Faculty Evaluations and Other Quality Assurance-Related Issues

2019 CHEA Summer Roundtable: Accreditation and Federal Policy June 20, 2019 - Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill-Washington, DC

Accreditation and Federal Policy is a one-day roundtable focusing on the latest federal policy developments affecting higher education accreditation. The roundtable is open to CHEA member institutions and CHEA- and U.S. Department of Education-recognized accrediting organizations. Speakers will include Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA), Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Initiatives; Diane Auer Jones, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education; Mary Barry, Policy Advisory to Senator Patty Murray, Ranking Member of the Senate HELP Committee; Katherine Valle, Senior Policy Advisory to Congressman Bobby Scott, Chair of the House Committee on Education and Labor; and a senior minority staff member of the House Committee on Education and Labor. Click here for more information, including a registration form and link to the conference hotel for reservations.

HEADLINES

Why Faculty Evaluations Are Not Effective (Dunya News [Pakistan], May 30, 2019) “The Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan back in 2005 established the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), with the aim of enforcing good practices in education and encouraging continuous improvement in quality in higher education. To materialize their aims, the QAA further initiated Quality Enhancement Cells (QEC), in each HEC’s recognized institution. HEC’s Quality Assurance agency provided a self-assessment manual to QECs for the execution of their objectives. The manual has the approval of country’s renewed academicians which explicitly has emphasized the faculty evaluations by students for all the courses that they are being taught by their instructors.”

Two Marginal Universities (Both Majoring in F-1 Foreign Students) Are in Trouble (Immigration Blog, May 30, 2019) “The two in trouble are the multi-campus Stratford University, and the single campus (and single building) Virginia International University; both are headquartered in Northern Virginia. Both had accreditations from an entity, the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), an organization which was de-recognized by the Obama Administration as having too lax standards, and then was revived by Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who has a different set of standards.”

Plan to Tie Student Numbers to Available Facilities, Staff (University World News, May 17, 2019) “In an attempt to improve quality at universities and institutions of higher learning, the Uganda National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) is to embark upon a stringent exercise to align new student numbers at institutions with available facilities and lecturers. Saul Waigolo, spokesperson for the NCHE, revealed the council’s plans during the Ninth East African Higher Education Quality Assurance Network forum.”

Berlin International Becomes First Turkish University to Receive German Accreditation (Daily Sabah [Turkey], May 16, 2019) “Berlin International University of Applied Sciences (BI) on Friday received institutional accreditation from Germany's high educational board, becoming the first Turkish university officially meeting the country's standards.”