Temple's Self-Study
Middle States 2009-10: Reaffirmation of Temple University's Accreditation, Temple's comprehensive self-study will be submitted to Middle States in December. The self-study, drawing on the work of the more than 75 faculty, students and administrative staff who prepared work group reports, outlines the state of the university as we celebrate our 125th year, our priorities, and the challenges we face as we plan for the future. The self-study also demonstrates Temple's compliance with the 14 Middle States standards for reaccreditation. The self-study draws on documents and reports from across the university including the Academic Strategic Compass.
Click here to view Temple's self study (accessnet userid required)
Thank you to the members of the Temple Community who submitted comments on the self-study. The final self-study will be available on this website later in December.
About the Self-Study
The centerpiece of the reaccreditation process is the extensive self-study conducted by the University for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). The self-study process is guided by an Executive Committee in collaboration with a Steering Committee of faculty, administrative, and student representatives.
As described in the Middle States publication Self-Study: Creating a Useful Process and Report: “A comprehensive self-study enables an institution to appraise every aspect of its programs and services, governing and supporting structures, resources, and educational outcomes in relation to the institution’s missions and goals.” A comprehensive report, organized by the fourteen Middle States standards, will demonstrate Temple’s compliance with the Middle States Commissions’ criteria for accreditation, deepen institutional self-understanding, and advance institutional self-improvement.
Goals for the Self-Study
Temple University recognizes that this is an important and exciting time in the university’s history. As Temple prepares to celebrate the university’s 125th anniversary, it is also engaged in important planning processes to chart its future. As described in the Middle States handbook for preparing the self-study: “During the self-study, the institution carefully considers its educational programs and services, with particular attention to student learning and achievement, and it determines how well these programs and services accomplish the institution’s goals, fulfill its mission and meets the Commission’s standards.” As the work groups and steering committee review Temple’s programs, services, planning and assessment processes, they will provide important and timely information to guide on-going planning and institutional enhancement initiatives.
The goals for the self-study are:
- To create a clear and purposeful document that meets the Middle States Commission’s expectations for decennial evaluation, deepens our institutional self-understanding, and affirms our commitment to continuous improvement.
- To identify Temple’s strengths and weaknesses relative to each accreditation standard and in the context of the university’s mission, goals, and emerging priorities.
- To use a collaborative approach to the self-study process so as to promote broad and diverse conversations about Temple’s direction and to promote cross-campus ownership of recommendations emerging from this process.
- To study the university’s progress in planning and implementing assessment activities across academic programs and student support areas.
The Steering Committee
The steering committee consists of faculty, students, and administrators from across the University and representatives from regional campuses. Overseeing the work of the steering committee is a six-person executive committee.