Have some time to kill and want to know — honestly — what’s been going on at Kansas University for the past decade?

Check out the 209-page Self Study that upwards of 100 KU community members spent more than a year preparing in time for Monday’s visit by representatives of the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. (Or if you don’t have THAT much time, see the Executive Summary, a mere 45 pages.)

The commission is the agency in charge of accrediting KU. The hefty Self Study is one of its requirements for reaccreditation, which comes around once every 10 years.

photo by: Mike Yoder

KU students visit between classes outside of Wescoe Hall and across Jayhawk Boulevard from Strong Hall on Friday, Feb. 6, 2015.

“If anybody on campus reads this, they’re going to learn a whole lot about this university that they don’t know,” said Susan Twombly, accreditation steering committee chairwoman, professor of higher education administration and chairwoman of KU’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. “It puts together in one place lots of information about where this university is at this point in time.”

Twombly said the commission wants an “honest picture,” the thought being that universities can’t improve problems without acknowledging them.

KU’s Self Study presents evidence that the university meets the commission’s five criteria for accreditation. The document summarizes KU’s major initiatives and many successes, and outlines dozens of areas where the university could do better, too.

“It’s not a public relations document,” Twombly said. “It’s very different from most of the things that the university produces that the public can read.”

In a letter introducing the Self Study, Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little touts major undertakings of the past decade.

“We are in the midst of implementing a trio of initiatives most institutions would consider transformative if accomplished individually: ‘Bold Aspirations,’ a five-year strategic plan for the Lawrence and Edwards campus, and the corresponding strategic plan at the Medical Center; ‘Changing for Excellence,’ a comprehensive overhaul of administrative functions; and ‘Far Above,’ a comprehensive fundraising campaign for the KU Endowment Association,” she said.

Gray-Little also says that in many areas there is still work to be done.

One overarching challenge is finding alternative revenue sources to counteract declining state funding. According to the study, KU’s 2014 state general funding of $241 million was down $152 million over the past 15 years.

Challenges in the 2015 Self Study include improving the way KU addresses sexual assault, increasing diversity, maintaining staff morale and adequately assessing courses and programs.

KU has been accredited since 1913.

By all accounts, the university is not in danger of losing its accreditation.

Final word from the commission is expected sometime later this year.

Twombly said it’s unclear whether KU’s Self Study will prompt changes at the university going forward. Regardless, she said, “it certainly captures what we’ve been doing.”

Challenges

KU’s 2015 Self Study highlights many successes from the past decade. It also notes challenges. Here are some of those, organized by criterion KU is required to meet for reaccreditation.

1 — Mission

• Getting various units to integrate the strategic plan into their work. In a decentralized environment, it is safe to say that not all members of the KU community share the same levels of knowledge of and excitement about the strategic plan.

• Recruiting, retaining and assisting in the success of historically underrepresented students, faculty and staff. The Self-Study process served as a reminder that the university has data on these populations that can be used to better understand their experiences, and that KU can make better use of those data.

• Recruiting high-quality undergraduate and graduate students. The competition was described as “cut throat” by some associate deans, particularly in the face of surrounding state universities that offer in-state tuition to Kansas residents.

• Increasing student debt load, especially in professional schools. For example, the typical graduate from KU’s six-year pharmacy program owes about $70,000, while the starting salaries are almost $120,000.

2 — Integrity

• The social media policy adopted by the Kansas Board of Regents. Faculty and staff members across Regents universities opposed the adopted policy, putting university presidents and the chancellor in a very difficult position as well as potentially affecting the climate for free speech on campus. Administrators must enforce Regents policy while demonstrating support for academic freedom.

• Developing and implementing effective policies, procedures and sanctions for sexual assault. Chancellor Gray-Little has established a Task Force on Sexual Assault to comprehensively study issues that will shape KU’s actions moving forward. That report is due in April 2015.

3 — Teaching and Learning: Quality, Resources and Support

• Advancing into the world of online education is new to KU and not necessarily universally accepted. There are many concerns, ranging from how to maintain quality educational programs to how online education might damage the “KU brand.” Additionally, KU is entering the market as enrollment is plateauing. The efforts require innovation, careful monitoring, constant market analysis, and necessary adjustments to meet market demands.

• Ensuring full implementation of the KU Core curriculum. Careful monitoring and assessment are needed to ensure that these programs achieve the goals KU is seeking to meet.

• Recruiting and retaining graduate students, with funding as well as programs and services. Although all of KU’s student services are available to graduate students, they are frequently targeted more toward undergraduate students.

4 — Teaching and Learning: Evaluation and Improvement

• Assessment. Consistent attention is needed from central administration to ensure that assessment in the major at both the graduate and undergraduate levels becomes institutionalized. A large number of courses need to be assessed to ensure they are meeting the goals of the KU Core curriculum. Persistent efforts must continue to ensure that assessment of co-curricular and support programs continues to advance.

• Limited evidence of the success of some programs intended to improve retention. Retention programs must be based on research, continually evaluated and modified (or even deleted) to ensure that KU is doing its best to increase retention and graduation rates.

5 — Resources, Planning, and Institutional Effectiveness

• Revenue. Stabilizing and growing enrollment as well as instituting efficient business practices will be important.

• Faculty and staff morale in a time of rapid change. Many initiatives have been implemented very rapidly, and some business process changes have not initially worked well, causing frustration and requiring rethinking and reimplementation. Reactions to some of the new sources of enrollment growth and revenue (e.g., Everspring, Shorelight Education) have not always been positive, in part because they were developed rapidly, without review through governance channels. There is concern over creation of Shared Service Centers. In order to ensure that faculty and staff remain committed to the institution and to the change necessary for KU to achieve its goals and objectives, constant attention must be given to understanding the current campus climate and identifying ways to respond as necessary.