The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International, or AACSB International, is currently considering the Graham School of Management for an accreditation.
Gaining accreditation has been an ongoing process officially for the last five years, and according to the Graham School’s Dean John Eber the process began unofficially about seven or eight years ago. It was December 2012 when the Graham School submitted its annual report that they received a formal invitation to apply for accreditation.
Receiving this invitation means that the AACSB thinks that a school is ready for the accreditation process, which often occurs after several annual reports have shown a school improving consistently.
After the application was accepted the Graham School was required to compile and submit a self-evaluation report. Then a peer-review team, or PRT, reviews the report and then goes to the school to confirm that what is said in the report is true. The PRT came to the Graham School in January 2014. During this time the team verified all information in the report, while doing a general evaluation of both Saint Xavier University as well as the Graham School of Management when it comes to the terms of meeting their standards.
At the end of the visit the PRT writes a report and submit it to the initial accreditation committee. The report was sent to the initial committee because it was the Graham School’s first time applying for accreditation. The PRT did recommend the Graham School for accreditation.
Being considered for an accreditation is all about meeting fairly strict standard set by the AACSB. A huge consideration is the mission base of the school being considered.
For example, the Graham School is more student and learning focused, while another school may put more emphasis on faculty research. However, this does not mean that the AACSB will not take aspects beyond the student-learning environment into consideration when contemplating the Graham School for accreditation. Other areas that will be considered include the scholarship of the faculty and service to the community.
It is the Graham School’s job when applying for accreditation to prove that the school is both committed to and living the missions set by both Saint Xavier University and the Graham School of Management.
Dean Eber stated that, “At the end of the day we demonstrated that we are meeting their standards, but in such a way that we’re fulfilling our mission.”
Gaining this accreditation would have the Graham School of Management joining some of the more “prestigious” schools in the Chicago area. Schools in this area that already have this accreditation are essentially “big schools”, such as DePaul University, Loyola University, University of Chicago, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Illinois Institute of Technology. According to Dean Eber none of the other schools in the Chicago area that are often compared to Saint Xavier have this accreditation.
There are some corporations and companies that look specifically for students from accredited universities. The benefits will not only affect current and future students of the Graham School of Management, but also alumni.
Dean Eber states that this accreditation “Is a means to an end, not an end in itself. Going through this process has made us better, and we’ve made investments in faculty that have made us better.” He also explains that gaining an accreditation is similar to gaining an A in the classroom. But what is most important is that the student has learned the material well. Similarly, in the case of the accreditation, it is the program and institutional improvement that is most important.
Overall all of the work requires a big effort that involved all or most of the faculty, key administrators, and what Dean Eber says is probably the most important part is the support of Saint Xavier University’s Senior Administration. In the end applying for this accreditation was a whole institutional effort.
The Graham School of Management will know if they have been approved for accreditation during the first week of this May.
Catlyn Hicks
Senior News Editor