Dea Giokas

It's important to recognize the many factors that go into setting goals, either for yourself or your team.

Not every problem needs addressing, and it's important to let those involved in a conflict take on the responsibility of resolving it.

Stress can be a performance enhancer when properly identified and addressed.

Conducting an exit is a critical component of the on-site visit, be sure to remain professional and let the evaluator know you look forward to the final report.

It's important to keep records up to date and organized to better assist the on-site visitor with completing their task.

When assigning a point of contact and backup point of contact, it's important to consider the individual's institutional knowledge and personal characteristics.

Unannounced visits are becoming more common, there are several triggers to these types of visits and many differing agencies can visit an institution.

The self-study report is exceptionally important in demonstrating compliance with an accreditation agency's standards.

Accreditation is a narrative process, and it's not enough to assert compliance through paraphrasing the standards. 

I learned that each accreditation agency can determine what is sufficiently rigorous in terms of their criteria, and that federal regulations can be intentionally vague to allow for agencies to make that determination as they see fit.