After seven years of sustained effort, Williamson College of the Trades recently became accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), retroactive to June 24, 2021.
President Michael Rounds said, “We were happy to receive notification that we had successfully completed the long application process and received Middle States accreditation. This is a significant and important achievement for Williamson and this accreditation will greatly benefit our recent alumni as well as our current and future students. It increases the likelihood that their Williamson credits will be accepted at colleges and universities all across the country if they decide to pursue a bachelor’s or graduate degree in the future. It is also recognition and validation that our educational programs and practices meet Middle States standards. Nearly every member of our staff, faculty, and Board of Trustees contributed in some way to the incredible effort that really began in conjunction with the decision to change our name to Williamson College of the Trades nearly 10 years ago. I am so proud of the entire team, but special recognition must go to Dr. Todd Zachary, Dr. Susan Waller, Dr. Michelle Williams, Dr. Samuel Wrightson, and Thomas Wisneski for leading this effort over the past decade.”
Another achievement occurred when, after achieving Middle States accreditation, MSCHE asked to use Williamson’s self-study as a model for the upcoming Middle States Self Study Institute.
Williamson pursued this approval for several important reasons. MSCHE accreditation helps Williamson serve its students more fully by expanding the possibility of credit transfer. It facilitates further partnerships with other colleges and universities. Furthermore, Middle States’ standards and its approach to accreditation involved the entire college community in a productive opportunity for self-reflection. Finally, as a logical outcome of the 2015 transition from the college’s former name, The Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades, to Williamson College of the Trades, MSCHE accreditation affirms Williamson’s designation as a college.
The accreditation process was lengthy, beginning in the 2017-2018 school year when the college formally applied to be a candidate for accreditation. The commission required an application and an initial visit to determine the institution’s readiness for accreditation. Williamson demonstrated basic adherence to the Middle States’ standards and was granted candidacy status in June of 2021. From the fall of 2021 through the spring of 2023, the college community designed and conducted a thorough self-study of its educational programs and supporting offices. Sixty members of the college community – administrators, alumni, board members, faculty, staff, students – were directly involved in the self-study, researching, writing, reviewing, revising, and editing the 100-page document. In fact, one significant challenge of the self-study process was to capture the work of the college in a relatively short report.
The goal of the self-study was to research the ways in which the institution adheres to MSCHE’s seven standards. To accomplish this goal, working groups were formed for each standard and met in-person and virtually to discuss the evidence they collected related to their standard. Then they drafted their section of the report, analyzing the ways in which the college met the standard. Student, alumni, and board member readers reviewed sections and provided feedback. The steering committee (chairs of the working groups) and the executive committee incorporated feedback into the final draft.
Institutions of higher education are evaluated by these standards: Standard I – Mission and Goals, Standard II – Ethics and Integrity, Standard III – Design and Delivery of the Student Learning Experience, Standard IV – Support of the Student Learning Experience, Standard V – Educational Effectiveness Assessment, Standard VI – Planning, Resources, and Institutional Improvement, and Standard VII – Governance, Leadership, and Administration.
The final step in the process was the evaluation team visit in April 2024. Comprised of administrators and staff from several peer institutions, the five-member team spent two and a half days on campus confirming the contents of the Self-Study Report. Led by Dr. Cynthia Bambara, president of Allegany College of Maryland, the team presented its findings to the faculty and staff, highlighting the effective ways that Williamson is carrying out its mission and educating its students.
Congratulations to the college community for achieving this milestone and for committing to continual reflection and development.
