News and Media

Published: Dec 16, 2010

The 115th Annual Meeting of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACSCOC) was held in Louisville, Kentucky, on Dec. 4-7, 2010, and the 77-member SACSCOC board voted on the reaffirmation of accreditation of SACSCOC member institutions, including the Savannah College of Art and Design. On Tuesday, Dec. 7, the Commission officially announced the reaffirmation of SCAD's accreditation with no follow-ups. This reaffirmation of SCAD's accreditation continues for the next 10 years.

During the last year, SCAD underwent a normal 10-year reaffirmation of accreditation by SACSCOC. The mission of SACSCOC, the regional body for the accreditation of degree-granting higher education institutions, is "to enhance educational quality throughout the region" and "to improve the effectiveness of institutions by ensuring that institutions meet standards established by the higher education community that address the needs of society and students." All U.S. institutions accredited by SACSCOC in 11 Southern states are required to undergo a reaffirmation of accreditation every 10 years. Earning and maintaining accreditation is a major process for any institution and is crucial for quality assurance in higher education.

In preparation for this reaffirmation of accreditation, SCAD created a 378-page Compliance Certification Report. A DVD and website accompanied the submission, which included more than 1,500 electronic evidence files totaling approximately 15,000 pages. This astounding quantity, and quality, of materials was sent to a team of off-site peer reviewers who examined the report and responded to SCAD for additional information. SCAD then provided a Focused Report, which was supported by more than 140 electronic files of more than 1,250 pages. In February and March 2010, a group of on-site review members visited SCAD locations in Atlanta and Savannah, interviewing administrators, professors, staff members and students. The report from the on-site review team judged SCAD to be in compliance with all core requirements, comprehensive standards and federal requirements, without any recommendations for improvement. During the Commission's Annual Meeting, the Committees on Compliance and Reports reviewed the on-site team's report and the SACSCOC Board of Trustees reaffirmed SCAD's accreditation without any follow-ups.