Accreditation

Accreditation

CRITERION 5 - Engagement and Service

The Higher Learning Commission defines Criterion Five as:

As called for by its mission, the organization identifies its constituencies and serves in ways both value.

Criterion Five addresses how well an institution lives up to its mission to serve society. The university should actively define and engage the constituents it serves with the capacity and commitment to do so. These commitments are shaped by the mission.

CORE COMPONENT 5a:

The organization learns from the constituencies it serves and analyzes its capacity to serve their needs and expectations.

Examples of Evidence

• The organization’s commitments are shaped by its mission and its capacity to support those commitments.
• The organization practices periodic environmental scanning to understand the changing needs of its constituencies and their communities.
• The organization demonstrates attention to the diversity of the constituencies it serves.
• The organization’s outreach programs respond to identified community needs.
• In responding to external constituencies, the organization is well-served by programs such as continuing education, outreach, customized training, and extension services.

Subcommittee Membership
Cindy Ramadan
Diane Bridges

CORE COMPONENT 5b:

The organization has the capacity and the commitment to engage with its identified constituencies and communities.

Examples of Evidence

• The organization’s structures and processes enable effective connections with its communities.
• The organization’s cocurricular activities engage students, staff, administrators, and faculty with external communities.
• The organization’s educational programs connect students with external communities.
• The organization’s resources—physical, financial, and human—support effective programs of engagement and service.
• Planning processes project ongoing engagement and service.

Subcommittee Membership
Shelly Blohowiak
Nancy Garn
Elizabeth Sullivan

CORE COMPONENT 5c:

The organization demonstrates its responsiveness to those constituencies that depend on it for service.

Examples of Evidence

• Collaborative ventures exist with other higher learning organizations and education sectors (e.g., K-12 partnerships, articulation arrangements, 2 2 programs).
• The organization’s transfer policies and practices create an environment supportive of the mobility of learners.
• Community leaders testify to the usefulness of the organization’s programs of engagement.
• The organization’s programs of engagement give evidence of building effective bridges among diverse communities.
• The organization participates in partnerships focused on shared educational, economic, and social goals.
• The organization’s partnerships and contractual arrangements uphold the organization’s integrity.

Subcommittee Membership
Patrick Knott
Susan Tappert
Caryn Schultz

CORE COMPONENT 5d:

Internal and external constituencies value the services the organization provides.

Examples of Evidence

• The organization’s evaluation of services involves the constituencies served.
• Service programs and student, faculty, and staff volunteer activities are well-received by the communities served.
• The organization’s economic and workforce development activities are sought after and valued by civic and business leaders.
• External constituents participate in the organization’s activities and cocurricular programs open to the public.
• The organization’s facilities are available to and used by the community.
• The organization provides programs to meet the continuing education needs of licensed professionals in its community.

Subcommittee Membership
David McKay
Dyane Tower
Nabih Ramadan
Joanne Kwak-Kim

 Criterion Committee Members

Name	Position	Affiliation
Shelly Blohowiak	Coordinator Student Development	Rosalind Franklin University
Diane Bridges (Chair)	Assistant Professor Interprofessional Healthcare Studies	College of Health Professions
Nancy Garn	Vice President for University Relations	Rosalind Franklin University
Patrick Knott	Associate Professor & Chair Physician Assistant	College of Health Professions
David McKay	Museum Curator	Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine
Cindy Ramadan	Community Outreach Coordinator	Rosalind Franklin University
Nabih Ramadan	Vice President for Strategic Development	Rosalind Franklin University
Caryn Schultz	Director Alumni Affairs	Rosalind Franklin University
Elizabeth Sullivan	Student	College of Health Professions
Susan Tappert	Assistant Professor & Chair Interprofessional Healthcare Studies	College of Health Professions
Dyane Tower	Student	Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine
Joanne Kwak-Kim	Assistant Professor Obstetrics and Gynecology	Chicago Medical School
Judy Stoecker (Liaison)	Professor & Vice Dean Physical Therapy	College of Health Professions

 * The business of the Criterion Committees is divided amongst the individual Core Component Subcommittees. The subcommittees meet on a regular basis throughout the data collection/ compilation process and report back to the Criterion Committee Chair who, in turn, provides an update to the Steering Committee.