Abstract
This qualitative phenomenological study examines the effects of accreditation on the mission and vision of private Christian colleges from the perspective of faculty members and administrators. Interviews were conducted with nine participants, one administrator and two faculty members from three different private Christian colleges in northern California: one college was regionally accredited; one was nationally accredited; and, one was non-accredited, but authorized by the state of California to grant Bachelor’s degrees. The three research questions were: 1. What value does accreditation bring to a private, Christian college? 2. To what extent does accreditation affect the mission and vision of such an institution? 3. How does a lack of accreditation affect such an institution? The researcher used systems theory (Bertalanffy, 1968) as the guiding framework for this study to examine accreditation and mission statements as concepts within the system of higher education. After examining participant interviews, a new model based on the systems theory framework was derived using the emerging themes in the study findings. The themes of financial aid and outside accreditation agency are considered as “inputs” from the external environment. Accountability and mission, especially mission analysis, are considered part of the “transformation process” of the organization. Collaboration between institutions and reputation are seen as “outputs” of the organization back into the community. “Feedback” could be seen as responses from constituents. It appears that administrators understand the value of accreditation more than faculty members. The administrators made many more positive comments about accreditation. Even though faculty members also made positive comments, there were also negative comments about the amount of extra work that it entailed. The participants from the regionally accredited college did not feel that accreditation affected their mission, but the participants from the other two colleges felt that the type of accreditation or accreditation in general might affect the mission or purpose of a Christian college. Based on participant responses, it would appear that it depends upon the mission of the Christian college and the type of accreditation as to whether or not accreditation would have positive or negative effects upon the mission of a private Christian college. There are negative effects of non-accreditation, but there is a place for such non-accredited Christian education, such as Sunday School, a school of the prophets, or a Bible institute. Some of the positive effects of accreditation are that it allows for a college and its students to receive financial aid, both federal and state. It also provides for outside insight via peer-review from like-institutions and outside accountability. Furthermore, it enables the transferability of credit hours and the acceptance of accredited degrees from institution to institution. Some of the negative effects mentioned by participants are that accreditation can stifle the mission of a Christian institution by imposing criteria, especially social norms, that are not acceptable to such institutions. Also, the time constraints of accredited schools (quarters, semesters, credit hours) can hinder the learning process for some learners who move at a slower pace. Christian institutions of higher education must conduct a thorough mission analysis in order to establish a definitive mission statement for their respective institution. This will enable each institution to determine the need for accreditation and then, if needed, to determine which type of accreditation aptly matches institutional mission.