's Web site. You can find quite a few by doing a Google search for the name of the institution along with "SACS" and/or "QEP." 
    

• Colleges seek better ways to measure learning is a news story by Daniel Golden of the The Wall Street Journal as published online in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (11/13/06). It addresses several of the broad changes that have been sweeping through higher education accreditation in recent years but seems to have been sparked by a SACS directive given to The University of the South. According to the article, SACS "told the University of the South that, to have its accreditation renewed, it would have to do a better job of measuring student learning."
• The Measure of Learning: Can you test what colleges teach? Academics are appalled that the government wants to try by Alex Kingsbury is a "Special Report" by U.S. News & World Report. Posted online on March 4, 2007 and published in the March 12, 2007 hard-copy edition, this article focuses on Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings' criticism of higher education for not providing public reports on assessment and the spring 2007 discussions between the Department of Education and accrediting agencies about possible mandatory testing of all college students.
• Student Learning Outcomes / Assessment and Evaluation is a Web page of conceptual background, specific instructions, and helpful links to additional information prepared by the NKU Office of Curriculum, Accreditation, and Assessment.