Daytona State earns 10-year accreditation

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (June 20, 2014) - The Board of Trustees of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) has reaffirmed Daytona State College’s 10-year accreditation.

The news was announced on June 19 at the monthly meeting of Daytona State College’s District Board of Trustees.

“This is a major milestone for an institution,” said Daytona State President Carol W. Eaton, “and I want to applaud the dedication of our faculty and staff who worked to bring it to fruition. Throughout this entire reaffirmation process, it has been unmistakably certain that Daytona State College is dedicated to working in the best interest of students.”

The reaffirmation is the result of over three years of immersion into the SACSCOC initiative by hundreds of Daytona State faculty, administrators, support staff and students.

Institutions accredited by the SACSCOC must undergo a reaffirmation process every 10 years. The review process included two major components: Daytona State’s compliance with more than 90 of the regional accrediting body’s academic and administrative standards, and the effective implementation of a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP).

In the first phase, the SACSCOC off-site review, college officials in spring 2013 submitted to SACSCOC a 400-page compliance report that included nearly 2,000 pieces of supporting evidence documenting the institution was meeting or exceeding accreditation standards. In September last year, an on-site review team visited the college to verify information the college provided in its compliance report and ensure the institution was meeting accreditation standards.

The visiting team commended the college in a number of areas, including its institutional effectiveness, planning process and institutional research model.

Equally positive was the committee’s review of Daytona State’s QEP, an institution-specific strategy designed to enhance student learning, which all colleges and universities undergoing SACSCOC reaffirmation must develop. The committee commended several aspects of the QEP’s development process, which has resulted in the creation of a course called College Resources (SLS1101). The seven-week, one-credit hour course is designed to engage students with important academic resources such as the Library, Academic Support Center and the Writing Center in order to help them successfully complete the critical gatekeeper course Introduction to Composition (ENC1101). Students must take both courses concurrently.

The college piloted SLS1101 during spring semester this year and initial results are optimistic. Of the more than three dozen students who enrolled in the course last spring, 90 percent successfully completed ENC1101, said Dr. Tom Bellomo, who is leading the QEP implementation. While the findings also take into account that some of the spring semester students who enrolled in the pilot had already taken additional study skills courses, Bellomo suggested the data validates existing research that ties effective use of college resources to student success. “The preliminary findings show us that this is a developmental strategy that works and that our efforts are resulting in positive student outcomes,” he said.

More than 100 students have already enrolled in the course for fall semester.

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