Nassau Community College under scrutiny

Daily Point

Middle States flags Nassau Community College

Nassau Community College received a visit last week from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, part of an on-site evaluation that culminates in a full report that assesses the school’s accreditation, along with outlining its improvements and shortcomings.

In its initial analysis, Middle States found NCC failed to meet two of the commission’s seven standards, according to a source familiar with the visit, who said evaluators discussed their preliminary findings with various stakeholders at the evaluation’s conclusion.

NCC did not meet commission standards for Ethics and Integrity, or for Governance, Leadership, and Administration, the source told The Point.

The last time NCC had a Middle States evaluation — in 2016 — it was placed on probation, although it maintained its accreditation. At the time, the commission utilized 14 standards which have since been condensed into the seven it uses now. NCC’s probation, Middle States said at the time, was due to "insufficient evidence that the institution is in compliance" with seven of the 14 standards — Planning, Resource Allocation, and Institutional Renewal; Institutional Resources; Leadership and Governance; Administration; Integrity; Institutional Assessment; and Assessment of Student Learning.

At that time, Nassau Community College had more than 21,000 full and part-time students. Its enrollment now stands at 11,300 full and part-time students.

The college was removed from probation in the fall of 2017. An NCC spokesman said much has changed since the last Middle States evaluation.

"We’ve made so much progress since 2016 and we’re on the right road to do a lot of very good things," Jerry Kornbluth, the college’s vice president for community and governmental relations, told The Point. "This is a confidential report. If somebody is cherry-picking things and sharing it with you, it’s irresponsible and misleading on their part."

According to an outline of the Middle States Commission’s newly constructed standards, the Ethics and Integrity category includes a commitment to academic freedom and freedom of expression; a climate that "fosters respect among students, faculty, staff and administration from a range of diverse backgrounds, ideas and perspectives"; a grievance policy that is "fair and impartial"; honesty in advertising and public relations; fair employment practices and more.

The Governance, Leadership and Administration category includes a variety of standards regarding the school’s governance structure, its chief executive officer and its administration. Among the requirements is the need for "inclusive decision making by each constituency, including the institution’s legally constituted governing body, administration, faculty, staff and students ..."

The commission’s full report won’t be available until later this spring, so its specific findings and concerns haven’t been released yet. But it comes as the college’s faculty union continues to battle the NCC administration on a variety of fronts. The Nassau Community College Federation of Teachers has called for an audit of the institution’s finances amid allegations of "potential fiscal mismanagement." The Federation also last week appealed the dismissal of its lawsuit, which sought to block the college’s efforts to consolidate academic departments.

— Randi F. Marshall randi.marshall@newsday.com

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