College will have to wait a month for details from site visit.
Faculty at this college were left disappointed when meetings with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges were canceled last week during the on-site team visit from SACSCOC.
The site-visit team was said to be on a tight schedule and so was unable to keep commitments to faculty.
Because faculty did not get the chance to share their concerns with SACSCOC, The Ranger will do so in the hopes the information reaches members of the on-site committee.
A recent statement by NVC faculty lists 18 points of emphasis in regard to the deferred re-affirmation. Some read:
• This executive (Chancellor Bruce Leslie) interference in curriculum matters is in clear violation of SACSCOC comprehensive Standard 3.4.10 and Standard 3.4.1.
• The ongoing implementation of board policy E.1.3 by the district vice chancellor of academics in defining “curricular maps” infringes upon the ability of the NVC faculty to innovate curriculum in new programs and the autonomy of the faculty to evaluate the transferability of courses in violation of the principles of accreditation cited below.
Standard 3.4.10 reads: The primary responsibility for the content of curriculum is with the faculty.
• The SACSCOC principles of accreditation state that: “Accreditation expects an institution to develop a balanced governing structure designed to promote institutional integrity, autonomy, and flexibility of operation.”
• Leslie’s policy guidance to the ACCD board to defy the accrediting principle of autonomy through policy creation and the above and other circumventions of established faculty-controlled curriculum change processes by district-level executive interference have likely been the primary cause of NVC’s deferred reaccreditation;
The statement ends with NVC re-affirming its vote of no confidence in the chancellor because both his executive leadership and policy guidance to the board have likely been the primary cause of NVC’s deferred reaccreditation application.
These and many other points did not reach the SACSCOC on-site team because of canceled meetings.
For transparency purposes, President Robert Vela should let employees at this college know any detailed information available.
The college needs to be transparent about this whole process so employees aren’t left guessing about what’s going on in the workplace.