HutchCC Administration Encouraged After HLC Visit

By Bianca Salazar
Staff writer
IG: bancasalazar_bts

Hutchinson Community College students might have seen a group of people touring around the school asking questions and interviewing students, faculty and staff.

The Higher Learning Commission visited HutchCC on Apr. 13-14.

According to the HLC website, the non-profit organization is an institutional accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. The accreditors evaluate the college as a whole, including its offerings, governance, operations and finances.

This group of individuals is in charge of deciding whether HutchCC can be accredited again. The last accreditation was back in 2016. This review is done every 10 years in order to fully see what changes are made and how well it all goes.

HutchCC President Tricia Paramore was confident about the visit.

“Our Blue Dragons showed up,” Paramore said. “So many people participated in the sessions, providing many perspectives from many voices. Ultimately, we wanted folks to talk about how their roles connect to our college mission of expanding the tradition of excellence through learning and collaboration. Those stories are powerful, whether they be from a faculty member, student, program director, staff, board member, community partner, etc. We’re all Blue Dragons and have our own stories.”

Vice President of Academic Affairs Rachel Wannamaker mentioned what the HLC said.

“They were impressed that individuals not only spoke positively about their own areas, but also uplifted other parts of the institution,” Wannamaker said. “They noted the deep respect among colleagues and the clear impact the college has on students’ lives. They also recognized how much students value their experience, pointing out the caring faculty, and supportive environment.”

For the college, there were no major concerns with the visit. Paramore gave credit to English instructor Ryan Diehl and coordinator of library services Emily Hemmerling for writing the Assurance Argument, for being clear and complete for the HLC to create a complete picture of HutchCC, according to the HLC’s criteria.

“The team asked for very little additional evidence, so that speaks to the completeness of the document,” she said. “In planning for the visit, we wanted to make sure that every detail was attended to so that the reviewers could focus on the work they were here to do.”

The decision to re-accredit the college will not be made until the end of summer. For now, the college will be focused on reviewing the report that will be coming in within the next four-to-six weeks and going through it to make sure things are correct, and both sides are in agreement.

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