Accreditations Re-affirmed for Next Ten Years

Seminary once again meets highest standards of educational certification

In July of this year, Sacred Heart Major Seminary was officially notified by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and by the Association of Theological Schools of the United States and Canada (ATS) that both agencies had re-affirmed the seminary's accreditation. After more than two years of preparations, this news was most welcomed by the board of trustees, the faculty, the staff and the students at Sacred Heart as the process for achieving accreditation required the hard work and dedication of the entire seminary community

The seminary has been accredited by HLC since 1960 and by ATS since 1991but their approvals can never be taken for granted and thus the need for diligent groundwork.

Beginning in November of 2011, the seminary began what is known as a self-study process in order to receive re-affirmation of its accredited status with HLC and ATS. Accreditation by these two agencies serves to ensure to our students, to employers, and to the general public that Sacred Heart maintains academic standards appropriate to our mission, that our programs are of high academic quality, and that the institution is managed responsibly and with integrity. Additionally, accreditation permits the seminary to participate in federal and state programs such as student financial aid programs. This important distinction also facilitates the recognition of our courses and degrees by other higher education institutions.

The self-study process requires institutions to evaluate themselves based on a set of expectations established by accreditors known as criteria (HLC) or standards (ATS) that must be met in a range of areas such as governance, curricula, faculty qualifications, recruiting and admissions practices, student learning outcomes, and financial health. The process is meant to help institutions recognize their strengths and identify areas for needed improvement. This effort culminates in an extensive written report provided to a team of peer reviewers, followed by a site visit to the seminary by the team. The visiting team is made up of faculty and administrators from other institutions. They are entrusted with the responsibility of preparing a report in which they make judgments about how well the seminary has met the established standards or criteria.

An important component of the self-study process is the participation of members from all areas of the seminary community. This includes administrators, full and part time faculty, current students and alumni, staff, and members of the board of trustees. Representatives from these groups were asked to participate in self-study subcommittees that examined a particular aspect of the seminary in response to the established criteria and standards. The subcommittees then prepared the drafts which eventually became the building blocks for the final self-study report.

After more than two years of dedicated effort, Sacred Heart submitted the final self-study reports, one for each accrediting agency, in January 2014. The visiting team from HLC was on the seminary campus March 10-12 and the team from ATS visited on March 18-20. Each team met with administrators, faculty, students, and members of the board of trustees. The seminary received the final report from each review team with their decision to re-affirm Sacred Heart's accreditation status for an additional ten years.