Seminole State College received official notification Monday from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of its “Reaffirmation of Accreditation” that will continue until 2029-2030. This ten-year accreditation was the result of a multi-year preparation of a self-study Assurance Review. The process culminated in a site visit by an HLC team in late February. Additionally, the accreditation announcement requires no mid-cycle reviews or special reports. No interim monitoring was recommended.

SSC President Lana Reynolds said, “The HLC accreditation process is a very long, tedious and sometimes stressful process – but, it is a good one. We learned a lot about our institution and developed some great practices for continual evaluation of ways to better serve our students and other constituencies. Of course, it is also of paramount importance since HLC is the regional accrediting body that allows SSC to grant degrees and offer federal financial aid to its students.”

Recommendations were made by the site visitation team, which was led by Chair Dr. Michael Boyd, President of Kankakee Community College in Illinois. The comprehensive team also included peer reviewers from higher education institutions in Nebraska, Michigan, Wisconsin and Colorado. Their findings were presented in draft form to SSC but were not available for public dissemination until considered and approved by the HLC Institutional Actions Council last week on their May agenda.

During the site visit in February, the team met with faculty, staff, students, Regents and members of the SSC Educational Foundation. Additionally, a special “drop in” session was held for members of the public to provide feedback about the College’s operations and services.

SSC follows HLC’s Open Pathway for Accreditation, which requires institutions to provide evidence of meeting five general criteria of excellence: 1) Mission; 2) Integrity: Ethical and Responsible Conduct; 3) Teaching and Learning: Quality, Resources and Support; 4) Teaching and Learning: Evaluation and Improvement; and 5) Resources, Planning and Institutional Effectiveness.

Reynolds added, “I want to thank Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Linda Goeller and Coordinator of Accreditation Jessica Isaacs for leading us so ably through this process. I also want to thank everyone on campus who served on committees, researched and provided documents, and attended listening sessions with the site team. We are proud of what we do at Seminole State College. It is wonderful to have our mission reaffirmed by outside evaluators.”