GCC Gets Top Marks in Accreditation

If colleges got report cards, Glendale Community College just received the highest passing grade possible.

GCC received a six-year accreditation from the regional accrediting team, the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. The ACCJC visited the college in mid-March to evaluate the school to make sure its programs meet or exceed state regulations. ACCJC is authorized by the United States Department of Education to evaluate public community, private nonprofit, private proprietary and religion-based institutions.

Six years is the maximum amount of time an institution can be accredited.

"Overall, they were very pleased," said Dr. Kathleen Flynn, who coordinated the school's accreditation team.

She said the whole process took more than two years.

"It's a big project," she said. Prior to the visit by the ACCJC accreditation team, Flynn said GCC had to present a written report, written by faculty, employees and students.

Flynn's team included 174 individuals from all aspects of the school.

The report targeted 10 areas, which are lined out by the ACCJC. They include student services, educational programs and faculty and staff, as well as integrity, effectiveness and learning resources.

"It was a very clean report," Flynn said.

The accreditation will be effective through 2010.

The GCC Board of Trustees approved 10 goals to improve the school from 2003 to 2009, including increasing collaboration with primary schools, improve responsiveness to students' needs and improve the college's fiscal outlook.