The University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s accreditation has been reaffirmed.
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, or SACSCOC, announced UL Lafayette’s reaccreditation during its annual meeting in December.
The commission evaluates all public and private colleges and universities in its eleven-state region every 10 years to determine each institution’s accreditation status. Accreditation signifies that a higher education institution is providing its students with relevant, quality courses and opportunities.
SACSCOC accreditors determined UL Lafayette had met all of the commission’s standards with no issues to address, said Dr. Joseph Savoie, University president.
“That means we passed – with flying colors.”
Savoie announced the reaffirmation Thursday in a congratulatory message to faculty and staff members.
He said SACSCOC examined “nearly every aspect of the University: governance, leadership, curriculum, faculty, institutional effectiveness, academic and student support services, facilities and budgets, and many other areas,” before reaching its findings.
“The comprehensive nature of this review required a multilayered self-evaluation crafted and carried out by stakeholders from across campus. This was an extensive team effort that began more than two years ago and involved hundreds of people (and) every contribution mattered to the process’ ultimate success,” Savoie said.
To earn reaffirmation, the University submitted a required Quality Enhancement Plan, or QEP, that demonstrates its commitment to improving what students are learning and how.
UL Lafayette’s QEP – Advance: Student Research Experience – is a research program that provides undergraduates opportunities to complete creative and scholarly projects “that hone skills that will benefit them throughout their lifetimes: problem solving, oral and written communication, teamwork, and project and time management,” Savoie said.
“As a public university, the work we do here must be for the public good. And what could be better for the future than graduates who are thoughtful, inquisitive, analytical and expressive?”
He continued: “That’s the wider result of reaccreditation. This process of self-reflection required us as an institution to consider what we owe tomorrow. And we believe we owe it nothing less than emboldening our students to do great things.”
UL Lafayette will undergo an accreditation review again in 2030, though the University will present a five-year report on the progress of its QEP in 2025.
The University has held SACSCOC accreditation continuously since 1925, when it was known as Southwestern Louisiana Institute.
SACSCOC is the major accrediting body for nearly 800 public and private colleges and universities in Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Latin America.
Photo caption: Formalizing undergraduate research experiences helped earn UL Lafayette reaccreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. (Photo credit: Doug Dugas / University of Louisiana at Lafayette)