The University of Kentucky has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) Commission on Colleges since 1915, and undergoes the accreditation process every 10 years. As part of the next accreditation, which will take place in 2013, UK has formed a faculty-led pre-planning team to develop an acceptable topic for the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP).
The QEP is a long-range plan to improve student learning at UK. It is broad-based and campus-wide, targeting undergraduate students and what they need to have a better experience during their college career. Kimberly Miller-Spillman, Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies for the Merchandising, Apparel, & Textiles Department, has been chosen to serve on the QEP Topic Selection Team for the College of Agriculture.
"I am looking forward to seeing my colleagues during Ag faculty meetings in April to explain what QEP is and how the process works," said Kimberly Miller-Spillman. "While half of the selection team serves as town criers meeting with departments in their respective units, the other half of the team will be collecting assessment information campus wide. The resulting ideas from the unit meetings and the assessments evaluation will begin a list of potential topics."
Miller-Spillman will serve as "town crier" during the first phase of the campaign, which is to introduce and educate faculty, staff, administration, current students, prospective students and families, alumni, and other interested parties to the QEP process and potential topic ideas. An example of a topic that may be selected would be student advising or involvement. The process will continue through to February 2011, when the final topic will be announced to the UK community. Miller-Spillman's appointment will conclude in March 2011.
For more information on the accreditation process or the QEP Topic Selection Team, please visit http://www.uky.edu/QEP/index.html.