From March 2-5, Delta College welcomed an evaluation team from the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) to campus.
The evaluation team is made up of several educational leaders from other community colleges, including Dr. Lori Bennet, the President of Clovis Community College, who is serving as team chair.
Bennet is no stranger to the accreditation process.
She has participated on a total of six accreditation site visits and this is her second stint leading an evaluation team.
“Team chairs are selected based on their expertise and accreditation experience, taking into consideration the mission, culture, and uniqueness of the institution,” Bennet said. “Team chairs generally have experience as a chief executive officer of an institution; others with senior level executive leadership experience may also chair.”
As team chair, Bennet has a wide range of responsibilities.
“The team chair is responsible for organizing the team, working with the college to ensure a smooth site visit, verifying that the evidence supports the narrative of the Institutional Self-Evaluation Report (ISER), noting areas that may have been inadequately recognized by the college itself, and preparing the peer review team report,” Bennet said.
Bennet, along with the rest of the evaluation team, arrived on campus for the site visit on Monday.
A welcome reception was held in DeRicco 275, which was attended by the evaluation team and numerous members of Delta’s administration including Dr. James Todd, vice president of Instruction and Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO), as well as Dr. Ginger Holden, dean of Student Learning and Assessment, Tina Akers, associate dean of Institutional Research and Effectiveness, and Suzanne Franco, executive administrative assistant in the Instruction and Planning Department.
Todd, Holden, Akers, and Franco are all a part of the Accreditation Core Writing Team.
After the welcome reception, the site visit began.
In addition to verifying that the evidence supports the narrative of the ISER, members of the evaluation team spoke to faculty, staff, students, and the Board of Trustees to gain a better understanding of the operations on Delta’s campus.
Public forums were also held in SCMA 161 on Monday and in the South Forum on Tuesday.
At these forums, members of the Delta community were welcomed to learn more about the administration of the college and to provide feedback about the needs of the campus.
An exit report was provided by the evaluation team on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. in the Marcopulos Gym.
However, according to Bennet, “the final actions will be decided and made public in June after the commission meets to review the evidence.”
