Drake University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication earns reaccreditation, praise from national agency
Drake University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication received plenty of praise from the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC), which recently voted unanimously to reaccredit the school’s undergraduate program. The agency is responsible for the evaluation of professional journalism and mass communications programs in colleges and universities nationwide.
“We were thrilled by the successful result of our reaccreditation,” said Kathleen Richardson, director of Drake’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication (SJMC). “The team of professionals who visited campus this year to evaluate our program gave us an outstanding report. It is a real testament to the continued excellence of our program and the hard work of our faculty and students.”
The council concurred with the recommendations for reaccreditation made by the accrediting committee and site visit team. The next site visit for the undergraduate program will be during the 2016-17 academic year.
The Des Moines Register published a story titled “Clean floors, happy students at Drake impress accrediting team” following the February visit from the accrediting team, which included a former NBC news correspondent, the dean of the Penn State communications college, professors from the University of Nebraska and University of Kansas and a public relations consultant from New York City.
Richardson is quoted in the article saying the team even complimented the cleaning crew in Meredith Hall. “They also kept asking what our secret was, because everyone in (journalism) was so happy,” she said.
The reaccreditation process requires a rigorous voluntary self-assessment and external review of educational institutions and of professional programs offered by those institutions. The ACEJMC reaccrediting report noted the Drake School of Journalism and Mass Communication features:
- A focused mission and healthy educational environment built upon mutual faculty-student respect and high expectations
- Bright, committed and engaged students who take their courses, co-curricular activities and internships seriously — and who possess great pride in the education they receive
- Hard-working faculty members dedicated to preparing students for communications positions and to be contributing members of society
- Strong sequences across the board, including one of the best magazine programs in the country
- Unwavering commitment to instruction in the fundamentals and evolving media
- Nimble curriculum that focuses on specialties while ensuring multiplatform competencies
- Effective and loyal administrative team
- Exemplary relationships with alumni and external constituents
- Exceptional public service to the professions and community
This impressive assessment and Drake’s compliance with nine ACEJMC standards is a noteworthy achievement for the School. Accreditation provides an assurance of quality to students, parents, and the public, and encourages research and innovation within programs.