Accreditation

Mason BOV approves tuition credit, gets updates on strategic plan, upcoming events

Colleen Rich — Mon, 10 Oct 2022 18:47:51 +0000

Mason BOV approves tuition credit, gets updates on strategic plan, upcoming events Colleen Rich Mon, 10/10/2022 - 14:47

In This Story

��AV’s Board of Visitors voted on September 29 to issue credits to in-state undergraduate students in an amount equal to the 3% increase that was approved for the 2022-23 academic year, in effect returning Fiscal Year 2023 tuition levels to 2022 levels.

The total impact on Mason’s budget will be about $5.8 million for this fiscal year. But discussions with state officials during the process led to greater state awareness of the state funding challenges Mason faces compared with its commonwealth peer universities.

When state and tuition funding are combined, Mason is funded nearly $5,000 per in-state student FTE below the mean of five doctoral peer institutions.

“We’ve been told that they’re going to continue to look at the systemic issues that are affecting the campus and are going to look at ways in which they can address them over the coming months,” Mason President Gregory Washington said at the meeting. “I take that as a big win.”

Mason Rector Horace Blackman, a 1993 Mason alum and six-year BOV member, concurred.

“I think the level of engagement we had with the administration has been second to none,” Blackman said. “And I think we are in an appreciably better place today.”

Ken Walsh, Mason vice president for strategic initiatives, provided an update for the BOV on the university’s strategic plan process and said a formal presentation of the plan is scheduled for the December 1 board meeting.

Walsh shared the five priority areas of the plan at the July BOV meeting. Since then, the planning committee has conducted “road-mapping” exercises for each area, identified a series of initiatives and worked with various units across Mason campuses to “lay out a resource-loaded schedule that we’ll be able to follow over the next five years,” Walsh said.

Walsh noted that the roadmap is intended to be “a living document” that will be reviewed on an annual basis.

“We’re developing a series of key performance indicators that we’ll be dashboarding so we’ll be able to provide frequent updates on our overall progress,” Walsh said.

Other items from the BOV meeting:

BOV members saw the recent PBS NewsHour report that highlighted Mason’s ADVANCE partnership with Northern Virginia Community College.
Matt Smith, Mason’s director of accreditation, reiterated to the BOV that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges board will vote on reaffirming Mason’s accreditation in December. In April, SACSCOC found the university in compliance with all 72 standards of accreditation.
Two of the major events coming up at Mason Square: the Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Conference: Vision and Action for a New Era on October 24 with keynote speakers President Washington and Gail Christopher, and the Accelerate Investor Conference on November 2-3, which includes a student start-up competition.

Topics

Campus News

Board of Visitors

President's Task Force on Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence

ADVANCE

Accreditation

��AV’s Master of Nutrition Concentration in Dietetics Accredited by Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics

Mary Cunningham — Mon, 16 May 2022 16:03:10 +0000

��AV’s Master of Nutrition Concentration in Dietetics Accredited by Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics Mary Cunningham Mon, 05/16/2022 - 12:03

In This Story

Lawrence J. Cheskin, MD

Sapna Batheja, PhD, RDN, LDN

New concentration will matriculate students in fall 2022 and provide skills to become a Registered Dietitian

The ��AV College of Health and Human Services announced today that its Master of Nutrition Concentration in Dietetics has been accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND). In 2024, a master’s degree will be required in order to become a Registered Dietitian (RD), and this new concentration allows Mason to help raise the standards across the field.

“Nutrition is an essential component in public health and the fight for health equity. With this newly accredited program, Mason will help future dietitians gain the required knowledge and increased credentials to meet the growing need in the field,” Larry Cheskin, MD, chair of the Department of Nutrition and Food Studies, said. “Additionally, we are thrilled to be able to train students locally and in our soon-to-open nutrition clinic in the College’s Population Health Center.”

The program follows the Future of Education model for preparing RDs. To ensure career-ready graduates, the Future Education Model integrates coursework and an internship into a two-year master’s program. Mason is the second college in Virginia to offer this program.

“As a deeply embedded member of the community, we work closely with local Registered Dietitians and clinics that are ready to partner with our students for practicums and internships, which will happen in the second year of the program,” said Program Director and Assistant Professor Sapna Batheja, PhD, RD.

The College will matriculate its first students in fall 2022. The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) has approved Mason’s concentration in Dietetics, as well as a concentration in community and a no-concentration option.

Learn more about Mason's Master of Science in Nutrition in Dietetics here.

Topics

CHHS

CHHS News

Department of Nutrition and Food Studies

Food and Nutrition

Accreditation

Mechanical engineering faculty appointed to ABET executive committee

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Feb 2022 17:07:58 +0000

Mechanical engineering faculty appointed to ABET executive committee Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 02/03/2022 - 12:07

In This Story

Nathan Kathir

��AV’s College of Engineering and Computing associate professor Nathan Kathir has racked up many accomplishments over his career. This July, Kathir will add another as he starts his three-year term as a member of the executive committee for the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of ABET.

ABET is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that independently accredits engineering, engineering technology, computer science, and applied and natural science programs at universities in the United States and internationally. It is widely recognized as the educational standard for STEM programs.

Kathir, a member of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and a Professional Engineer (PE), has been a part of ABET since 2000. “When I was a member of the American Society for Civil Engineers (ASCE), they mentioned they were looking for PE’s to be program evaluators for ABET, so I joined and was an evaluator for 16 years,” says Kathir.

Kathir evaluated numerous engineering programs in the U.S. and abroad, and in 2016 he became a commissioner, a role he held for the full five-year term that ended in July 2021. Executive committee members make up an even smaller group of the ABET leadership team, and the appointment recognizes successful prior leadership as a commissioner or team chair.

“This year, ABET nominated seven people for the executive committee of EAC. Usually, on the executive committee, you find deans and department chairs. I’m very honored to be serving ABET at this level,” says Kathir. “Since my bachelor’s degree is from a foreign country and wasn’t ABET accredited, it was a bit of a handicap at first. But I set my bar high, and I reached it.”

Currently, Ken Ball, dean of the College of Engineering and Computing, serves on the executive committee of ABET EAC, and his term will end in July 2022. David Binning from Mason’s Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering Department previously served as chair of EAC, and he currently serves as the past chair.

“I look forward to continuing the tradition and keeping Mason proud. Thank you to the college leadership for allowing me to continue my support to ABET,” says Kathir.

In October 2021, Kathir was also appointed as chair of ASCE’s Committee on Accreditation (COA). COA leads ASCE’s accreditation efforts to include administering strategic accreditation priorities, policies, and programs.

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mechanical engineering

Accreditation

Feedback opportunity for Mason’s Quality Enhancement Plan

Colleen Rich — Mon, 04 Oct 2021 19:22:09 +0000

Feedback opportunity for Mason’s Quality Enhancement Plan Colleen Rich Mon, 10/04/2021 - 15:22

The university community is invited to provide feedback and suggestions on the full draft of Mason’s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), Transformative Education through Anti-Racist Community Engagement.

The purpose of the QEP is to improve student learning or the student experience in a specific way over the course of a five-year evaluative period. Mason’s last QEP, Students as Scholars, led to the creation of the Office of Scholarship, Creative Activities, and Research (OSCAR) and the significant presence of undergraduate research at Mason. The hope is to embed civic learning and anti-racist community engagement into the Mason student experience in similar ways.

“We are excited to share this plan with the university community after this year-long development process,” said Kristen Wright, director of civic engagement and undergraduate education and QEP co-chair.

The QEP’s four areas of focus include:

Curriculum and Pedagogy, which includes incorporating community-based learning, civic learning, and anti-racism into curriculum;
Staff and Faculty Development, which includes the creation of faculty and staff training, as well as funding for faculty development related to anti-racist community engaged teaching and research;
Critically Responsive Student Experiences, which includes investment in graduate and undergraduate community engaged experiences that are paid or credit-bearing; and
Community Engagement, which includes expanding K-12 engagement and hosting symposia on anti-racist community engagement.

“Core to the mission of the QEP is to include the campus community in the development of the process. The feedback from the campus community has been crucial to developing a plan that is collaborative, student-centered, and that will positively affect student learning and development connected to anti-racist community engagement and civic learning,” Wright said.

The QEP Development Committee will meet and review the feedback as it is submitted.

After integrating feedback from the campus community, Mason will submit the plan to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) as part of the reaffirmation process.

“We look forward to continued partnership and co-creation as we finalize the plan and move into implementation,” Wright said.

For individuals who are interested in learning more, the QEP Development committee will host meetings and provide presentations. Email Kristen Wright if you would like a representative from the QEP Development Committee to speak to your department or group. Kiosks will be strategically placed across campus throughout October to provide additional information. The deadline to submit feedback is Friday, Oct. 29.

Topics

Faculty and Staff News

Quality Enhancement Plan

Accreditation

reaffirmation process

MS in Health Informatics Maintains Accreditation by CAHIIM

John Brandon Cantrell — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 12:53:03 +0000

MS in Health Informatics Maintains Accreditation by CAHIIM John Brandon C… Thu, 09/23/2021 - 08:53

In This Story

PJ Maddox, EdD, MSN, RN

The College's MS in Health Informatics program has successfully met the CAHIIM accreditation standards for another year and remains in good standing.

The College of Health and Human Services is proud to announce that the Master of Science in Health Informatics program will maintain accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). With this announcement, the MS in Health Informatics program has successfully met the CAHIIM accreditation standards for another year and remains in good standing.

“The Department of Health Administration and Policy continues to offer degree programs that meet the growing demand of students at the graduate and undergraduate level–and the growing demand for graduates with specialized skills in health informatics,” said Peggy (P.J.) Maddox, chair of the department. "This accomplishment is a credit to our health informatics faculty and the program's strong leadership."

Each year, CAHIIM conducts an annual review to provide the public with effective and consistent monitoring of health informatics and health information management programs. The accreditation process includes a multi-level review to ensure programs meet the nationally recognized standards developed by health informatics and health information management academics and practitioners.

Along with the recent reaccreditation, the Commission recognized the College’s health informatics faculty for “their commitment to continuous quality improvement in higher education.”

Learn more about the many accredited degree programs in the College.

Topics

Accreditation

Health Informatics

CHHS News

Mason’s PhD in Public Health Receives Accreditation from the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH)

mthomp7 — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 20:58:25 +0000

Mason’s PhD in Public Health Receives Accreditation from the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) mthomp7 Tue, 03/09/2021 - 15:58

In This Story

Robert M. Weiler, PhD, MPH

Carolyn Drews-Botsch, PhD, MPH

Mason becomes the first and only academic institution in the Commonwealth of Virginia to offer CEPH-accredited undergraduate and PhD degree programs.

The ��AV College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) announced today that its PhD in Public Health with concentrations in epidemiology and social and behavioral sciences has been accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). The College’s CEPH-accredited program of public health now includes its existing Bachelor of Science in Community Health, Master of Public Health (MPH) with seven highly specialized concentrations, Master of Science in Global Health, as well as the newly accredited PhD in Public Health. Mason is the first and only academic institution in the Commonwealth of Virginia to offer CEPH-accredited undergraduate and PhD degree programs.

Mason becomes the first and only academic institution in the Commonwealth of Virginia to offer CEPH-accredited undergraduate and PhD degree programs.

“Accreditation for the PhD program by CEPH demonstrates ��AV’s commitment to prepare doctoral students with the foundational public health knowledge, competencies, and specialized skills required to address the most pressing and emerging public health problems and solutions here in Virginia and beyond,” said Dr. Robert Weiler, senior associate dean of academic affairs.

“The program provides doctoral students with a substantive public health knowledge base accompanied by advanced training in research methods and data analysis. Students develop competencies related to synthesizing the scientific literature on the social and behavioral determinants that influence public health and associated health disparities,” said Carolyn Drews-Botsch, chair of the Department of Global and Community Health.

Graduates are prepared to work as researchers, prevention scientists, epidemiologists, and evaluation specialists in a variety of employment sectors including, colleges and universities, local, state, and federal official health agencies, non-government health organizations, health care systems, and private entities such as contract research organizations, consultant management firms, and industry-based associations.

Topics

Public Health

Accreditation

Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH)

CHHS News

Mason Engineering BS in cyber security engineering earns ABET accreditation

Anonymous — Tue, 19 Jan 2021 14:45:18 +0000

Mason Engineering BS in cyber security engineering earns ABET accreditation Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/19/2021 - 09:45

Mason Engineering’s bachelor’s degree program in cyber security engineering has been accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology.  

ABET accreditation assures that programs meet standards to produce graduates ready to enter critical technical fields that are leading the way in innovation and emerging technologies and anticipating the welfare and safety needs of the public.

“ABET accreditation is important to all engineering programs. The BS in cyber security engineering being the first ABET-accredited cyber security engineering program, and the first accredited with the new cyber security program criteria, is an important achievement for the new Volgenau Department of Cyber Security Engineering, but it is only the beginning,” says Peggy Brouse, professor and associate chair for the department. “The department is launching the new MS CYSE degree this spring semester. In addition, we are in a great position to extend research that we already have with the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security. We are excited for the future.”

Students pursuing a BS in cybersecurity engineering learn from distinguished faculty in the classroom and gain hands-on experience through projects and a year-long senior design capstone where faculty, students, and even alumni come together to tackle real-world problems.

Alumnus turned senior design capstone advisor Matthew Wilkes, BS cyber security engineering ’18, says of the students he has mentored, “I want to ensure they’re encouraged to be successful in both their project and beyond. I won’t make it easy for them because if it was easy every student could do it.” Wilkes was among the first students to graduate from the program.

“Any student who graduates from Mason with a degree in cyber security engineering has very high expectations,” says Wilkes.

Students praise the program and the opportunities that Mason offers. “Mason’s cybersecurity program has helped me build a solid base of practice and theory to fuel extracurricular study,” says cyber security engineering student Zaine Wilson. “Professors Tom Winston, Jim Jones, Mohamed Gebril, and all the other professors in the department, you won't find a group of more caring, inspiring, and wise mentors anywhere else.”

ABET’s voluntary peer-review process is highly respected because it adds critical value to academic programs in the technical disciplines, where quality, precision, and safety are of the utmost importance.

Topics

Cyber Security

Cybersecurity

Accreditation

Department of Cyber Security Engineering

Justin Sutters Named SACSCOC Faculty Fellow

Melanie Balog — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 15:51:51 +0000

Justin Sutters Named SACSCOC Faculty Fellow Melanie Balog Thu, 08/06/2020 - 11:51

Barton selected accreditation faculty fellow

Colleen Rich — Thu, 21 Nov 2019 10:00:00 +0000

Barton selected accreditation faculty fellow Colleen Rich Thu, 11/21/2019 - 05:00

Accreditation

Mason BOV approves tuition credit, gets updates on strategic plan, upcoming events

In This Story

Topics

����AV’s Master of Nutrition Concentration in Dietetics Accredited by Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics

In This Story

New concentration will matriculate students in fall 2022 and provide skills to become a Registered Dietitian

Topics

Mechanical engineering faculty appointed to ABET executive committee

In This Story

Topics

Feedback opportunity for Mason’s Quality Enhancement Plan

Topics

MS in Health Informatics Maintains Accreditation by CAHIIM

In This Story

The College's MS in Health Informatics program has successfully met the CAHIIM accreditation standards for another year and remains in good standing.

Topics

Mason’s PhD in Public Health Receives Accreditation from the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH)

In This Story

Mason becomes the first and only academic institution in the Commonwealth of Virginia to offer CEPH-accredited undergraduate and PhD degree programs.

Topics

Mason Engineering BS in cyber security engineering earns ABET accreditation

Topics

Justin Sutters Named SACSCOC Faculty Fellow

Barton selected accreditation faculty fellow

��AV’s Master of Nutrition Concentration in Dietetics Accredited by Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics