The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) announced during its annual meeting recently that the accreditation for Howard Payne University has been reaffirmed for the next ten years. HPU has been accredited by the Commission on Colleges since 1948.

During a business session in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday morning, delegates from colleges and universities across the southern region were informed of actions taken by the Commission as a culmination of individual institutional reaccreditation efforts.

Among the delegates were Dr. Bill Ellis, HPU president; Dr. W. Mark Tew, provost and chief academic officer; and Dr. Robert Bicknell, accreditation liaison.

The reaffirmation of accreditation involves the entire campus community and includes examination of all aspects of university operation including administrative processes, academic programs, student life, library services and physical and financial resources.

Dr. Bicknell leads HPU’s efforts for reaffirmation of accreditation.

“Howard Payne’s success is due to the efforts of so many members of the faculty, staff and administration, who not only produced an accepted report, but have discovered that living by the ‘best practices’ principles of accreditation leads to ongoing success,” said Dr. Bicknell.

HPU’s accreditation was reaffirmed with no follow-up reports required.

“In 2004, the Commission on Colleges required three follow-up reports before reaffirming the university’s accreditation,” said Dr. Tew. “The reaffirmation in 2014 without any follow-up is a testimony to the culture of accreditation that exists on campus today. I am very proud of the university’s faculty, deans and administrative staff for creating such an environment.”

Dr. Ellis also lauded Dr. Bicknell and the rest of the campus community.

“Reaffirmation of accreditation requires a tremendous amount of hard work from numerous individuals on campus throughout the decade-long process,” he said. “I count HPU’s successful journey to reaccreditation among our many blessings this Christmas season.”