2008 Woodie Awards
Reaccreditation for CSD
Brian Roewe
Issue date: 2/14/08 Section: News
Seven months later, the Communication Sciences and Disorders program at Rockhurst University has received reaccreditation.
"This is a confirmation of all the efforts that were put into the program," comments Carol Koch, the interim department chair.
The news came on Nov. 14 from the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, a sect of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. The program received full accreditation, which spans eight years. This news comes in light of the program's placement on probation by the CAA in April.
Accreditation in a program, including CSD, is vital for many professions. In order to be considered a professional in a specific field, a student must possess a master's degree from an accredited program. The RU CSD program again offers that validation.
The process to attain reaccreditation required examination and assessment of the current program, including its policies and procedures. This included the review of the tracking of students' progression. To better evaluate, the CSD program will now use the CASA form, which rates skill and knowledge competencies. This will allow for verification that specific course criteria are met by the students.
Other modifications to the CSD program included a revision to the graduate as well as the undergraduate curriculum. They also added more lab space.
Koch and the entire faculty were very pleased with the outcome of their efforts. They completed the necessary requirements set forth by the CAA in seven months, five months ahead of the time allotted to meet standards. Student recruitment, predominantly focused in December, gave extra motivation for a quick response and resolution.
Receiving a probationary notice upon a program can be negative, but Koch found some positive in the experience.
"The process gave us a chance to improve the program and continue to grow the program while responding to new students."
"This is a confirmation of all the efforts that were put into the program," comments Carol Koch, the interim department chair.
The news came on Nov. 14 from the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, a sect of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. The program received full accreditation, which spans eight years. This news comes in light of the program's placement on probation by the CAA in April.
Accreditation in a program, including CSD, is vital for many professions. In order to be considered a professional in a specific field, a student must possess a master's degree from an accredited program. The RU CSD program again offers that validation.
The process to attain reaccreditation required examination and assessment of the current program, including its policies and procedures. This included the review of the tracking of students' progression. To better evaluate, the CSD program will now use the CASA form, which rates skill and knowledge competencies. This will allow for verification that specific course criteria are met by the students.
Other modifications to the CSD program included a revision to the graduate as well as the undergraduate curriculum. They also added more lab space.
Koch and the entire faculty were very pleased with the outcome of their efforts. They completed the necessary requirements set forth by the CAA in seven months, five months ahead of the time allotted to meet standards. Student recruitment, predominantly focused in December, gave extra motivation for a quick response and resolution.
Receiving a probationary notice upon a program can be negative, but Koch found some positive in the experience.
"The process gave us a chance to improve the program and continue to grow the program while responding to new students."
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