from the May 2003 UWM Report
Accreditation Steering Committee Formed
By John Wanat, provost and vice chancellor

After consultation with the University Committee, I am pleased to announce the formation of the Accreditation Steering Committee that will guide UWM through its reaccreditation by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA).

The Steering Committee has eight members, organized to address the five NCA criteria:

• Margo Anderson, History, chair of the Mission and Identity team;
• Bill Kritek, Administrative Leadership and Mark Harris, Geoscience, co-chairs of the Preparing for the Future team;
• Claudia Barreto, Biological Sciences and Tony Ciccone, Foreign Languages and Literature, co-chairs of the Student Learning team;
• David Petering, Chemistry, chair of the Acquisition and Discovery of Knowledge team;
• Audrey Begun, Social Welfare, chair of the Engagement team; and
• Associate Vice Chancellor Rita Cheng, chair of the Accreditation Steering Committee.

Members of the Steering Committee will take a leadership role in UWM’s accreditation process. The Steering Committee’s first task will be forming the five teams. In consultation with governance groups and the deans, the Steering Committee will put together teams with faculty, staff, and student representation from across the campus. The teams will meet once this semester, but their workload will intensify starting next fall as they get deeper into the self-study process.

Accreditation provides an excellent opportunity for broad participation in assessing progress toward our goals. The Accreditation Steering Committee will be a vital link, combining individual voices into a compelling presentation of UWM’s continued progress as a premier urban research university.