Commission on Accrediting
The Commission on Accrediting ("Commission") of ATS is a membership organization of schools that are Accredited Members and Candidates for Accredited Membership of the Association of Theological Schools. Accredited Members are institutions that, after review on the basis of the Commission's standards, are voted by the Board of Commissioners ("Board") into Accredited Membership. Candidate for Accredited Membership schools are currently engaged in a self-study as part of their review by the Board of Commissioners for initial accreditation. The member schools conduct post-baccalaureate degree programs designed to prepare persons for a wide variety of positions of ministerial leadership and teaching and research in the theological disciplines.
The Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological Schools contributes to the enhancement of theological education by the accreditation of member schools and by collecting institutional data for the purpose of informing the accreditation process in service to these schools.
The Board of Commissioners is recognized by the United States Secretary of Education for the accreditation and pre-accreditation of freestanding theological schools, as well as schools affiliated with larger institutions, that offer graduate professional education for ministry and graduate study of theology. It is also recognized by the current non-governmental organization in the United States that provides the venue for recognition of accrediting bodies, the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
Accreditation is governed by standards adopted by the member schools of the Commission. These standards cover a broad range of institutional issues and require the approval of degree programs offered by member schools. All decisions regarding accredited status are made by the Board of Commissioners, which is elected by the Commission membership. The Board meets semi-annually. The work of the Board and accreditation in general are conducted according to procedures formally adopted by the Commission member schools. The standards of accreditation and the procedures are published both in electronic format on this website and in Part 1 of the ATS Bulletin.
|
|
|
COA Self-Study Workshop
***EVENT IS FULL***
September 16 - 17, 2010
Pittsburgh, PA
By invitation. The goals of the Self-Study Workshop offered by the staff of the ATS Commission on Accrediting include providing contexts and opportunities for participants to engage with one another and with the ATS and COA staff in order to obtain experience and tools for constructing appropriate, adequate, and effective institutional self-studies in preparation for their comprehensive accreditation visits.
February 28 - March 1, 2011
Pittsburgh, PA
By invitation. For schools that are three to four years from their next comprehensive accreditation, this workshop will focus on coached sessions with teams from participating schools to evaluate each school’s strategies for assessing student learning and identify needed improvements. The school teams will leave with a work plan to ensure that their institutional programs for assessing student learning are in place prior to the school’s next comprehensive visit.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|