Three academic programs at East Central University have received maximum reaccreditations and approval during the 2008-09 year.
Accreditation verifies that an institution or program meets established standards, fosters continuous improvement by measuring programs against national standards, and sets a competency threshold when establishing criteria for graduates entering various fields.
"The primary mission of this university is to develop and provide academic programs that meet the current and emerging needs of our students," said Dr. Duane C. Anderson, interim president of ECU. "The reaccreditation of these programs exemplifies our commitment to educate and prepare our students at the highest level."
The Council on Rehabilitation Counseling has granted the maximum eight-year reaccreditation to ECU's graduate program in rehabilitation counseling. ECU offers a master's degree in human resources with a rehabilitation counselor option.
CORE accredits graduate programs which provide academic preparation for professional rehabilitation counselor education. CORE accreditation promotes the effective delivery of rehabilitation counseling services to individuals with physical, mental and/or emotional disabilities.
ECU's Environmental Health Science Program received the full six-year reaccreditation from the National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council. ECU is one of only 31 accredited undergraduate environmental health science programs in the United States and the only accredited program in Oklahoma. ECU's EHS program has been accredited for more than 30 years and maintains an excellent reputation of preparing environmental health practitioners.
The American Bar Association has extended approval of ECU's Legal Studies Program another seven years. The Legal Studies Program teaches skills that will be applicable in the law office, such as legal business applications and knowledge of specialty law subjects.
The ABA's Standing Committee on Paralegals develops and promotes policies relating to the education, employment, training and effective use of paralegals. The Standing Committee recommends the approval and reapproval of paralegal training programs that have met the standards and guidelines set by the ABA for quality paralegal education.
College-level academic programs that seek accreditation or reaccreditation submit extensive self-evaluation reports to their accrediting bodies and have their program operations evaluated during on-site visits to verify compliance with accepted standards.
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