Common Questions

Who are the peer evaluators?

The peer evaluation team includes college and university professionals from our peers in the northwest region covered by NWCCU. Members of this team will be on campus April 20-22, 2022, to meet with faculty, staff and students. They make recommendations to the full commission on strengths and/or deficiencies noted at the college. Dr. Jessica Hopkins, Senior Instructional Dean, Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Division, Lane Community College, Eugene, Oregon, is chairing the 2022 review team.

What should I expect during the accreditation site visit?

Great Falls College will have a site visit from a peer evaluation team appointed by the NWCCU, April 20-22, 2022. This team will meet with various groups and individuals throughout the two full days of their visit (a final half-day is devoted to exit conferences). Important features of this site visit are open meetings with faculty, students and staff.

You are highly encouraged to attend these meetings to offer your perspective to the peer evaluation team.

A formal schedule for other meetings will be established and distributed as soon as it is finalized. During these meetings, you are not expected to know everything about accreditation. Be honest with the team. If you don’t know the answer, just say so and refer them to someone who would know the answer.

Although we will try to anticipate whom the team needs to meet with and what information they need, questions may come up during the visit that need your expertise, even if you are not in a formal meeting. In light of the team’s very limited time on campus and its full schedule, please be as prompt as possible in responding to any inquiries.

If a team member requests a document that is not on our web site, please contact Jeri Pullum so it can be deposited in the Box folder dedicated to this purpose.

What if the college get a recommendation from NWCCU?

Recommendations are directives from NWCCU that point out where the college is not fully complying with one of the accreditation standards. The college must address these issues and report back to the commission.

Accreditation decision

The NWCCU commission will meet formally on June 22-24, 2022, to consider accreditation recommendations. Dr. Stephanie Erdmann and other campus representatives will be invited to this meeting to provide a brief overview about the college and discuss issues brought up by the Peer Evaluation Team. The commission will inform the college about its decision following this meeting.

Where to find information

Accreditation web site: Contains current and past self-evaluation reports, peer evaluation/commission recommendations, responses to those recommendations, links to the NWCCU standards and more.

Assessment web site: Contains explanation, processes, forms, assessment reports and more.

Campus Committees: Most committees on campus are either subcommittees of Faculty Senate or the College Planning, Budget and Analysis Committee. Details are outlined on the committee web page.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Equity is a major focus for NWCCU. Great Falls College’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Team is working to “identify diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) needs and make recommendations institution-wide through input from students, faculty, and staff.”

Great Falls College has formal policies and procedures to govern a number of issues. These are listed on the Policies and Procedures web site. 

Strategic planning: Great Falls College is at the end of its 2016-2021 strategic plan and is completing a final report. A 2022 plan is being developed and will be implemented July 1, 2022.