What is ALA Accreditation?
- The American Library Association accredits MLS programs that
meet specified criteria for excellence
- There are currently 56 ALA-accredited programs in the United
States and Canada
- There are published Standards for Accreditation (ALA, 1992)
that provide the basis for evaluation
Who conducts the reviews?
- ALA has an Office for Accreditation (OA) responsible for
coordinating the work of the Committee on Accreditation (COA)
- The OA is staffed by full-time employees and the COA is
comprised of individuals who serve terms from the ranks of library
and information science educators and librarians interested in the
quality of MLS programs.
How does the process begin?
Schools are accredited for a specified period of time
(usually seven years). During the sixth year of the cycle, the
self-study process is started by the faculty of the MLS program,
who determine:
- The focus of the upcoming self-study
- The structure of the report (called the Program Presentation)
to COA
- The assessment methods to be used
What happens next?
The plan for the Program Presentation is accepted by COA
and—based upon the areas to be studied—a committee, called an
External Review Panel (ERP) is selected by the Chair, who has been
appointed by COA. The faculty of the MLS program begin the data
collection phase of the report.
How is data obtained?
- Different methodologies are used, including Qualitative (focus
groups, interviews, etc.) and Quantitative (surveys, institutional
statistics, etc.
- Various constituents are asked to participate, including
Alumni, Current students and Employers of graduates
How is the Presentation
written?
- Faculty analyze the data, discuss findings, and write
respective sections
- Students, alumni and employers may attend some meetings and
provide input
- Drafts are written and a final draft is sent to COA and the ERP
(Chair and members), who may comment on the contents
- The final version is sent to COA and the ERP six weeks before
the site visit.
What happens during the site visit?
The ERP members visit the school and interview alumni,
students, faculty, the Dean, the Provost and the President. They
also examine documents and records that are available on site and
may sit in on classes. Members also inspect facilities and
resources for teaching and research.
What happens after the site
visit?
The ERP sends a report of the visit to the school and the faculty
are invited to comment and/or correct errors of fact. The final
report of the ERP is submitted to COA and the decision to
reaccredit is announced at the next ALA meeting.
Where is SJU-DLIS in this process
now?
At the June 2004 Conference in Orlando, the ALA Committee on
Accreditation granted continued accreditation of the MLS program
through Spring 2011. Many thanks to the students, faculty,
alumni, and employers, as well as the St. John’s University
administration, who took part in this process.