Hot Springs, Arkansas – National Park College (NPC) earned glowing results during the recent reaccreditation visit from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). The College received the official letter last month granting the campus continued accreditation for 10 years.
A team of HLC site visitors met on campus in November for a comprehensive review of NPC’s processes. Vice president for Academic Affairs, Dr. Wade Derden led the effort with co-chairs Diane Meredith-Johnson and Dr. Samantha Christian. With assistance from five criterion teams, they prepared an 84-page assurance document ahead of the team’s visit.
Results indicated the following core competencies were met with no recommendations for improvement.
- The institution’s mission is clear and articulated publicly; it guides the institution’s operations.
- The institution acts with integrity; its conduct is ethical and responsible.
- The institution provides quality education, wherever and however its offerings are delivered.
- The institution demonstrates responsibility for the quality of its educational programs, learning environments and support services, and it evaluates their effectiveness for student learning through processes designed to promote continuous improvement.
- The institution’s resources, structures, processes and planning are sufficient to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of its educational offerings, and respond to future challenges and opportunities.
The NPC Board of Trustees approved a resolution Wednesday commending Derden and the team for the exceptional work.
Derden said he was humbled to receive the recognition and said, “I appreciate the fact that you recognized everybody on the team. It was a team effort. It took a significant amount of work.”
NPC President, Dr. John Hogan explained that the HLC team praised the College’s assurance document as one on the best they have seen. HLC visits typically end with formal recommendations for improvement. NPC was part of a small percentage of colleges reviewed by HLC that had zero recommendations for improvement.
Hogan expressed his appreciation to the campus community. “Mostly I feel grateful for all of you, the work that you do, the honor that we have to serve our students, of course the outstanding team that stepped up. I am so glad to be part of you and call myself one of you. This board makes it possible, the team makes it happen and the students win the game. That is very unusual and I want us to leave here today understanding each of us have made a contribution to that, and the huge difference that makes and the imprint that makes on generations of Arkansans.”
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National Park College was established in 1973 and is located in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The College enrolls over 7,500 credit and non-credit students per year. NPC is a comprehensive two-year institution offering associate degrees and certificates as well as continuing education, community services and workforce training.
