Beth Barnes, consultant for the Accrediting Council on Education Journalism and Mass Communications, visited the communications department to prepare for the preliminary steps in the department’s four-step process to gaining the ACEJMC accreditation. According to Barnes, the department would gain national attention by receiving a prestigious national accreditation if accepted.
Barnes met with the faculty to help her evaluate the communications program. According to Teri K. Henley, chairwoman of the communications department, everyone who talked to Barnes left her with an optimistic impression.
Barnes, director of journalism and telecommunications at the University of Kentucky, also spoke with students from each communication sequence to learn about student activities in the department, availability and variety of classes and an overall opinion of the department.
“One thing mentioned in the meeting was how the department professors make themselves so accessible outside of class,” communications senior Christine Rowley said.
According to Barnes, Loyola has a remarkable communications program and should have no problem meeting the accreditation criteria. She also said there were minor problems that the program needed to fix, but Loyola’s communications department should have no trouble stepping up to the standards. Henley also said that Barnes told her that accredited programs would “kill for our facilities.”
Based on the verbal evaluation, Henley and other faculty members said they are confident that the department can get the ACEJMC accreditation, which already accredits 106 professional programs worldwide. The organization is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Seven other Louisiana universities have the accreditation, including Louisiana State University.
Frank Scully, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who sponsored the visit, said he was pleased with the outcome.
Barnes’ visit is the first step in Loyola’s four-step process to gaining the ACEJMC accreditation. Henley says Barnes’ preliminary feedback will allow Loyola to see how much of the criteria it meets, which includes curriculum, instruction, governance, diversity, faculty, scholarship, student services, resources and facilities, public service and learning assessment.
After the department receives Barnes’ written evaluation, the faculty will present it to the university administrators. If the administrators approve of the project, the department will use Barnes’ feedback to begin the first process of getting the accreditation: self-evaluation.
After the self-evaluation, a group of four or five people who are active in the communications profession or academia will come to the university and spend two days evaluating the communications program. That team will then make recommendations on whether the council should approve Loyola’s request for accreditation.
The National Accrediting Committee will review the recommendations and the communications curriculum.
Although the process will take three to five years, if accredited Loyola will be able to enter more competitions and gain eligibility for more grants, Henley said. The accreditation will also enhance the department’s national prominence and reputation, a concern for the university as a whole.
“It shows we are doing what strong mass communications and journalism programs do,” Henley said.
Krystle Robinson can be reached at [email protected].
