The WSCUC Nominating Committee invites nominations, including self-nominations, by December 31, 2024 for Commissioner terms that will begin July 1, 2025.

WSCUC Commissioners play crucial roles in furthering excellence, equity, and engagement in higher education and promoting student success through their policy and institutional decisions. Nominees should have an interest in quality assurance and improvement through accreditation, be committed to equitable student success, and demonstrate independent judgment, high ethical standards, and responsibility for their Commission duties. Commissioners are expected to be both rigorous and improvement oriented in the application of Commission Standards.

Institutional Commissioners are drawn from among presidents/CEOs, faculty, and administrators of WSCUC-accredited institutions around the world. Because of the diversity of member institutions in terms of mission, affiliation, programs, size, complexity, and location, it is important that Commissioners be sensitive to the rich range of institutions served by the Commission and their diverse student bodies.

Public Commissioners help assure independence and fresh perspectives on the Commission by bringing expertise and experience from beyond higher education or from institutions not accredited by WSCUC.

Priorities: For this nomination cycle the Nominating Committee is especially interested in considering people–

1. with expertise in:
• organizational change and strategic planning
• governance and board effectiveness
• equity, diversity, and inclusion leadership, pedagogy, scholarship, services, and programming
• financial and business matters, including financial planning, management, sustainability, and legal, or business analysis of complex arrangements and transactions in higher education.
2. who will contribute to the Commission’s diversity, including diversity of race, ethnicity, gender identity and sexual orientation, disability status, and other backgrounds.
3. who qualify for public commissioner positions because their professional experience is substantially in fields beyond higher education, including public and community service, business and finance, law, policy, research, and non-profit leadership.

For institutional members the committee also takes into consideration, when developing a slate of candidates, other factors including diversity of roles (such as faculty, student affairs, finance, and planning) and institutional type, field, size, and location.

Service on the Commission requires a serious commitment. The Commission meets three times a year (February, June, and November) for 2 1/2 days. Preparation is substantial, requiring review of team reports and policy materials. Each Commissioner also serves on one or more Commission committee(s) or work groups. Commissioners are invited to serve occasionally as members of accrediting teams and to attend WSCUC educational programs. Prior service on accrediting teams is valuable but not required.

As a nominator, you must:

1. Contact nominee to confirm his/her/their willingness to serve.
2. Before Jan 1, email to kmatarrese@wscuc.org
• the completed Nomination Form (page 2)
• Your statement of nominee’s qualifications (may be submitted separately)
3. Instruct the nominee to email to kmatarrese@wscuc.org
• their curriculum vitae/resume
• their statement on how their professional experience aligns with the Commission responsibilities and priorities for new commissioners.