Maintaining ongoing accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) is one of the vitally important ways IUP serves students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the community. Accreditation demonstrates external validation that IUP upholds the MSCHE Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation in all respects—academic programs, faculty and staff expertise, campus services, finances, governance, and more. Accreditation is also a required step for IUP students to receive federal grants and student loans and facilitates student credit transfer, and can be required for some graduate schools and employees considering IUP graduates.
IUP is currently in the process of applying for reaffirmation of accreditation through the comprehensive MSCHE Self-Study process, culminating in spring 2025. This timeline is standard for MSCHE, which assesses affirmation of reaccreditation to institutions every eight years. IUP has been continually accredited by MSCHE since 1941 and its MSCHE accreditation was most recently reaffirmed in 2016.
Similar to the last reaffirmation of accreditation cycle, the 2025 MSCHE Self Study accreditation process requires evaluation of all aspects of the institution holistically and will require significant collaboration and input from the entire campus community. This page will serve as the central resource hub for all efforts related to the process.
MSCHE Standards for Accreditation
- Mission and Goals
- Ethics and Integrity
- Design and Delivery of the Student Learning Experience
- Support of the Student Learning Experience
- Educational Effectiveness Assessment
- Planning, Resources, and Institutional Improvement
- Governance, Leadership, and Administration
Steering Committee
- Edel Reilly, Provost Office, Steering Committee Co-Chair
- Paula Stossel, Student Success, Steering Committee Co-Chair
- Steve Hovan, Kopchick College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics
- Scott Moore, Department of History,Philosophy, Political Science, and Religious Studies
- Lindsey McNickle, Office of Human Resources
- Sharon Procter, School of Graduate Studies and Research
- Gian Pagnucci, Department of Language, Literature, and Writing
- Jim Racchini, Department ofAllied and Public Health
- Adam Jones, Student Support and Community Standards
- Allison Baker, University College
- Tedd Cogar, Division of Student Affairs
- Dawn Smith-Sherwood, Liberal Studies
- Bill Buttz, Finance Office
- Amanda Marshall, IT Services Office
- Chris Kitas, Office of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment
- Lydia Rodriguez, Department of Language, Literature, and Writing
- Jenn Dunsmore, Division of University Advancement
- Lisa Baker, Division of Student Affairs
- Koga Chilume, Graduate Student
- Laurie Kuzneski, IUP Council of Trustees Representative
- Veronica Paz, Department of Accounting and Information Systems
- Chelsey Fuga, College of Health Sciences
- Melanie Duncan, Office of Social Equity
- Theresa McDevitt, University Libraries
- John Levey, Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance
Timeline
2022
- Attend MSCHE Self-Study Institute
2023
- Working Groups formed (spring)
- Self-study design submission to MSCHE (spring)
- MSCHE Liaison campus visit (April)
- Working Groups analyze evidence and begin working on chapter outlines (fall)
- Working-group campus outreach for additional input (fall)
- Self-study chapter outlines due (December)
2024
- MSCHE Team chair confirmed (spring)
- Working groups continue to analyze evidence, work on chapters, and receive university-wide input (spring)
- Completed chapters due by June 2024
- Chapters combined into final draft for Steering Committee review (fall)
- Campus-wide Self-study report update and feedback opportunity (October 7)
- MSCHE Team chair visit (October 15-16)
- MSCHE evaluation team selected (fall)
- Final draft of self-study report sent to Evaluation Team (early December)
2025
- MSCHE site visit to PES in Bangalore, India (February)
- MSCHE Evaluation Team visit (March 2-5)
Indiana University of Pennsylvania is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19104 (267-284-5000). The Middle States Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the US Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.