NMU Prepares for Higher Learning Commission Site Visit

In one of the last major steps of its 10-year Open Pathway cycle, Northern Michigan University will host a team of peer reviewers from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) on campus Oct. 19-20.

The team, composed of peers from universities similar to Northern around the country, will conduct open forums across campus as well as focused sessions, looking to hear directly from faculty, staff, students, administrators, Trustees and other campus stakeholders.

Accreditation is necessary for NMU access to Federal Student Aid, and gives credibility to an NMU degree. Accreditation also makes it possible for NMU students to transfer credits, earn professional licenses, and get into graduate and professional programs.

The site visit will center on NMU's Assurance Argument, a detailed study showing how the university meets each of HLC's Criteria for Accreditation. Faculty authors Kathryn Johnson (History), Liz Monske (English) and Adam Naito (Earth, Environmental and Geographical Sciences), along with staff from the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, authored the argument drawing on input from across campus. Dan Cullen, IE team member and director of Institutional Accreditation and Assessment, has led NMU's accreditation responsibilities since 2018.

"The submission includes a narrative of roughly 100 pages, more than 600 evidence files, a federal compliance report, a history of NMU's interactions with HLC since 2015, and a survey HLC sent to NMU students," Cullen said. "Our faculty authors have done an incredible job telling NMU's story."

Faculty, staff, and students can read the Assurance Argument, or the sections most relevant to their work, by visiting nmu.edu/ie/hlc-reaffirmation.

The university will host mock visit sessions at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 6 and noon on Friday Oct. 9. Both mock sessions will take place in Jamrich 1100. Tuesday's session will focus on teaching, learning and student success while Friday's will focus on sustainability, planning and enrollment management. Participants will work through the kinds of questions typically asked by reviewers. Preparation for the mock visits is not required. Attendees need only arrive ready to share their perspectives.

"Completing the 10-year Open Pathway cycle is a significant accomplishment. I want to thank our team of faculty authors for their dedication and thank Dan Cullen for his incredible leadership on this mission-critical project, " said Jason Nicholas, assistant provost and director of Institutional Effectiveness and University Strategic Planning.

During the OCt. 19-20 visit, the HLC reviewers will host open forums available to anyone as well as focused meetings that may include specific invites to faculty and staff with relevant expertise to the topic. Additionally, the team will host drop-in sessions for those unable to participate in planned forums due to schedule conflicts.

In an effort to hear from a variety of NMU stakeholders, the review team will also host a lunch discussion with NMU students and a breakfast meeting with representatives from the NMU Board of Trustees.

Questions before the visit can be sent to [email protected]. During the visit, the Office of Institutional Effectiveness will be coordinating from Harden Hall 214 and can be reached at (906) 227-2378.