UA has demonstrated progress in the area of shared leadership and governance, according to a new report issued by the review team representing the University's accrediting body, the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (HLC). The team report describes the findings and recommendations by two HLC evaluators who visited campus two days in April.

Before visiting campus, the evaluators — Dr. Elaine Klein of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and Dr. Kenneth Ruit of the University of North Dakota — reviewed a self-study that described the role of shared decision-making in eight major initiatives here.

While on campus, the pair met with the President, Provost, Trustees, the vice presidents and deans, department chairs, the Executive Committee of Faculty Senate, representatives of student government and members of the Staff Employees Advisory Committee, the Contract Professionals Advisory Committee and the Akron-AAUP Executive Committee, among others.

In describing the University's progress, the evaluators cited:

• the broad, collaborative effort to create a University Council, and
• the steps taken to develop decision-making processes that include many voices from across campus.

The report acknowledges that UA is still adapting its governance structures and processes to create a new model that includes faculty collective bargaining. The evaluators included a number of recommendations in the report to assist in that process.

The evaluators' report is online in two sections:

• Assurance Section
• Advancement Section

In their report, the evaluators requested that the University prepare an interim report on shared leadership for the NCA in 2011. The interim report, the evaluators said, will help UA prepare for its next regularly scheduled comprehensive evaluation in 2012-2013.

Following the University's last comprehensive evaluation in 2003, the HLC requested focused visits in two areas — shared leadership and student assessment. To satisfy the student assessment request, UA is participating in the HLC's Academy for Assessment of Student Learning.

Readers representing the HLC will soon review the team report and complete this focused-visit review process.