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Adapted for the Web from Lunch-time Session presented 11/18/06 at ASHA Convention in Miami Beach, Florida.
CAA Site Visit Subcommittee for 2006
- Ellayne Ganzfried
- Fred Britten
- Susan Snover
- Wayne Swisher
Session Objectives
- Site Visit — purpose & timing in review
- Agenda Development & Logistics
- Preparing Documentation
- After the Site Visit
- Site Visit Report
- CAA's final review and decision
- Evaluations
- Update on CAA activities and policies
Purpose of the Site Visit
- One of several mechanisms used by CAA to determine compliance with the Standards for Accreditation
- Review by a team of peers
- Verifies the accuracy of information provided in the application
- Resolves any questions or concerns that resulted from review of the application
- Results in recommendations and suggestions on how the program can improve the quality of education
- Provides additional information to CAA to make accreditation decisions
- Past verification looked only at the process.
- Now, in addition to reviewing the policies and processes, we look at
- how well the program meets its goals
- whether the program is successful with respect to student achievement
A Few Basic Questions
- What should your graduates look like?
- How did you determine this?
- Did you share this vision with all students, faculty, and supervisors?
Prior to the Visit
- CAA reviews application & provides initial observations back to the program
- Program has opportunity to respond to observations
- Site visit team receives copies of CAA's observations & the program's response
Does the program have input on when the visit occurs?
Yes. Program identifies the dates for team to come to campus.
- Team expected to see "typical" days in the program
- Don't provide dates during Spring Break or Final Exams!
- Bear in mind dates of other accreditation site visits that may affect the program (e.g., NCATE)
- CAA is happy to coordinate simultaneous visits with sufficient notice.
- Potential dates should be provided to the National Office staff when application is submitted.
Team Composition
How many people are coming to campus?
- Standard team = 3 members
- 2 academics + 1 practitioner
- Trainees or observers
- Team for SLP-only
- Team for audiology-only
- Team for SLP & audiology
- 1 academic from each area, practitioner could be from either
Does the program have input on who serves on the team?
- Yes. Program is asked to eliminate individuals from the site visitor roster that pose a conflict of interest before the visit is scheduled.
- In addition, site visitors are asked to identify programs that may be a conflict of interest for them to serve as a site visitor.
Observers on Site Visits
- Members of the CAA routinely observe site visits to
- complete CAA members' education
- allow opportunity for assessment of site visit process for consistency, best practices, and ideas for training and continuing education of pool of site visitors
- Individual programs are not the focus of an observation visit
- CAA has established precautions to protect program if/when an observer is assigned
Myth vs. Fact #1
Site visitors have the authority to recommend accreditation status for a program, including probation.
No, the above statement is a Myth. The role of the site visitors is to verify evidence a program's compliance with standards. The CAA has the sole authority to make accreditation decisions, considering information contained in the site visit report as well as any updates provided by the program in its response to the site visit report.
Agenda Development
Who's responsible for developing the agenda?
- Program Director should take the lead to draft
- Build-in time for breaks and travel between locations if events are scheduled in different buildings
- Sample agenda provided in the Site Visit Manual
- Consult with the chair of the site visit team at least 30 days in advance
- Share draft agenda
- Site Visit Chair will make recommendations about order of events, logistics, people, or time
Scheduling Site Visitors
- Site visitors should be scheduled separately
- to visit with individual faculty and supervisors
- for public and/or student meeting(s)
- Site visitors should be scheduled together for meetings with Program Director, Dean, Provost, etc.
- It is not necessary to schedule observations in the clinic.
How long will the team be visiting?
- Standard visit is 2 full days
- Monday-Tuesday
- Thursday-Friday
- Days may be added if the program
- Has multiple campuses
- Has satellite campus(es)
- Is part of a consortium
Who participates in the visit?
- Program Director, Clinic Director, Dept. Chair (if different than program director)
- Full- and part-time academic faculty
- Clinical educators & supervisors (on- & off-campus)
- Administrators - deans, provost, president
- Students & Alumni
- Support staff
- Employers
- Clients & their families
- Members of the campus or local communities
What do I need to do about organizing a "public meeting"?
- CAA policy requires programs to schedule meetings for students and consumers
- separate meetings may be held for each
- Must "widely" publish an announcement
- no later than 15 days prior to the site visit
- program determines vehicle (campus/local newspaper, clinic or campus flyers, etc.)
- Announcement should indicate
- date, time, & place of meeting(s) with site visitors
- how CAA Standards and/or Policy on Public Comment may be obtained
Can programs solicit public comments for submission to CAA before the visit?
- Yes. Programs may contact students, alumni, clients, community members, etc. to inform them about the options to provide comments before or during the site visit. CAA's Policy on Public Comment outlines the process for submitting information to the CAA.
- Written comments must be signed and include contact information to allow for verification.
- Any comments are not shared directly with programs; rather they are considered as part of the aggregate data.
Will the team need to go off-campus to conduct reviews/interviews?
- Not necessarily. Phone interviews can be arranged to speak with external supervisors, employers, or alumni.
- If there is not an on-campus clinic, teams prefer to go to regularly used clinical site(s) close to campus, if possible.
Logistics for site visit team
- Secure work space/office
- Access to computer with printer & Internet
- Access to phone for interviews
- Restaurant/food options
- Assistance with transportation
- Hotel Accommodations
- Program chair usually selects hotel, makes reservations
- Program chair will provide visitors with hotel contact information
- Site visitor may need to contact hotel to guarantee room
- Site visitor will pay for room (and then is reimbursed by ASHA)
Myth vs. Fact #2
The program should provide evening entertainment while the site visitors are in town.
The above statement is a Myth! The site visitors are expected to meet with their teammates in the evenings to prepare for the next day's events. Also, social activities may be perceived as a conflict of interest for the site visitor during the time of the visit.
- Other examples of conflicts for site visitors would be:
- asking for or accepting gifts
- accepting or requesting a sample of wares
- accepting payment for meals
- recruiting instructional staff
- recruiting students
- accepting employment positions
Documentation
- What will site visitors be looking for?
- Information that provides evidence that the program is complying with all standards.
- How do site visitors use the documentation viewed on-site?
- To verify information from application
- To ensure policies are in practice — and practices are in policies
- To confirm student achievement/progress tracking
- What specific documents will site visitors expect to have prepared for their review?
Two resources that were developed to assist programs in their preparations are:
Access to Files
- FERPA - students
- Allows access to student files for purposes of accreditation
- Site visitors will not record or report any identifying information
- HIPAA - clinic "covered entity"
- Need release forms for access to client files or site visitors may sign a form acknowledging confidentiality
- Program may prepare files to strip client's identifying information, but it is not necessary
Myth vs. Fact #3
Site visitors will expect to find a "KASA" form for each student.
The above statement is a Myth. The CAA does not require programs to keep a Knowledge and Skills Acquisition (KASA) summary form in each student file. [The KASA form is part of the ASHA certification application.]
However, evidence should exist for tracking a student's:
- acquisition of knowledge and skills does
- supervised practicum clinical hours
- progress toward graduation
- progress toward state and national credentials
Myth vs. Fact #4
Site visitors' in-depth knowledge of the program is typically limited to the current accreditation application and related resources, i.e. program's Web site.
The above statement is a Fact. The site visit team is not provided past applications or annual reports for their review for the visit. Nor is a history of the program's identified strengths, weaknesses, etc. provided. Site visitors are encouraged to review the Web pages of the program and university to verify data and its currency.
Site Visit Report
- Site visit team is required to generate a report of the site visit
- SV Report becomes official record of team's observations
- Seen as critical element by the CAA to make fair, impartial, and informed decisions on program's accreditation
- Presented twice to the program:
- orally at the end of visit (Exit Report)
- written and submitted to National Office within 30 days of the visit
- Program can expect to receive their copy 4-8 weeks after visit
Myth vs. Fact #5
Observations reported by the team may be different than those identified by the CAA in its review of the application.
The above statement is a Fact. The site visit team has access to documentation on site that the CAA does not have while conducting its initial review of the application and, as a s result, the site visitors may offer a different perspective on compliance.
Site Visit Report Response
- Program & administration, typically the president or dean, receive copies of the site visit report
- May provide written response regarding the accuracy of the site visitors' observations before the CAA makes a final accreditation decision.
CAA Decisions
CAA makes the most final accreditation decisions at face-to-face meetings twice a year:
- Spring site visits = Summer meeting decision
- Fall site visits = Winter/early Spring meeting decision
Programs can typically expect decisions 3-5 months after site visit; 12 months after application submission.
Myth vs. Fact #6
The site visit team's report findings are the only data used by CAA for final accreditation decisions and citations.
The above statement is a Myth. The CAA considers all information, from the accreditation application through the program's response to the site visit report and any program updates, to determine a program's compliance with each standard and the resulting accreditation decision.
Evaluations
- Remember to complete and return your program questionnaire on the visit and the team members immediately following the site visit.
- The evaluation form can be accessed online as an appendix to the Site Visit Manual.
Myth vs. Fact #7
Returning completed site visit and visitor evaluations before the final decision is rendered will affect the results of the accreditation decision.
The above statement is a Myth! The evaluations are used to improve the site visit process and performance of site visitors. Evaluation materials are not considered when the CAA renders accreditation decisions.
Resources
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