• We have received official notification from the Accrediting Commission on our October 2008 visit. The attached letter informs everyone of the report and our status.
• Rio Hondo College continues to be a fully accredited institution.  We are basically healthy.  However, we have some important work to do.
• There are six recommendations from the Commission including areas for improvement.  The Recommendations mostly involve curriculum and administrative planning work that is already in progress, and the college is charged with accelerating accomplishments in these areas. In addition, there are recommendations in other areas that are being simultaneously addressed. 
• Recommendations include the areas of 1) Institutional Effectiveness, 2) Student Learning Outcomes, 3) Student Support Services, 4) Human Resources, 5) Leadership, and 6) Governance.
• We are positioned to respond to the Commission’s recommendations and have already established a Task Force to keep our reply timely and accurate.  There will be teams to respond to each of the recommendations.
• This announcement is designed to keep the campus, our students, and our public informed.

Everyone can help us communicate that the College is accredited, regardless of the rating. We received a rating that is less than perfect and have been placed on warning.  We will also receive a schedule of future check ups, and a list of things we will need to do in the meantime. 

Throughout this process, our students’ credits will continue to transfer and students will continue to be eligible to receive financial aid.  Although we will make improvements in some of our administrative and curriculum areas, it will be business as usual. Our teaching and learning will continue at the high level that our constituents have come to expect. 

The Accrediting Team will visit us in the Fall of 2009 and we have to provide them a Follow-up Report by October 15, 2009.

We will post a FAQ page on the college website to answer questions or concerns that may be voiced by our students, their parents, or others and to keep everyone informed as to our progress as we address the Commission’s recommendations.   

A copy of the evaluation team report, which the Commission says we are now at liberty to distribute, will be available on the website and the college library.

Thank you all for the important work and contributions you make to student success at Rio Hondo College.