Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE)

Union College has completed a self-study as part of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) re-accreditation for our 2020 review. The process began in fall 2018 when a steering committee led by Strom Thacker, Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Peter Bedford, the John and Jane Wold Professor of Religious Studies, oversaw seven working groups to closely examine the College’s successful compliance with, and continuous improvement on, the seven MSCHE standards. The seven standards include:

• Standard I: Mission and Goals
• Standard II: Ethics and Integrity
• Standard III: Design and Delivery of the Student Learning Experience
• Standard IV: Support for the Student Learning Experience
• Standard V: Educational Effectiveness Assessment
• Standard VI: Planning, Resources, and Institutional Development
• Standard VII: Governance, Leadership, and Administration

Working groups inclusive of students, faculty, staff, administrators, and a member of the Board of Trustees were formed in the fall 2018 and spent the winter and spring 2019 terms meeting and working together to draft chapters of the self-study related to their particular standard. A full draft was shared with the campus community near the end of spring 2019 and final edits were completed over the summer.

In April 2020, the Middle States Evaluation Team will visit campus to learn more about our community and to ask follow up questions on the report. Students, faculty, staff and administrators will have the opportunity to meet with the Evaluation Team while they are on campus. The Middle States Commission on Higher Education will make a determination about our accreditation status following their meeting in June 2020.

Strom Thacker
Dean of Faculty/VP Academic Affairs
Self-Study Co-Chair

Peter Bedford
John and Jane Wold Professor of Religious Studies
Self-Study Co-Chair

Karen Brison
Roger Thayer Stone Professor of Anthropology; Secretary, Faculty Executive Committee
Group I Chair

Gretchel Hathaway
Dean of Diversity and Inclusion
Group II Chair (through July 2020)

Melinda Lawson
Senior Lecturer in History; Director of the Public History Program
Group II Chair (beginning August 2020)

Jennifer Fredricks
Dean of Academic Departments and Programs
Group III Chair

Stephen Leavitt
VP Student Affairs and Dean of Students
Group IV Chair

Ashok Ramasubramanian
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering; Director of Assessment
Group V Chair

Darcy Czajka
Chief of Staff, President’s Office
Group VI Chair

Kristin Fox
Professor of Chemistry
Group VII Chair

Brian Huang
Student, President Class of 2021, Student Government
Member, Working Group IV

Laura Munkres
Associate Director, Minerva Programs
Project Manager, Middle States

Blair Raymond
Senior Director of External Relations
Project Manager, Strategic Plan