HLC Reaffirmation Visit 2024

Lake Superior College (LSC) is a member of and is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC). As part of our accreditation process, LSC is preparing an Assurance Argument to identify how we meet all the accreditation standards required by the HLC.

The Assurance Argument is about telling the LSC story, so we invited students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members to share their unique LSC story. These stories were compiled into an onling book.

We invite you to view "Our LSC Story"

Criterion 1 – Mission – Lake Superior College’s mission is clear and articulated publicly; it guides the institution’s operations.

Criterion 2 – Integrity: Ethical and Responsible Conduct – Lake Superior College acts with integrity; its conduct is ethical and responsible.

Criterion 3 – Teaching and Learning: Quality, Resources, and Support – Lake Superior College provides quality education, wherever and however its offerings are delivered.

Criterion 4 – Teaching and Learning: Evaluation and Improvement – Lake Superior College demonstrates responsibility for the quality of its educational programs, learning environments, and support services, and it evaluates their effectiveness for student learning through processes designed to promote continuous improvement.

Criterion 5 – Institutional Effectiveness, Resources, and Planning – Lake Superior College’s resources, structures, and processes are sufficient to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of its educational offerings, and respond to future challenges and opportunities.

Reaffirmation Process at LSC

Lake Superior College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a regional accreditor covering 19 states in the north central region of the United States. LSC has been fully accredited since 1998, with its most recent reaffirmation in 2014-2015. In February of 2024, an HLC peer review team will conduct an on-campus visit as part of LSC’s latest reaffirmation.

Why is it so important?

Regional Accreditation assures that LSC meets the highest national educational standards, and affirms that LSC is providing quality educational experiences for our students.  The accreditation process requires LSC to regularly assess our intended learning outcomes in all academic programs for currency (up to date), relevance (to the workplace or discipline), and effectiveness (students gain the skills and abilities needed for success in their chosen field or discipline).

“HLC is an institutional accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation to accredit degree-granting colleges and universities. Institutional accreditation validates the quality of an institution's academic programs at all degree levels, whether delivered on-site, online or otherwise. Institutional accreditation also examines the quality of the institution beyond its academic offerings and evaluates the institution as a whole, including the soundness of its governance and administration, adherence to mission, the sustainability of its finances, and the sufficiency of its resources. HLC maintains an active relationship with its member institutions, with frequent communication and regular reviews to ensure quality higher education” (HLC Website).

Accreditation Reaffirmation Process

HLC accreditation reaffirmation occurs on a 10-year cycle. Lake Superior College is following an Open Pathway model, and includes: participation in the Assessment Academy (which is our Quality Initiative), completing an Assurance Review, and the Peer Review team site visit. In addition, LSC must be in compliance with federal and state requirements, as well as demonstrate adherence to Assumed Practices:

“Foundational to the Criteria and Core Components is a set of practices shared by institutions of higher education in the United States. Unlike the Criteria for Accreditation, these Assumed Practices are (1) generally matters to be determined as facts, rather than matters requiring professional judgment and (2) not expected to vary by institutional mission or context. Similar to the Criteria, the Assumed Practices set requirements related to ethical and responsible conduct; quality, resources and support for teaching and learning; evaluation and improvement of teaching and learning; and resources, planning and institutional effectiveness. Every institution must be in compliance with all Assumed Practices at all times” (HLC Policy CRRT.B.10.020).

Timeline

• 2020-2021: LSC formed a HLC Steering Group and five Criteria Teams to begin gathering the evidence needed to create the Assurance Review.
• 2021-2022: Teams gather evidence and begin writing statements. Updates to the website commence.
• Summer 2022: campus communications and internal marketing campaign is developed.
• 2022-2023: Assurance Review is completed. Internal marketing and external marketing continue. Student opinion surveys completed, and third-party survey is completed and published.
• February 2024: Peer Review Team visit!

Criteria and Team

Steering Team

• Hanna Erpestad
• Sarah Lyons
• Jestina Vichorek
• Emily Chapinski
• Amy Jo Swing
• Anna Sackette-Urness
• Melissa Leno
• Nickoel Anderson
• Scott Andrews
• Al Finlayson
• Patricia Rogers
• Linda Kingston

Criterion 1: Mission

The institution's mission is clear and articulated publicly; it guides the institution's operations.

Criterion 1 Team

• Hanna Erpestad – co-lead
• Brad Vieths – co-lead
• Wade Gordon
• Lindsy Mason O’Brien
• Daniel Guinee
• Trevor Wills
• Lynn Lindahl

Criterion 2: Integrity: Ethical and Responsible Conduct

The institution acts with integrity; its conduct is ethical and responsible.

Criterion 2 Team

• Sarah Lyons – co-lead
• Jestina Vichorek – co-lead
• Wade Gordon
• Kelli Hallsten Erickson
• Steve Fudally

Criterion 3. Teaching and Learning: Quality, Resources, and Support

The institution provides quality education, wherever and however its offerings are delivered.

Criterion 3 Team

• Emily Chapinski – co-lead
• Amy Jo Swing – co-lead
• Peggy Gustofson
• Steve Dalager
• Dean Magnuson
• Jessica Bortolus
• Jody Greniger

Criterion 4. Teaching and Learning: Evaluation and Improvement

The institution demonstrates responsibility for the quality of its educational programs, learning environments, and support services, and it evaluates their effectiveness for student learning through processes designed to promote continuous improvement

Criterion 4 Team

• Anna Sackette-Urness – co-lead
• Melissa Leno – co-lead
• Jill Murray
• Sarah Lyons
• Bill Heider
• Gretchen Flaherty
• Lori Yecoshenko
• Matt Farchmin

Criterion 5. Institutional Effectiveness, Resources and Planning

The institution’s resources, structures, and processes are sufficient to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of its educational offerings, and respond to future challenges and opportunities.

Criterion 5 Team

• Nickoel Anderson – co-lead
• LaNita Robinson – co-lead
• Kirsten Bowman
• Kaitlyn Taggart
• Tim Brandon
• Al Finlayson

HLC Assessment Academy Project

LSC has a two-phase project, established in January of 2021:

1. Part of the project is curriculum mapping course outcomes, program outcomes, and college-wide outcomes. This part of the project is led by the Academic Assessment Committee (not the Assessment Academy team) as faculty are discussing/redesigning program reviews. Being able to meld institutional data with program data and faculty data ensures that Lake Superior College is collecting the assessment information required to meet outcomes for students at all levels, thereby creating a campus focused on student learning.
2. During this project, each program or department investigates the usefulness/validity of its current program/departmental reviews by using guided questions, data, and program outcomes. Faculty in each area then revise the program review using data, templates, sample reviews, and feedback. The new reviews will focus on student learning and highlight successes and areas of improvement for each program/department. Additionally, the new reviews will transition from a once-every-four years task to a cyclical four-year project, with tasks completed every year to keep the reviews helpful and relevant. The focus will change from reviews that sit unread on a shelf to reviews that are dynamic, living documents that track student learning and provide necessary data of assessment.

Both parts of the project progress at the same time and ultimately join into one large project, thereby creating a culture of assessment on campus. Note: each department will have its own starting point determined by where it currently is in the curriculum map.

Project Strategies (as envisioned in 2021):

1. First, locate assessment that has already been completed. See what work has been done and what is still helpful/relevant to both parts of the project. For instance, CWOs and POs are already aligned in programs that have an accrediting body for licensure or certification. However, other areas, such as individual LAS departments, may still be working towards alignment.
2. Create a detailed timeline for the project which will keep the Assessment Academy team and all stakeholders in check and up-to-date on tasks.
3. Front-load the prep work before rolling out the project to campus during January duty day. Make sure clear instructions are easily accessed and have guided questions completed, existing data available, samples prepared as needed, etc. Know what the project will look like as portions of it start to break down to the program and department level.
4. Also have a communication plan in place. Understand how we, the AA team, will ensure that contact, awareness, and understanding of the project is clear, and anticipate how engagement, acceptance, and commitment to the project will look for different areas of campus.
5. Utilize technology for communication. Hopefully existing technology, such as Microsoft Teams or D2L, will be useful. Decide if additional technology needs to be purchased (hopefully not).
6. Pilot the project in the second year, most likely with two areas from each division. Use programs that already have useful program reviews, like nursing, and programs/departments that will be moderately difficult to pilot. Following the pilot, new programs and departments can be added every year, using data and information from prior program reviews.
7.  Authentic and timely feedback for participants in each area of the project is crucial. This could be a rubric, checklist, individual feedback, etc.
8. Commit to work regularly as a team for the big project, and early on, determine how the different project tasks and responsibilities will be completed (by the AA team or others on campus).
9. Use available resources and remember it’s not necessary to re-invent the wheel. Use AA mentors, scholars, graduated institutions, and cohort institutions.

Assessment Academy project Timeline

Fall 2021

• HLC Steering Committee was established.
• HLC Criterion writing teams were established.
• HLC Teams Site was created.

Spring 2022

• Criterion writing teams identified potential evidence that spoke to the criteria.
• Monthly Steering Committee meetings were held to discuss progress, identify roadblocks, and ask questions.
• Regular Criterion writing team meetings were conducted to create written drafts.

Fall 2022

• Criterion writing teams presented draft written statements.
• Criteria drafts were edited and evidence was incorporated into the statements.
• Criterion writing teams were provided opportunities to review edited statements.

Spring 2023

• Written draft entered into the Assurance System.
• Evidence file created in the Assurance System.
• Draft of Federal Compliance Report completed.
• President’s first review of Assurance Argument.

Fall 2023

• Assurance Argument and Feedback Forms provided to the campus community online.
• Request for feedback at faculty in-service and staff development days.
• Monthly updates to Campus Leadership Team.
• Weekly updates to Cabinet.
• Criteria-specific feedback sessions conducted at all campus locations.
• Launch of the Tell Your Story campaign.
• Hosting site visit preparation meetings for the campus community.
• HLC focused information provided to staff and faculty bi-weekly through the Newsplash eNewsletter.
• HLC focused information provided to students bi-weekly through the IceHawk Talk eNewsletter
• HLC focused information provided weekly throughout the campus using Airtame Digital Messaging System.
• Conduct the HLC Student Survey.
• Finalization of Assurance Argument.
• Finalization of the Federal Compliance Report.

Spring 2024 (January – February)

• Finalize the Tell Your Story online book and present it to the college community.
• Hosting site visit preparation meetings for the campus community.
• Lock the Assurance Argument and Federal Compliance Report.
• Finalize agenda with site visit team.
• Host site visit preparation meetings for campus community.

View Sample HLC Questions

Schedule for HLC Digital Messaging System (Airtame)

• Nov27 – What is Accreditation
• Dec 4 – Accreditation Cycle
• Dec 11 – How Can I Help
• Dec 18 – Jan 5 – HLC Visit
• Jan 8 – Accreditation Cycle
• Jan 15 – How Can I Help
• Jan 22 – HLC Criteria
• Jan 29 – HLC Visit
• Feb 5 – How Can I Help
• Feb 12 – Welcome Team

Schedule HLC Newsplash and IceHawk Talk Newsletter Communications

December 7 and 14

LSC’s Path to Reaccreditation with HLC

The Higher Learning Commission is an independent institutional accrediting organization that serves as one of the largest institutional accreditors and evaluates colleges and universities in 19 states throughout the country.

LSC has been preparing for our February 12-13, 2024 HLC site visit over the past several years. Do you want to be a part of “Telling Our LSC Story”? Here are ways that you can help:

• Review LSC’s Mission, Vision, and Values.
• Become familiar with LSC’s Strategic Plan.
• Understand the Five Criteria for Accreditation and identify how LSC meets them.
• Read LSC’s Assurance Argument.
• Attend scheduled preparation sessions.
• Be available when the HLC team is on campus and participate in the open meetings.

Watch for information on how YOU can participate in the upcoming site visit!

For more information be sure to check out our Reaffirmation webpage!

January 4 and 11 and January 19 and 26

LSC’s Path to Reaccreditation with HLC

We’re inching closer to our February 12-13, 2024 HLC Site Visit! We so excited to showcase our fabulous LSC people, activities, and facility. Next to graduation events, this is one of the most important events we’ll have on campus this year. Here are ways that you can help:

• Review LSC’s Mission, Vision, and Values.
• Become familiar with LSC’s Strategic Plan.
• Understand the Five Criteria for Accreditation and identify how LSC meets them.
• Read LSC’s Assurance Argument.
• Attend scheduled preparation sessions.
• Be available when the HLC team is on campus and participate in the open meetings.

What kinds of questions will you be asked? Attend one of our preparation sessions or check out our Reaffirmation webpage and review some potential questions!

February 1 and 8

LSC’s Path to Reaccreditation with HLC

It’s almost here!!!!! Our accreditation site visit will take place on February 12-13!!! We can’t wait for you to meet the team and share your LSC stories with them. Just a reminder about the ways you can help LSC during the visit:

• Read LSC’s Assurance Argument.
• Attend our last scheduled preparation session.
• Be available when the HLC team is on campus and participate in the open meetings.
• Be prepared to talk about your experiences at LSC.
• Most of all…Be yourself!!

For more information, including the site visit agenda, be sure to check out our Reaffirmation webpage!

Thursday, January 4 - Criterion 3 and 4 during Faculty duty day

Wednesday, January 17 - Criterion 1 and 2 at 12:00 pm in S255

Wednesday, January 24 - Criteria 5 at 12:00 pm in S255

Wednesday, January 31 - Student Session at 12:00 pm in CEI

Wednesday, February 7 - Assessment Session at 12:00 pm in S255