Deep Dive in 5: Priya Raman on the Upcoming WSCUC Visit

From April 9-11, a review team from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) will visit the San José State campus to meet with faculty, staff and students as part of SJSU's ongoing accreditation process.

For more on this visit and what it means to all members of the SJSU campus, we spoke with Priya Raman, associate professor of communication studies, director of assessment at SJSU and chair of the Accreditation Review Committee.

What is WSCUC?

Priya Raman (PR): WSCUC is our university's accreditation agency. WSCUC accreditation aids us in developing and sustaining effective and quality educational programs, and assures our constituents that SJSU has met high standards of quality and effectiveness! In other words, we're providing our students with a quality education, and our students are graduating with degrees and skills they can apply when they go out into the world for a successful post-graduate life.

The Special Visit team from WSCUC is reviewing our progress on many initiatives pertaining to student success, both within and outside of the university. They're interested in the ways we continuously improve ourselves, and how we work towards creating better realities for our students, and securing their futures.

Why are they visiting now and what is the purpose of their visit?

PR: These reviews are periodic, depending on the number of years of accreditation the university receives in the previous round. The last time the WSCUC team came to campus was in 2022. SJSU received a six-year accreditation period with a midway check-in, also known as a "special visit," and we were asked to work on nine recommendations.

They're visiting midway through our particular cycle - that is where we are, in April 2025 - to assess the progress we've made with those recommendations. They expect to see improvement, proof that we took their words seriously and that we're really pulling together as a campus community to demonstrate progress on these issues. We've used this as an opportunity to reflect on ourselves and our practices, and to make sure we're better now than we were three years ago.

That's why you will see the WSCUC team members from the previous visit come back to campus. They'll be at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories on April 7 and on the main campus from April 9-11.

What did you have to do to prepare for the visit?

PR: On January 29th, we submitted a detailed report describing how we addressed their recommendations from the 2022 visit. The review team had a chance to read the report, review it amongst themselves, discuss it, and then target certain areas where they needed more clarity or would like to have additional conversations with people tasked with doing that work. The review team will meet with some of those people during their visit.

I was very impressed while reading the [reports submitted by various departments and units]. The kind of work that our SJSU community is doing is mind-blowing. The sheer number of folks across the university who pull together in order to better support our students and really make their curricular and co-curricular experiences cohesive and provide them the tools for success is really meaningful to me. I'm just deeply appreciative of all of my colleagues and our students every day.

What were some of the recommendations that came from the 2022 visit and how have we responded?

PR: Some of the themes that emerged in the recommendations included campus climate; shared governance; the hiring, recruiting and retaining of a CEO; our relationship with CSU trustees and the Chancellor's Office; reducing equity gaps; integrating the DEI centers and the student success centers; integrating student learning outcomes across different domains of learning; and making sure that institutional research is well-integrated into other parts of the university. There were also recommendations on how to clarify administrative responsibilities and financial arrangements with Moss Landing.

On Monday, April 7, one representative of the review team will go to Moss Landing Marine Labs to meet with College of Science Dean Michael Kaufman and MLML Director Petra Dekens, among others. They'll meet with students, staff and other members of the MLML community and tour the facilities.

On Wednesday, the review team comes to campus and will be here until Friday with meetings scheduled with various constituent groups based on the recommendations. So for example, if they would like to speak about assessment of student learning, they would be meeting with me, the director of assessment, and all the folks who are involved in program assessment on the curricular and the co-curricular sides. On April 9 and 10, they'll have meetings and a pair of open forums with various constituents from SJSU, focusing these conversations on relevant recommendations.

On Friday, April 11, the review team will meet with President Teniente-Matson. They'll give her an overview of their review, and then hold an "exit meeting" or open forum with the entire campus, which everyone is invited to attend, either in person or virtually. The review team presents for a half hour, and then they leave.

What happens after their visit? How do they officially approve our accreditation?

PR: They typically make commendations and recommendations. During the exit meeting they will likely go through and say things like, "You're doing well in this area," and "Here are things we still need you to show progress on," etc. That ends the review team's campus visit.

In June, there's a more formal meeting of the commission which will be attended by President Teniente-Matson, [the review team produces] a formal letter that gives us our updated "health check," and that concludes the process.

After that, our campus community will reflect on what the review team told us and what they've shared about us, and hopefully we'll incorporate that into our day-to-day operations and share it with our cabinet members, leadership, students, staff and faculty members. We keep what we've learned in mind as we carry on with the business of continuous improvement and our focus on student success.

We want to provide our students with an equitable experience, honoring their lived experiences and where they've come from. We want to recognize all of that and make sure all our students get the support they need to succeed.

What does this visit mean for San José State?

PR: It's a wonderful opportunity for our community to get together and reflect on our significant achievements - a chance to feel very proud of who we are as a group of people. While [visits like] this can be a little intimidating, they're also a chance to really focus on the things we've done for our students and for each other, as well as the massive amount of progress we've made since 2022. We want to showcase that progress as well as acknowledge openly and transparently where we know we have more to do.

I think it's very valuable to get an external perspective on how we're doing. How does the review team see us? Where do they see opportunities for us that we, in the day-to-day business of living and working, may not necessarily be focusing on?

I think we have a lot to feel proud about. We also have, in some areas, a way to go. But with a growth mindset and a commitment to continuous improvement, we should always reflect on how we can enhance our practices and better serve our students. So that's what this visit means to me.

How is this visit relevant to students on campus and how can they get involved?

PR: We would love to have everybody participate, or at least be aware of what's happening around them. We invite input from campus constituents in whatever shape or form may work best for them. We'll be sharing a schedule with all the opportunities to get involved, whether they're in an open forum, in meetings or even virtually. There's also an anonymous email account open to everyone on campus ( sjsu@wscuc.org ) where folks are welcome to submit their feedback confidentially.

My grandparents and my parents have always told me, "The only generational wealth you have is your education". [And I agree with that.]

The quality of the skills that you're getting through your degree [at SJSU], this investment that you're making, both in your present and and your future, is directly relevant to [the WSCUC visit and accreditation]. WSCUC may be a confusing acronym, but this is a great opportunity for you to learn more about how we are living up to our mission, vision and values, as well as areas of future growth for the university community.

Visit the WSCUC Special Visit website to learn more.