The Criteria for Accreditation

Criterion Five Assessment Plan
Name
Institutional Affiliation

Abstract
Quality assurance is very paramount in all institutions to ensure that they are up to standard regarding the quality of services being offered. It is mandatory for any college or university seeking or reaffirming accreditation to consider the certification criteria that was designed by the HLC-Higher Learning Commission. Criterion five focuses on the management of resources and planning within the institution. Assessment of the resource standards can be divided into four including human resource, physical resource, technological resource and financial resource. Methods that can be used in assessment and data collection include file review, customer feedback, random observations, carrying out auditing and using surveillance techniques.
Accreditation sets standards for quality in higher education institutions. It also monitors and measures student and institutional performance through well-orchestrated assessment methods. The accreditation process provides an in-depth analysis into the crucial system of the institution including its management, efficiency of the instruction, financial management, strength and availability of student support, as well as the decision-making process. The criteria for accreditation were developed by the higher learning commission as the standards of quality that institution should address. They are standards of quality, which are used to determine if an institution qualifies for accreditation or reaffirmation of accreditation.

Criteria Five provides that the structures, processes, and resources of an institution should be sufficient for it to fulfill its mission, improve the education quality and face challenges and opportunities that may arise in future.

Criterion Five Assessment Plan
Assessment Plan
Each institution struggles to create a process of quality assurance and continuous improvement to demonstrate and ensure its service to the students and the community as a whole. The allocation of resources, as well as planning, should be carried out and in accordance the institution’s mission. After an assessment, the findings will be very instrumental during the renewal process. Next, the strategic plan should be put in place facilitated by the resources set aside to enable change as well as ensuring that quality is maintained.Colleges and universities should consider designing a systematic plan to facilitate the planning process as well as assessment (Tsinidou, Gerogiannis & Fitsilis, 2010). The designed plan should consider tools including instruments used for collection of data such as those prepared commercially or the in-house built. Moreover, there are benchmarking studies which can be sustained either externally or internally, the official standard production documents and a productive method of creating the analytical reports. To carry out a proper research, it will require imagination and willingness to take chances.
Criterion Five Assessment Plan
The core components of criterion five are divided into four parts. They include (5A), which entails that the institution’s resources should support its current educational programs and plans for strengthening and maintaining quality in the future. (5B) has it that the institution’s administrative structure and governance should promote effective leadership and support collaborations that allow it to accomplish its mission (Zineldin, Akdag & Vasicheva, 2011). 5(C) describes how the institution should engage in systematic and integrated planning. Lastly, 5(D) emphasizes the importance of colleges and universities putting in place systematic measures as they seek better performance.
The assessment of resources is divided into four sections including physical, technological, financial, and human resources.
Human Resources
The human resource standard seeks to ensure that the institution’s process of hiring considers training, education, and experience when hiring their faculty, administrators, and staff (Tsinidou et al., 2010). It should also comply with all the rules and regulation with regards to ensuring equality and no discrimination when hiring, and also the job descriptions strengthen the institution’s mission and goals. It should also ensure ethical guidelines are followed, and security and personality are guaranteed for all personnel records.
A survey can be carried out to ensure that the institution is carrying out effective practices regarding how to meet the human resource standard. It includes ensuring that there is the human resources plan integrated into the institution program review and evaluation processes. It will also include reviewing the institution’s policy on recruitment and hiring on a regular basis to see to it that there is a higher level of faculty engagement in the hiring committees (Kuh & Ewell, 2010). The institution should also regularly update the job descriptions and ensure they are in agreement with the negotiated agreements. The Senate should be in place, which determines the minimum qualification standard and a policy created, which determines the equivalency to minimum standards. The institution should also participate in the planning of faculty professional development opportunities and ensure that resources are availed for the same.
Physical Resources
It entails standards put in place regarding the institution’s level of security and safety regarding institution plans and upgrades, as well as building and infrastructure maintenance. The physical resources are regularly evaluated and long-range financial plans made to allow for the institution to be financially stable all through the future (Zineldin et al., 2011). The budget support notebooks can be evaluated, as well as carrying out physical surveys to ensure that effective practices are maintained. It includes ensuring there is the integration of the physical resource planning into the college’s program evaluation and review process. There should also be a workable college committee in place, which is focused on developing and maintaining a stable and safe learning environment. The institution also has structures in place for creating facilities and physical resource long-term and short-term planning documents including five-year capital investment plans, facility master plans, and annual scheduled maintenance plans.
Technological Resources
Technology resources include the printers, computers, wireless portals, servers, cabling among others that are used at the institution. The standards should be maintained, and institutions must ensure that there are adequate and appropriate technological resources to provide quality education, manage an institution and fulfill the college’s mission. A survey can be carried out to ensure that there are effective practices put in place regarding maintenance of technological standards (Kuh & Ewell, 2010). It includes ensuring that there is technological resource planning put in place in the institution’s evaluation and review process. There is a Senate established to determine institution and classroom technology requirements. The institution must be advocating for effective practices and regularly assess the absorption of technology in the institution. The institution should create short and long-term technology planning and also participate in the planning of professional development opportunities concerning utilization of instructional and classroom technology.
Financial Resources
The standards for financial resources are divided into fiscal responsibility, planning, liabilities and stability. The institution must adequately plan to ensure that it can support all its services and programs adequately into the foreseeable future (Tsinidou et al., 2010).The institution should adopt appropriate guidelines and policies when developing financial budgets and plans. Stability and Fiscal Responsibility entails accurately assessing the financial resources including evaluating the need for integrity in the financial planning and resource allocation process. The institution must also have enough cash to ensure stability in periods of financial tribulations. Liability entails short and long-term financial solvency.
The institution should ensure that any borrowing is procedural and with accordance to ethical and proper guidelines. An internal audit, budget survey, and control, as well as budget control notebooks, can provide information on the financial practices of the institution. There should be the integration of financial resource planning into the institution’s program evaluation and review process. Budget or Finance committees must be in place to oversee any financial proceedings. There must be open communication with the bargaining, as well as active participation in the budget-planning processes.
Assessment methods
Surveillance Techniques
It includes random monitoring that can be performed by an inspector, 100% inspection that can happen on monthly basis or periodic review.
Customer feedback
The feedback from the consumers in this case ranging from students, faculty, staff and even the community should be put into consideration. The consumer complaints are very useful in the assessment of performance.
File reviews
It will entail going through the available documentations and analyzing the information gathered.
Random observations
It can entail an impromptu visit to the institution and observe how the activities are run and documenting the findings.
Carrying out Auditing
Audit reports provide a clear picture of all the management of the resources by the institutions and demands for accountability.
The quality of education is ensured through the criteria of accreditation, which is beneficial to the students, higher education institution and the overall development of the countries. It is a necessary evil for institutions to subscribe to the rules and regulations. Ultimately, when the universities and colleges maintain the quality standards proposed by the commission, then more educational opportunities will be created, and the learning experience provided will be of quality.
References
Kuh, G. D., & Ewell, P. T. (2010). The state of learning outcomes assessment in the United States. Higher Education Management and Policy, 22(1), 1-20.Tsinidou, M., Gerogiannis, V., & Fitsilis, P. (2010). Evaluation of the factors that determine quality in higher education: an empirical study. Quality Assurance in Education, 18(3), 227-244.
Zineldin, M., Akdag, H. C., & Vasicheva, V. (2011). Assessing quality in higher education: New criteria for evaluating students’ satisfaction. Quality in Higher Education, 17(2), 231-243.