What can we do in the weeks ahead?

Date: Apr 15, 2004

What can we do in the weeks ahead?

Date: Apr 15, 2004

Excellent suggestion.

Date: Apr 16, 2004

It was an astute idea to contact associations and the sample letter by Robert Campbell on a separate thread is a wonderful start. If individuals in every department, in every college, would send letters to their own academy associations this could be very powerful. Thank you USMSympathizer.

Next idea-

How about contacting accrediting bodies? As someone said on the accreditation thread yesterday, there is no lying to the accreditation teams. Where we are in trouble, we are in trouble. Why, instead, not be proactive and voice our concerns to SACS, NCATE, and the other accrediting groups that affect our university? Again, every department, every college.

Date: Apr 16, 2004

Dome Mole,

That was Robert Evans who wrote the (excellent) sample letter.

It's worthwhile to talk to accrediting bodies--especially if USM is already in trouble with them (which I gather is the case with NCATE). Realistically, though, their responses are unpredictable. Accrediting bodies are more interested in seeing that their hoops have been jumped through than they are in such matters as excessive spending on administration or abuses of power. So it's best to concentrate on what Thames and his allies are doing that undermines USM's chances of meeting the standards of the accrediting agency.

Robert Campbell

Date: Apr 16, 2004

My apologies to BOTH Roberts!

Robert Campbell,

I absolutely agree with your appraisal of and suggestions for dealing with the accrediting agencies. I might simply suggest that there is overlap. For example, in areas where unqualified adiministrators funded out of instructional budgets are making decisions that lead to substandard education for students, it seems that accrediting agencies should have concern. When attrition results in the loss of most or all of the intellectual capital in a particular field, there should be accreditation concerns. When programs are promoted as being accredited, when they are clearly not accreditable, there should be concerns. My suggestion was that the knowledgeable people in their various disciplines, within individual departments and within individual colleges contact their accrediting bodies or visitation teams with their concerns about how the current USM debacle is likely to affect specific accreditation(s).

DM