Dear University Community,

I am pleased to share that UMBC has had its accreditation reaffirmed by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), with our next comprehensive review scheduled for 2033–34. This milestone is due in no small part to your hard work and dedication over the past few years in developing our self-study, which culminated in a site visit this past spring.

The peer review team’s feedback, together with our own self-study findings, identified five areas that will guide the next phase of our work:

• Strengthening Assessment, Planning, & Effectiveness: Developing a more consistent and standardized institutional approach to assessment, planning, and review.

• Enhancing Academic Operations & Equity: Examining department structures and workload with an eye toward greater consistency and equity.

• Re-Envisioning General Education: Engaging in a comprehensive review of the General Education Program. 

• Optimizing the Student Experience: Identifying opportunities to improve transfer credit evaluation, onboarding of new students, and advising to bolster student retention and success.

• Aligning Resources, Governance, & Policy: Exploring stronger connections between budgeting with assessment and enrollment planning and aligning with review of institutional policies and shared governance structures. 

More detailed actions, timelines, and opportunities for community engagement will be outlined in a forthcoming action plan. Our MSCHE Accreditation Liaison Officer, Shannon Tinney Lichtinger, Interim Associate Vice Provost for Institutional Research, will coordinate the implementation process, working closely with key stakeholders and our shared governance groups to ensure that our response the the Middle States recommendations aligns with UMBC’s strategic plan, launching later this month. The action plan for this work will be posted on our Self-Study page once finalized.

I want to recognize and thank the Self-Study Chairs, Core Team, and Steering Committee along with the entire campus for your commitment to UMBC and for the time, thought, and care so many members of our community contributed throughout this process. 

Sincerely, 

Manfred H.M. van Dulmen
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs