What is the Compliance Certification?

The Compliance Certification is the document prepared by the college that provides compelling evidence demonstrating compliance with each of the Core Requirements, Comprehensive Standards and Federal Requirements in the SACS Principles of Accreditation. 

Compliance Standards

To establish the standards all institutions in SACS have to follow, the Commission on Colleges developed a set of Principles that outline the minimum requirements and best practices for institutions of higher education.  These have been developed through a collegial process using representative committees who reviewed the research and standards of other regional accrediting bodies.  There are about q75 areas to address in three main sections:

  • nSection 1 – Core Requirements - these are the most important requirements.  Institutions must address these twelve requirements successfully in order to get reaffirmed.  Core Requirements include the requirement to:

    • be authorized to grant degrees,

    • have a governing board and CEO,

    • have a clearly defined mission,

    • engage in ongoing, integrated, institution-wide research-based planning and evaluation that ... demonstrates the institution is effectively accomplishing its mission,

    • have degree programs with minimum length that are coherent and appropriate to higher education,

    • have the appropriate number of faculty,

    • have an adequate library,

    • provide student support programs to promote student learning,

    • have adequate financial and physical resources, and

    • have developed an acceptable Quality Enhancement Plan (for more information on the QEP, click here).

  • nSection 2 – Comprehensive Standards - these are not pass/fail, but represent best practices used in the best institutions.  There are 57 of these that institutions have to address, in the areas of Governance, Institutional Effectiveness, Educational Programs, Faculty, Library, Student Affairs, Financial and Physical Resources, and Institutional Responsibility for Commission Policies.
     

  • nSection 3 – Federal Requirements - the regional accrediting bodies help the Federal government ensure that Federal regulations are being followed by reviewing compliance in those areas at the same time as regional accreditation is taking place.  There currently are seven areas covered, including Financial Aid, student complaints, public information, and student achievement.

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To help institutions write the narratives and select appropriate evidence, SACS has provided a 75-page Resource Manual with:

  • Rationale and notes - This provides the reasons behind the requirements or best practices.
  • nRelevant questions to address in each area, and
  • nSuggested documentation
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Compelling Evidence of Compliance

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It is the responsibility of the institution to “make its case” regarding compliance.  In our Compliance Certification document we have to show that we are in compliance by providing compelling evidence to support our claim. 

This starts with:

  • Guidance, whether from State statutes or Board of Trustees rules, or manuals such as the C&I manual. 

then proceeds to:

  • Evidence that we follow the guidance, which could take the form of minutes from meetings, publications such as the College Catalog and Baccalaureate program brochures, course outlines, program sequence maps, EA/EO proceedings, or safety reports.

  • Evidence that we measure the effectiveness of our operations, such as Enrolled Student Survey reports, Student Survey of Instruction analysis, Who's Next reports, Comprehensive Academic Program Reviews (CAPRs), or CCSSE.

and finally:

  • Results in the use of the information in the reports to make improvements to the operation, which is documented in Program Assessment Follow-up Reports, 3-year course reviews, minutes of Advisory Committees, and the tab in SPOL titled Use of Results.

  • Ties to budgetary decisions through the strategic planning process.

The Compliance Process at St. Petersburg College

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SACS Steering Committee.  Key leadership of the College and team leaders of the various elements of the SACS preparation process meet on a regular basis to review the status of each component, solve any problems that may have arisen, and allocate additional resources if required.

The process for developing the Compliance Certification document at SPC used a series of strategies to ensure the compliance narratives and evidence were accurate and completed with integrity.

  • Fall 2004.  A Compliance Writers committee was formed to write the initial drafts.  After receiving feedback from the Leadership team, the writers prepared a second draft and provided supporting evidence.  At this time, any gaps in compliance were identified and solutions implemented.

  • Summer 2005.  The second draft was reviewed by an outside consultant, a SACS evaluator who recently also had had a highly successful SACS visit.  His recommendation was that we include as much evidence within the narrative to make the job of determining compliance easier for the off-site team.

  • Fall 2005-Summer 2006.  Narratives were revised extensively by the Accreditation Liaison, the IE team, and the Financial sections writer to incorporate evidence where possible and additional evidence was gathered.  A small Compliance Editing team reviewed the drafts and provided feedback.

  • Fall 2006.  The Accreditation Liaison met with Content Expert Teams in every area and across campuses to review the revised drafts and get updates on information in the narratives.  These Content Expert Teams included the original Compliance Writers.

  • December 2006.  All members of the President's Cabinet reviewed the updated narratives.

  • January-February 2007.  Content Expert Teams updated the evidence supporting the narratives.

  • February-March 2007. The Accreditation Liaison assembled the narratives into a printed document and the narratives and evidence into a website.  The narrative document is 688 pages long (including the embedded evidence), and there are over a1,000 links to supporting evidence.  You may review SPC's Compliance Certification by clicking on the following link:

SPC Compliance Certification 
(Click on this link to read SPC's 2007 Compliance Certification)

  • March 12th.  Packets with printed and electronic copies of the Compliance Certification and all the evidence were sent to the nine members of the off-site team and SACS headquarters in Atlanta.

  • The off-site review team met to review our documents in May 2007.  Only two Comprehensive Standards required further investigation by the on-site team: 3.2.5 Board Dismissal (because we relied on state legislation rather than Board rules) and 3.2.10 Administrator Evaluations (because we did not include actual evaluations on our unsecure website).  Both were addressed during the on-site visit and found to be in compliance.  SPC was 100% in compliance with all core requirements and comprehensive standards that are on the most frequently cited list: Faculty qualifications, Institutional Effectiveness, and the Financial sections.

  • The on-site visit took place September 25-27, 2007, and primarily focused on the QEP.  The Visiting Committee cited two recommendations and one suggestion.

  • Our response to the Report of the Visiting Committee was submitted in February 2008.  (see link at top)

  • The Commission on Colleges will meet in late June to vote on SPC's reaffirmation.

 
Resources for further information on SACS Requirements and SPC Compliance

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Committees supporting the development of the Compliance document

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Compliance Writers Committee Content Expert Committees Compliance Editing Team

Lynn Grinnell, Co-Chair, Accreditation Liaison/Acting Dir, SPD

Debbie Montalvo, Co-Chair, Operations Manager, CT

Carol Copenhaver, Senior Vice President, Educational and Student Services

Kay Burniston, Associate VP, Baccalaureate Programs

Doug Duncan, Director, Human Resources

Karen Altieri, Coordinator, Credentialing

Angela Picard, QEP Co-Chair, Program Director, Health Info Mgt

Nyle Bosier, Director, Facilities Services

Jayne Bray, Accounting

Maria Chapin, Faculty, Natural Sciences

Marty Clay, Director, Admissions & Records

Jerry Dyer, Director, Institutional Effectiveness & Planning

Jeff Cesta, Counselor-in-charge

Denise Kerwin, Program Director/Faculty, Continuing Education Health

David Moore, Program Director/Faculty, Int’l Studies/Dual Credit

Carol Weideman, Director, Institutional Research

Lynda Womer, Program Director, eCampus

Jean Wortock, Dean, Baccalaureate Nursing

Pat Rinard, Information Systems

Myrtle Williams, Associate Provost

Rode Luisa, Student

Patty Jones, Associate Director – Human Resources

 		 Governance
  • Dr. Kuttler, President
  • Tom Furlong, SVP, Baccalaureate Programs & University Partnerships
  • Karen Kaufman White, Special Assistant to the President
  • Dave Henning/Syd McKenzie, College Attorney
  • Kim Corry, Staff Assistant to the Board of Trustees
  • Janice Buchanan/Susan Fell, Executive Director, Foundation
  • Lynn Whitelaw, Director, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art
  • Amelia Carey, Director, Institutional Advancement

Academic Policies

  • Carol Copenhaver, SVP, E&SS
  • Kay Burniston, AVP, Baccalaureate Programs
  • Marty Clay, VP, E&SS
  • Jean Wortock, Dean, Nursing

Finance

  • Theresa Furnas, AVP, Financial & Business Services
  • Vonda Woods, Senior Accountant
  • Jayne Bray, Senior Accountant

Student Services

  • Myrtle Williams, Associate Provost, SP/G
  • Tonjua Williams, Associate Provost, HEC
  • Jeff Cesta, Director of Student Success, TS
  • Linda Hogans, Director, Special Programs
  • Marcia McConnell, Director, Financial Aid
  • Sharon Williams, Activity Director, Title III

Library/Learning Resources

  • Susan Anderson/Debbie Robinson, Director, Libraries
  • Karen Sidwell, Program Director, CL
  • Karen Miller, Program Director, SE
  • Connie Szuch, Program Director, SP/G
  • Anne Neiberger, New Initiative Program, HEC
  • Steve Ester, Information Commons Coordinator, TS

Admissions

  • Marty Clay, VP, Educational & Student Services
  • Pat Rinard, Registrar

Technology

  • Conferlete Carney, VP, Info Systems, Bus Svcs, Planning, & Budgets
  • Ken Pereira, Director, Learning Management & Student Support Systems
  • Vicki Westergard, Director, Web & Instructional Technology Systems
  • Jim Connolly, Director, eCampus
  • Jennifer Lechner, Director, Project Eagle

Human Resources

  • Doug Duncan, Director, HR
  • Patty Jones, Associate Director, HR
  • Karen Altieri, Faculty Credentialing
  • Deborah Boyle, Staff & Professional Development

Non-credit

  • Deb Montalvo, Operations Manager, Corporate Training
  • Denise Kerwin, Program Director, Continuing Ed Health
  • Terry Byrd, Program Director, CJI In-service
  • Nerina Stepanovsky, Program Director, EMS
  • John Dressback, Program Coordinator, CJI Academies
  • Jim Terry, Fire Academy Coordinator
  • Jim Berry/Andrea Henning, Collaborative Labs
  • Lynn Whitelaw, Director, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art
  • Garry Burlingame, WorkNet


Public Information/Recruiting

  • Amelia Carey, Director, Institutional Advancement
  • Mike O'Keefe, Assistant Director, Institutional Advancement
  • Mark Strickland, Director, Enrollment Management
  • Marty Clay, VP, E&SS

Facilities

  • Susan Reiter, Director, Facilities
  • Lisa Cook, Coordinator, Facilities Planning
  • David Boehm, Director, Facilities Services
  • Dan Barto, Director, Security, Risk Management/Ops
  • Jim Waechter, Coordinator, Design & Construction Services

Institutional Effectiveness (standing team)

  • Tom Saban, AVP, Budgets, Planning, and Research
  • Carol Weideman, Director, Institutional Research
  • Angela Picard, Program Director, Health Information Management
  • Earl Fratus, Faculty, SE
  • Jerry Dyer, Director, Planning
  • Jesse Coraggio, Coordinator, Academic Programs, Research & Reports
  • Leigh Goldberg, Coordinator, Baccalaureate Research & Reports
  • Linda Hogans, Director, Special Programs
  • Sharon Williams, Activity Director, Title III
  • Lynn Grinnell, Accreditation Liaison
  • Janet Helm, Budget Specialist

General Education (standing team)

  • Reading/Writing: Martha Campbell, Program Director, Humanities/Comm
  • Speech/Working effectively with others: Karen Sidwell, Program Director, Humanities/Comm
  • Humanities: Karen Miller, Program Director, Humanities/Comm
  • Math: Sharon Griggs, Program Director, Math
  • Natural Science: Bill Hemme, Program Director, Science/Math
  • Social Sciences: Evelyn Finklea, Program Director, Social Sciences
  • Citizenship:  Joe Smiley, Program Director, Social Sciences/Bus Tech
  • Technology:  Connie Szuch, Program Director, Business Tech
  • Ethics: Keith Gorree, Program Director, Ethics
  • Lifelong learning: Jerry Dyer, Director, Planning

  • Tom Saban, AVP, Budgets, Planning, and Research

  • Carol Weideman, Director, Institutional Research

  • Angela Picard, Program Director, Health Information Management

  • Deb Montalvo, Operations Manager, Corporate Training
  • Lynn Grinnell, Accreditation Liaison
President's Cabinet
Note:  All members of Cabinet were asked to review the entire document; however, the following Cabinet members were tasked with specific areas to review:
 
Facilities Susan Reiter
Admissions Marty Clay
Student services Ann Cooper
Personnel Stan Vittetoe & Doug Duncan
Finance and Technology Conferlete Carney
Academic policies Sandy Pepicello Wise
Charlie Roberts
Libraries/ Learning Resources

Charlie Roberts
IE Jim Olliver
Non-credit JC Brock
Governance Syd McKenzie & Karen Kaufman White

 
 

 

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