Accreditation
Permanent URI for this collection
Browse
Recent Submissions
Item Accreditation Site Visit November 1–4, 2009(2009-11-01)Schedule for the New England Association of Schools and Colleges Visiting Committee November 2009 visit.Item Item Final Report to the Faculty, Students, Staff, Administration, and Trustees of Bennington College Bennington, VT(2019-12-04) Stephens, Sonya; Ansell, Amy; Mercier, Cathryn; Ng, Donna; Horton, Sheilah Shaw; Rhoda, Chris; Whitcomb, Michael E.; White, Renée T.Item Bennington College Self Study Prepared for the New England Commission of Higher Education(2019-08) Bennington CollegeItem NECHE Accreditation Update, May 26, 2020(2020-05-23) Roche, Isabel, Acting PresidentLast week we received official notification from the New England Commission on Higher Education (NECHE) stating that Bennington College’s accreditation would be continued.Item Bennington College Reevaluation Study (Self-Study)(Bennington College, 1977-11)Item Reaccreditation Report on the Social Science Division(Bennington College, 1983) Sugarman, SallyItem Correspondence to Mariko Silver from Patricia Maguire Meservey(2014-12-02) Meservey, Patricia MaguireAt its meeting on September 19, 2014, the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education considered the interim report submitted by Bennington College and voted to take the following action: that the interim (fifth-year) report submitted by Bennington College be accepted; that Bennington College submit a report for consideration in Fall 2016 that gives emphasis to the institution's success in: 1. achieving its goals for enrollment and financial stability; 2. continuing to implement a comprehensive approach to assessment of institutional effectiveness with an emphasis on student learning outcomes; 3. undertaking the next iteration of strategic planning aligned with its revised mission; that the comprehensive evaluation scheduled for Fall 2019 be confirmed.Item Bennington College Fifth-Year Interim Report prepared for the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools & Colleges, Inc.(2014-08) Bennington CollegeInstitutional Overview. Areas for Special Emphasis: Financial Stability, Deferred Maintenance, Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment, Strategic Planning. Standards Narrative. Reflective Essay. Plans. Appendices.Item Correspondence to Elizabeth Coleman from Jean A. Wyld(2013-03-25) Wyld, Jean A.At its meeting on March 8, 2013, the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education considered the report submitted by Bennington College and took the following action: that the report submitted by Bennington College be accepted; that the fifth-year interim report scheduled for consideration in Fall 2014 be confirmed; that, in addition to the information included in all interim reports, the institution continue to give emphasis to its success with the matters identified in our letter of April 14, 2010, specifically: 1. ensuring financial stability, with particular attention to managing debt, managing the tuition discount rate and reducing the gap between net tuition revenue and operating expenses; 2. reducing deferred maintenance and completing renovations to the campus; 3. implementing a comprehensive approach to the assessment of institutional effectiveness, including the use of data to inform planning and decision making; 4. implementing the Strategic Planning Framework; that the comprehensive evaluation scheduled for Fall 2019 be confirmed.Item Bennington College Report for Consideration to the Commission on Institutions of Higher Learning of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges(2013-01-15) Bennington CollegeThe following report was drafted by a core team of senior administrative staff members in consultation with the President. As directed by the Commission, the narrative focuses on two areas: (1) implementing a comprehensive approach to institutional effectiveness and assessment; and (2) implementing strategic planning.Item Correspondence to Elizabeth Coleman from Mary Jo Maydew(2011-10-26)At its meeting on September 22, 2011, the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education considered the report submitted by Bennington College and took the following action: that the report submitted by Bennington College be accepted; that the College submit a report for consideration in Spring 2013 that gives emphasis to the institution's continued success in: I) implementing a comprehensive approach to institutional effectiveness and assessment, including the use of data to inform planning and decision-making; 2) implementing its strategic planning; that the fifth-year interim report scheduled for consideration in Fall 2014 be confirmed; that, as noted in our letter of April 14, 2010, in addition to the information included in all fifth-year reports, the College provide evidence of its continued success in addressing the four matters included in the current report; that the comprehensive evaluation scheduled for Fall 2019 be confirmed.Item Bennington College Report for Consideration to the Commission on Institutions of Higher Learning of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges(2011-08-15)The following report was drafted by a core team of senior administrative staff members in consultation with the President. The Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; the Associate Provost; the Vice President for Planning and Special Programs; the Vice President for Administration and Planning were all integrally involved in preparing the report. As directed by the Commission, the narrative focuses on four areas: (1) ensuring financial stability; (2) deferred maintenance and campus renovations; (3) implementing a comprehensive approach to the assessment of institutional effectiveness; and (4) implementing the Strategic Planning Framework.Item Report to the Faculty, Administration, Trustees, and Students of Bennington College Bennington, Vermont by An Evaluation Team representing the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges(2009-11) Hochstettler, Thomas J.; Bertoni, Christina M.; Carpenter, Gai; Myers, Richard S.; Scott, Marylyn; Shennan, Andrew; Tobin, Elizabeth H.; Vaz, RichardThe 2009 review of Bennington College was a comprehensive evaluation of the institution, following the standards set forth by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges for accreditation and reaccreditation. Under the leadership of President Elizabeth Coleman, the College began in summer, 2007, to compile its Self-Study, a compendium of factual data and observations that served as a base for the work of the Evaluation Team. The Evaluation Team, comprising eight professional educators, visited Bennington on November 1 – 4, 2009, to conduct an in-depth site visit to test the extent to which the College has achieved its goals over the course of the last five years and to assess the College’s efforts to plan effectively for moving forward toward fulfilling its mission. The Evaluation Team met with representatives from every constituency on campus, from the Trustees to students. The Self-Study and the information provided in advance of the visit were generally satisfactory, with the notable exception of certain financial data and detailed information on the teaching faculty. The College was nevertheless both forthcoming with additional information when asked and flexible in accommodating the Evaluation Team’s request for meetings with additional on-campus groups during the visit.Item Bennington College Self-Study in preparation for the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools & Colleges, Inc.(2009-11)For more than seventy-five years, Bennington has remained wholeheartedly committed to the mission and purposes envisioned by our founders, based on the belief that the most compelling education is one that students actively shape themselves. The paradox of that steady commitment is that the College’s philosophy contains within itself a kind of restlessness, a perpetual propensity for reflection and renewal. Just as we have continually confronted the inherent tension between our students’ self-directed and reflective processes and the role of the individual in a larger social community, so too have we worked as an institution to balance stability with relentless innovation. Just as our students’ academic plans formulate and reformulate in a constant state of strengthening and refining that engenders their intellectual and personal growth, so too does the College continue to evolve. Maintaining that delicate balance—whether in our own strategic planning or in each student’s individual plan of study—remains a central challenge.Item Bennington College Self Study(1994-03) Bennington CollegeThe academic strengths of the College remain inseparable from its originating ideas: students taking responsibility for designing their education; the central role of academic counseling; the immersion of students from the outset in the center of the working life of the faculty; the continual pursuit and elaborations of the interrelationships between life inside the classroom and life in the world (the Field Work Term, emphasis on the practitioner teacher, teaching and learning as performing arts). In those instances where the college works, the power and intensity of the educational experience remain formidable. The academic weaknesses of the College are: the recalcitrant rigidity of the divisions and the subsequent problems for faculty and students in putting together educational programs that transcend divisions; the unevenness in the quality of the counseling experience; the excesses of the focus on the individual and, conversely, the inadequacies in the experience of shared purposes and of social responsibility; an absence of uniformly high standards with respect to the demands made on students; and the freshman year experience.Item Correspondence to Elizabeth Coleman from Barbara E. Brittingham(1992-03-23) Brittingham, Barbara E.I write to inform you that at its meeting on March 6, 1992 the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education considered the Annual Report on Finance and Enrollment (ARFE) submitted by Bennington College and voted to take the following action: that the Annual Report on Finance and Enrollment submitted by Bennington College be accepted; that the College submit another such report for consideration in Spring, 1993; that the ARFE submitted for consideration for Spring, 1993 focus on: 1. progress of the Capital Campaign with particular reference to the income and allocation of Capital Campaign funds; 2. success in building the endowment; 3. progress toward downsizing the institution; 4. the enrollment of Fall, 1992 and future enrollment projections and budgetsItem Report from Bennington College to the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education New England Association of Schools and Colleges(1992-11-20) Bennington CollegeSince last year's report to NEASC there have been a number of changes at Bennington College. In recognition of the absence of desired growth in undergraduate enrollment and an unwelcome increase in institutional financial aid awards, the Board of Trustees at its April 1992 meeting mandated permanent expenditure cuts. It also directed the president and the deans to devise an enrollment strategy which would lead to an annualized enrollment of 550 undergraduates by 1996/97. Finally, it authorized additional spending from Capital Campaign proceeds for the period during which the abovementioned actions will be carried out. The Board statement on these matters is attached as Appendix D. The goal of these Board actions is the attainment by 1996/97 of financial stability which foresees a reasonable increase in undergraduate enrollment, a decrease in institutional financial aid and no budgetary reliance on the Capital Campaign other than the spending of endowment . earnings. Bennington has taken the first steps toward that goal. Appendix E. Steering Committee Report Faculty Reduction RecommendationsItem Correspondence to Elizabeth Coleman from Barbara E. Brittingham(1992-03-23) Brittingham, Barbara E.I write to inform you that at its meeting on March 6, 1992 the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education considered the Annual Report on Finance and Enrollment (ARFE) submitted by Bennington College and voted to take the following action: that the Annual Report on Finance and Enrollment submitted by Bennington College be accepted; that the College submit another such report for consideration in Spring, 1993; that the ARFE submitted for consideration for Spring, 1993 focus on: 1. progress of the Capital Campaign with particular reference to the income and allocation of Capital Campaign funds ; 2. success in building the endowment; 3. progress toward downsizing the institution; 4. the enrollment of Fall, 1992 and future enrollment projections and budgets; that the scheduling of the next comprehensive evaluation for Fall, 1993 be confirmed.