Accreditation of Applied Sociology, Clinical
Sociology, Public Sociology and Sociological Practice Programs:
Policies and Procedures
Copyright ã 2009
by
Commission
on Applied and Clinical Sociology
Executive Office:
Phone: 860-429-6422 Fax: 860-429-5907
E-Mail: eleanor.lyon@uconn.edu
Web: www.sociologycommission.org
Accreditation
of Applied Sociology, Clinical Sociology, Public Sociology and Sociological
Practice Programs:
Policies and Procedures
1.0 Introduction
1.1 The Commission on Applied and
Clinical Sociology (hereafter referred to as the Commission) was incorporated
by the predecessors of the Association for Applied and Clinical Sociology
(specifically the Society for Applied Sociology and the Sociological Practice
Association) in 1995 to develop, promote, and support quality sociological
education and practice in applied and clinical areas. As of incorporation the
Commission has served as an independent 501 (c) 6 nonprofit organization.
1.2 In support of the above stated goals,
the Commission has developed an accreditation review process. This review
process involves four components: 1) a program self-study and report, 2) a site
visit, 3) a review of the self-study report and site visit findings by a review
team, and 4) final action by the Commission. A suggested timeline based upon
past program experience can be found in Appendix
A.
1.3 Programs accredited by the Commission
will be listed in The Registry of
Accredited Applied Sociology, Clinical Sociology, Public Sociology and
Sociological Practice Programs (hereafter referred to as the Registry of Programs) at the
Baccalaureate and Master’s Level. The
Commission assumes no liability or obligation arising out of the use of this Registry of Programs by individuals or
organizations.
1.4 Graduates from accredited programs
will be listed in The Registry of
Graduates in Accredited Applied Sociology, Clinical Sociology, Public Sociology
and Sociological Practice Programs (hereafter referred to as the Registry of Graduates) at the
Baccalaureate and Master’s Level. The Commission assumes no liability or
obligation arising out of the use of this Registry
of Graduates by individuals or
organizations.
1.5 Deadlines for each step in the
accreditation review process, including payment of specified fees, must be met
by the Applicant Program (hereafter referred to as the Program) for it to
continue in the process.
1.6 Any member of the Commission who has
a potential conflict of interest is expected to exclude her or himself from all
actions in an accreditation review process.
1.7 Results of the accreditation review
process will be released only by official action of the Commission. No individual member of the Commission,
accreditation review team member or
chair, staff member or
others involved in the process shall make any disclosure about individual
program evaluations during or after the completion of the review process.
1.8 The documents used by the Applicant Program
for the accreditation process at the Baccalaureate or Master’s level are:
a) Initial Application for Accreditation
b) Standards for Applied Sociology, Clinical
Sociology, Public Sociology and Sociological Practice Programs at the
Baccalaureate or Master’s Level
c) Accreditation of Applied Sociology, Clinical
Sociology, Public Sociology and Sociological Practice Programs: Policies and
Procedures
d) Guidelines for Completing the Accreditation Self-Study
Report
e) Accreditation Review Process Guidelines
1.9 Programs seeking initial accreditation
or re-accreditation must provide complete and detailed documentation for use by
the Commission in determining conformity with the Standards. The burden of
proof rests with the Program.
1.10 In assessing each program for
accreditation, the Commission shall base its conclusions on:
a) conformity to the Standards; and,
b) overall quality of the Program.
1.11 The Commission reserves the right to
make accreditation decisions for individual programs based on review of
available evidence.
1.12 The Commission may grant departures
from the Standards based upon written justification from the Program.
1.13 Accreditation will be for a period of
up to five (5) years. Accreditation may be full,
provisional, or probationary (See Section 8.3).
1.14 Failure to apply for re-accreditation
in a timely manner will result in loss of accreditation.
2.0 Eligibility Requirements
2.1 Application
for accreditation is open to Baccalaureate and Master’s-level programs in
sociological practice, applied sociology, clinical sociology and public
sociology. Applicant Programs must meet the Preconditions for Review as
outlined in the Standards (See Section 1.0 BA and MA) and as documented in the
initial application form.
3.0 Fees
3.1 The current fee schedule is listed
below. It is subject to periodic review.
|
Application Fee |
$ 100 |
|
Accreditation Fee |
$2,000 |
|
Annual Fee |
$ 500 |
3.1.1 A non-refundable application fee is due
upon submission of a Program's application.
3.1.2 A Program will pay a set accreditation fee at the time of submission of its self-study report. This fee will be divided as follows: 1) The first half of this fee covers the initial committee review of the self-study report; this portion of the fee is non-refundable; 2) The remaining half of the fee covers the site visit and final report; this portion is refundable if the Commission decides that no site visit can be scheduled within the time permitted. Programs will have two years from the time of submission of the self-study report to the time of the site visit. The review committee will make a recommendation to the Commission after its initial review as to whether or not it believes a site visit can be scheduled within two years. If a site visit cannot be scheduled within two years, the review committee will make a recommendation to the Commission about whether to refund that half of the fee.
.
3.1.3 Other fees may be required.
3.1.4 The Program is responsible for payment
of allowable expenses of the Site Visit Team. The Commission reimburses individual
team members and bills the program directly for costs of the Site Visit.
3.1.5 Commission institutional dues and
review/accreditation fees must be paid for a Program to be listed in The Registry of Accredited Programs.
4.0 Application for Accreditation or
Reaccreditation
4.1 Application forms and other
information related to the accreditation process are available from the
Commission’s Executive Office. Questions regarding the process should be
directed to this office.
4.2 An application for accreditation or
re-accreditation must be sent to the Commission’s Executive Office to initiate
the process. The application form must contain original signatures of the chief
academic officer, academic dean, department chair, and program director. A program description from the catalog and/or
published brochure describing the program must accompany the application.
4.3 An Initial Application for
Accreditation shall be valid for 18 months from the date of receipt of that
Application. Failure to submit the self-study
report during that time will result in the need to resubmit a new Initial
Application to the Commission’s Executive Office.
4.4 A Program may voluntarily withdraw from the accreditation review process
at any time.
4.5 An accredited Program may choose not to
apply for re-accreditation. If an accredited Program chooses not
to apply for re-accreditation,
the Commission will withdraw its accreditation.
5.0 Self-study
Report
5.1
Self-study Reports are required as part of the
accreditation and re-accreditation process.
5.2
The Self-study Report must comply with the
Commission’s Guidelines for Completing
the Accreditation Self-study Report, and include full text for all elements.
5.3
Upon receipt of the Self-study Report, the
Commission Chair will review the Report for completeness. Reports deemed complete will be sent to an
Accreditation Review Committee. Incomplete reports will be returned for
resubmission resulting in possible delays.
Refer to the Accreditation Review
Process Guidelines for more detailed information on the submission, review,
and acceptance of the Self-study Report.
5.4
After review and acceptance of the Self-study
Report by the Accreditation Review Committee, a site visit will be
scheduled. Programs will have two years
from the time of submission of the self-study report to the time of the site
visit.
5.5
The
Commission can require an updated Self-Study Report if circumstances warrant
(See Section 11.3 in this Document).
6.0 Accreditation Review Committee
6.1 The Chair of the Commission, in
consultation with the Executive Committee, appoints the Accreditation Review
Committee (hereafter referred to as the Committee).
6.2 The Committee shall consist of a
chair plus four (4) additional members.
Two (2) of the additional members shall serve as the Site Visit Team.
6.3 The Chair of the Committee serves as
the primary contact with the Program.
6.4 Members of the Committee shall have
appropriate training to carry out their responsibility.
6.5 Persons affiliated with the Program,
such as a faculty member or former faculty member, students or former students,
outside advisers, or others with potential conflicts of interest shall not
serve on the Committee.
6.6 The Accreditation Review Committee
reviews the Self-Study Report, conducts the pre-site visit screening,
communicates deficiencies that may preclude a site visit to the program,
schedules the site visit, communicates findings from the site visit report to
the Program, and makes a recommendation concerning accreditation status to the
Commission. These activities will be
conducted in accordance with the Accreditation
Review Process Guidelines.
7.0 Site Visits
7.1 Site visits will be scheduled only
during the following months: September, October, November, February, March and April.
7.2 Site Visits will be conducted in
accordance with the Accreditation Review
Process Guidelines and will be two to three days in duration.
7.3 The Program will be responsible for
the expenses of the Site Visit Team.
7.4 The Site Visit Team will conduct an
exit meeting with the Program Director and other departmental representatives
to provide an overview of the strengths and weaknesses, to allow the Program to
make comments, and to review the subsequent steps in the accreditation review
process.
7.5 The Site Visit Team will prepare a
Site Visit Report to submit to the Chair of the Accreditation Review Committee.
8.0 Accreditation Review Committee Report and
Recommendations
8.1 The Accreditation Review Committee
will examine all documents submitted in connection with the accreditation
review process. This review includes the Site Visit Report.
8.2 The Committee will prepare a Report
of Findings, without accreditation recommendation, that will be sent to the Program
for comment and clarification.
8.3
Following
the receipt of a response from the Program, the Committee will prepare a full
report to be sent to the Commission. The
report will include a recommendation for one of the following accreditation
statuses:
ü Full Accreditation: a status granted to a Program when the available evidence indicates that an Applicant Program is
in substantial compliance with all of the Standards of the Commission. Full
accreditation is awarded for five (5) years.
ü Provisional Accreditation: a status granted to a Program when an Applicant Program
is in substantial compliance with most of the Standards of the Commission, and
any deficiencies are such that they can be corrected within a short period of
time. Provisional accreditation shall
not exceed two (2) years. During that
time, if the Program can correct the deficiencies, the Program will be awarded
Full accreditation for the remainder of the five (5)-year accreditation period.
If the deficiencies have not been corrected within the two (2)-year period, the
Program will no longer be accredited.
ü
Accreditation Denied: when the available evidence
indicates that an applicant Program is in substantial non-compliance with most
of the Standards of the Commission.