To the campus community,

Bowdoin College will soon begin its self-study in preparation for our reaccreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). The self-study process provides an opportunity to look back on what we have accomplished since our last comprehensive review in 2006, and look ahead to what we want to achieve in the coming decade.

As part of the reaccreditation process, we will host a visiting team of peers assigned by NEASC on November 5-8, 2017. Over the next 12-18 months, in preparation for that visit, we have specific tasks we need to accomplish. We will begin with a self-study focused on nine standards for accreditation, each articulating a dimension of institutional quality. The standards can be found here.

I have asked Jen Scanlon, interim dean for academic affairs and professor of gender, sexuality and women’s studies and Tina Finneran, vice president of institutional research, analytics & consulting to co-chair the self-study. In the coming weeks, I will ask GFA, BSG, BAS, and SSAC to nominate representatives from the faculty, students, administrative staff and support staff, respectively, to serve on the Reaccreditation Committee. The Reaccreditation Committee will provide opportunities for the entire Bowdoin community to engage with the self-study process.

This decennial reaccreditation review provides us with a valuable opportunity to focus more attention on the work we do every day to assess and improve a Bowdoin education. We look forward to the review and to what we learn in the process.

Thank you in advance for your participation.  Please contact me or Jen Scanlon with any questions.

Clayton