In the December 2014 Issue

2015 CAAHEP Annual Meeting

From the President

Fee Increase Announced

Welcome Two New Professions

CAAHEP Position Available

NN2 Janell Lang Leadership Award

Standards Open for Comment and Open Hearing Scheduled

Accreditation Actions

In Memoriam

It is with deep sadness that CAAHEP shares the passing of Carol A. Moneymaker, the Executive Director of the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES), on November 12, 2014.

CAAHEP Blog

Check out the recent posts to the CAAHEP Blog:

CAAHEP Blog

CAAHEP Welcomes New Commissionerss

Join us in welcoming two new Commissioners to CAAHEP:

Jeff Bidwell, CST

Commissioner for the

Association of Surgical Technologists

Sally Yagan

Commissioner for the

National Academy of Sports Medicine

CAAHEP Board of Directors Meeting Schedule

The CAAHEP Board of Directors takes accreditation actions six times per year (Jan., Mar., May, Jul., Sept., and Nov.). The following are upcoming meeting dates and locations (where appropriate):

January 14-15, 2015

Orlando, FL

March 20, 2015

Conference Call

May 15, 2015

Conference Call

July 15-16, 2015

New Orleans, LA

September 18, 2015

Conference Call

November 20, 2015

Conference Call

2015 CAAHEP Annual Meeting

"Partnering to Achieve Quality Outcomes"

April 19-20, 2015

Intercontinental Kansas City
at the Plaza
Kansas City, MO

Save the date!

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Featured Article

Holiday Season's Greetings

Warm Wishes

for the New Year

from the CAAHEP Board of Directors

Staff

From the President

Thomas Skalko, PhD, LRT/CTRS, FDR

Time is flying and as the year draws to an end, I want to take this opportunity to continue to update all our stakeholders on recent events with CAAHEP and the accreditation community.

Based on input from many of our Committees on Accreditation (CoAs), the CAAHEP Board has created two task forces to address emerging challenges for CAAHEP and our Committees on Accreditation. One task force will be addressing the realm of international accreditation and the other will provide our CoAs with support in the area of site visitor training.

Increasingly, the topic of international accreditation is brought up at our January Leadership Meetings and at our CoA Summer Workshops. Several CoAs are actively engaged in discussions with internationally-based programs and the challenges seem to be endless. Conceptually, it would seem that the accreditation standards and processes are sufficient in order to engage in the accreditation of programs across the world. This is not necessarily the case. There are numerous factors that influence the accreditation process in other countries and with diverse cultures. The CAAHEP International Accreditation Task Force has been created to begin a process of identifying the myriad of challenges and to bring to CAAHEP and our CoAs information that may be useful for those CoAs interested in international accreditation activities. Watch for progress from the task force.

The second task force is the Site Visitor Training Task Force. Several of our CoAs have well developed Site Visitor Training mechanisms. Some are face-to-face and others are exploring web-based and mixed models for site visitor training. For instance, the Accreditation Review Committee for Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC-ST/SA) presented at the summer COA workshop one example of a well-developed Site Visitor Training model. Other CoAs also have been developing models that can benefit the collective. The Site Visitor Training Task Force will work to create and offer educational modules, through CAAHEP, that can be utilized by all the Committees on Accreditation in their efforts to bring consistency to site visitor practices. The outcomes of the task force will prove beneficial to all our CoAs and the educational programs represented.

Finally, the CAAHEP Board of Directors remains committed to maintaining CAAHEP's role as the standard for allied health programmatic accreditation. To this end, CAAHEP is being responsive to the evolving demands of the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) and the U.S. Department of Education. Through CAAHEP's efforts, our CoAs will continue to receive the most updated information and the support needed to respond to the increasing call for transparency in programmatic accreditation.

Please always note that if you have any question, concerns, or suggestions, the CAAHEP Board is at your disposal. Feel free to contact us as you need.

Thom Skalko, President

CAAHEP Announces Fee Increase

In early December, CAAHEP sent the following important message to all sponsoring institutions with one or more CAAHEP accredited programs:

During its November 21 meeting, the CAAHEP Board of Directors approved an increase in its institutional fee effective for the year that begins July 1, 2016. The . The fee will be raised from $450 per year to $550 per year. This is the fee paid by every institution that sponsors one or more CAAHEP-accredited programs.

"CAAHEP has worked hard to keep our expenses down and avoid a fee increase to our sponsoring institutions." said Thomas Skalko, PhD, LRT/CTRS, CAAHEP President. "It has been more than 15 years since the last time CAAHEP raised its institutional fee. The Board was extremely conscientious to keep the increase to the minimum necessary to continue to provide accreditation services to our accredited programs."

Kathleen Megivern, JD, CAE, Executive Director, said, "The increase in institutional fees will not take place until July 1, 2016, so that our educational institutions will have adequate time to budget for the increase no matter when their fiscal year begins. Programs and institutions will receive notices throughout the coming year as reminders to prepare for the new fee structure."

Any educational institution or CAAHEP accredited program with questions on the new institutional fee should contact the CAAHEP office for assistance.

CAAHEP Welcomes Two New Professions

At a special October webinar meeting of the Commission, two new professions were approved and welcomed into CAAHEP. They are the Art Therapists and the Assistive Technology Professionals.

About Art Therapy

Art therapists use art media, and often the verbal processing of produced imagery, to help people resolve conflicts and problems, develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieve insight. Art therapy uniquely provides a means of communicating for those who cannot find the words to express anxiety, pain or emotions as a result of trauma, combat, physical abuse, loss of brain function, depression, severe illness, and other debilitating health conditions. Art therapy is a distinct mental health and behavioral science profession that combines knowledge and understanding of human development and psychological theories and techniques with training in visual arts and the creative process to provide a unique approach for helping clients improve psychological health, cognitive abilities, and sensory-motor functions. Art therapists use art media, and often the verbal processing of produced imagery, to help people resolve conflicts and problems, develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieve insight. Art therapy uniquely provides a means of communicating for those who cannot find the words to express anxiety, pain or emotions as a result of trauma, combat, physical abuse, loss of brain function, depression, severe illness, and other debilitating health conditions.

National requirements for professional entry into the practice of art therapy include, at minimum, a master's degree and extensive post-graduate clinical experience under the supervision of credentialed art therapists-a process which typically requires a minimum of four years. Some art therapists also have a doctorate degree.

Art therapy master's level education requires training in studio art (drawing, painting, sculpture, etc.), the creative process, psychological development, group therapy, art therapy assessment, psychodiagnostics, research methods, and multicultural diversity competence. Students must also complete 100 hours of supervised practicum, and 600 hours of supervised art therapy internship. The art therapy graduate curriculum is uniquely guided by the premise that focused art-making constitutes reflective practice and facilitates learning. The curriculum includes students' immersion in their own art practice, and art-based learning is integrated into all courses and clinical supervision.

In addition to educational requirements, standards for art therapy training and practice exist at the state and national levels. Many art therapists hold state licenses as professional art therapists, creative arts therapists, marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, psychologists, social workers, occupational or rehabilitation therapists, nurse practitioners, teachers and instruction support personnel.

About Assistive Technology Professionals

Assistive Technology Professionals analyze the needs of consumers with many types of impairments; assist in the selection of appropriate assistive technology for reducing disability/meeting the consumer's needs; set-up and installation; and providing training in the use of the selected device(s). Assistive technology spans many types of devices and areas of application including but not limited to seating and mobility, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), cognitive aids, computer access technologies, electronic aids to daily living (EADL), sensory aids, recreation technology, environmental modifications, accessible transportation (public and private), and technology for learning disabilities.

There are a variety of current education programs, which range from continuing education certificates, to master's degree programs. Also, several PhD programs have foci in this field, but not as entry level professional training. Somewhat uniquely, assistive technology is most commonly an added value program where students already have a degree in a disability related area and the training is either concurrent, at the end, or taken as a returning post-graduate student. Additionally, for some students that are outside the disability professions, such as from engineering or software design, they must pick up additional knowledge and skills in the disability area. The minimum academic level of this program is the Baccalaureate Degree.

CAAHEP welcomes these two new professions and looks forward to working with them in the development of Standards and the formations of Committees on Accreditation in the coming months.

CAAHEP Accreditation Standards Specialist Position Available

The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs' (CAAHEP) Board has approved the hiring of an Accreditation Standards Specialist consultant to support the Standards Committee. This is intended to be a long-term arrangement. This person will coordinate with the CAAHEP Standards Committee the review process of existing Standards that are being revised, the initial review of draft Standards submitted, as well as review of the Standards Interpretation Guides (SIGs). For additional information, including the complete position description, pleases visit the CAAHEP website. Applications will be reviewed by the Search Committee beginning January 15, 2015.

Marianne Krismer Receives the Janell Lang Leadership Award

The Janell Lang Leadership Award honors an individual who has provided exceptional leadership to the National Network of Healthcare Programs in Two-Year Colleges (NN2) during at least five years of participation in the organization. This award is named in memory of Janell Lang, an exceptional leader who offered many years of devoted service to NN2.

This year, Dr. Marianne Krismer is the recipient of the Janell Lang Leadership Award. Dr. Krismer, who is also a CAAHEP Commissioner representing NN2, was nominated for her critical and extremely effective role as National Director of the National H2P Consortium. An accomplished academic leader prior to H2P, Dr Krismer's leadership in H2P has been pivotal to the success of this progressive multi-state collaborative initiative, based on a $20 million grant from the Department of Labor. Partnering with NN2 and other national partners in the transformative work, she has helped build a national movement to improve the way those of us in community and technical colleges partner with the healthcare industry to create meaningful health career pathways, incorporating core curriculum, stackable credentials, responsiveness to changing workforce needs, contextualized developmental education, and numerous other innovative strategies that together produce significant change for the better. Her effectiveness in working with a complex network of very diverse partners has been exceptional.

An NN2 spokesman said, "Dr. Krismer is an innovative leader who doesn't believe in "can't do." Always an advocate for students and better access to healthcare programs, she coined the term "at-promise" replacing the term "at-risk." She has become a national presence, helping NN2 and H2P reach national audiences. NN2 is proud to have Dr. Krismer as a long-time member."

CAAHEP congratulates Dr. Krismer, and we are very fortunate to have her on the schedule for the 2015 Annual Meeting in Kansas City, MO, where she will provide attendees with an update on the National H2P Consortium's efforts.

Standards Open for Comments and Open Hearing Announced

An Open Hearing on the proposed Standards and Guidelines for the Accreditation of Educational Programs in Medical Assisting is scheduled for Friday, January 16, 2015, at 5:15 PM (Eastern), at the Embassy Suites Orlando - International Drive, 8250 Jamaican Court, Orlando, FL 32819. The proposed Standards can be reviewed at the following link:

Proposed Standards and Guidelines for the Accreditation of Educational� Programs in Medical Assisting

Comments on the proposed Standards are being collected by electronic survey at the link below. Please reference the proposed Standards document as you share your comments via electronic survey. All comments intended for consideration by CAAHEP must be received no later than January 2, 2015.

Comment on the Proposed Standards and Guidelines for the Accreditation of Educational Programs in Medical Assisting

For additional information on the scheduled Open Hearing and the Medical Assisting Standards comment period, please visit the CAAHEP website.

Accreditation Actions

November 21, 2014 Accreditation Actions

Each profession in the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) system has a Committee on Accreditation (CoA) that consists of experts in the profession that are responsible for reviewing programs and making appropriate recommendations for accreditation to CAAHEP. CAAHEP reviews recommendations received from its CoAs in each profession, assures due process was followed, and takes final action on an accreditation status.

CAAHEP took the following actions at its 11/21/2014 meeting. Actions are identified by profession, action taken, and date of the next comprehensive evaluation. In some cases, the concentration and/or degree are also specified.Where available, links to each program's website is provided.

The following programs were found to be in compliance with the accreditation Standards and Guidelines and were granted continuing accreditation, with the next comprehensive evaluation to occur no later than 2019. These actions require no progress report and were approved on the consent agenda.

Anesthesiologist Assistant

Case Western Reserve University, Houston, TX

Diagnostic Medical Sonography

South Piedmont Community College, Polkton, NC (General)

University of Texas-Brownsville/Texas Southmost College Partnership, Brownsville, TX (General)

Medical Assisting

Stevens Henager College, Orem, UT (Associate)

Ellsworth Community College, Iowa Falls, IA (Diploma)

Orthotist/Prosthetist

Northwestern University Prosthetics-Orthotics Center for Education and Research, Chicago, IL

The following programs were found to be in compliance with the accreditation Standards and Guidelines and were granted continuing accreditation, with the next comprehensive evaluation to occur no later than 2024. These actions require no progress report and were approved on the consent agenda.

Diagnostic Medical Sonography

Johnston Community College, Smithfield, NC (General)

Johnston Community College, Smithfield, NC (Cardiac)

Johnston Community College, Smithfield, NC (Vascular)

Midland College, Midland, TX (General)

Exercise Physiology

East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, East Stroudsburg, PA (Applied)

Exercise Science

Lyndon State College, Lyndonville, VT

St. Catherine University, St. Paul, MN

Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA

Surgical Technology

Foothills Surgical Technology Consortium/Cleveland Community College, Shelby, NC

Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Murfreesboro, Murfreesboro, TN

Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, Green Bay, WI

Greenville Technical College, Greenville, SC

Concorde Career Institute-Tampa, Tampa, FL

Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI

Baker College of Clinton Township, Clinton Township, MI

Mid-State Technical College, Marshfield, WI

Ashland Community and Technical College, Ashland, KY

Midlands Technical College, Columbia, SC

Cabarrus College of Health Sciences, Concord, NC

Nashville State Community College, Nashville, TN

The following programs were found to be in substantial compliance with the accreditation Standards and Guidelines, with one or more Standards requiring a progress report to be submitted to the appropriate Committee on Accreditation (CoA). The programs were granted continuing accreditation, with the next comprehensive evaluation to occur no later than 2019.

Orthotist/Prosthetist

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT

The following program was found to be in substantial compliance with the accreditation Standards and Guidelines, with one or more Standards requiring a progress report to be submitted to the appropriate Committee on Accreditation (CoA). The program was granted continuing accreditation, with the next comprehensive evaluation to occur no later than 2020.

Neurodiagnostic Technology

Southeast Technical Institute, Sioux Falls, SD (Evoked Potentials and Polysomnography Add-ons)

Surgical Technology

Kapiolani Community College, Honolulu, HI

Nebraska Methodist College, Omaha, NE

Blue Ridge Community College, Flat Rock, NC

Southern West Virginia Community & Technical College, Mt. Gay, WV

National College-Stow, Stow, OH

Concorde Career College-San Diego, San Diego, CA

Career Technical College-Monroe, Monroe, LA

Macomb Community College, Clinton Township, MI

Iowa Western Community College, Council Bluffs, IA

Wayne County Community College District, Detroit, MI

Harrison College-Fort Wayne, Fort Wayne, IN

Clover Park Technical College, Lakewood, WA

The following programs were found to be in compliance with the accreditation Standards and Guidelines and were granted initial accreditation for a period not to exceed five (5) years. These actions require no progress report and were approved on the consent agenda.

Cardiovascular Technology

Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN (Invasive Cardiovascular Technology, Certificate)

Surgical Technology

Southeastern College-Tampa, Tampa, FL

Virginia College-Columbus, Columbus, GA

The following program was found to be in substantial compliance with the accreditation Standards and Guidelines, with one or more Standards requiring a progress report to be submitted to the appropriate Committee on Accreditation (CoA). The program was granted initial accreditation for a period not to exceed five (5) years.

Surgical Technology

Atlanta Technical College, Atlanta, GA

The following program had a transfer of sponsorship approved, with a status of continuing accreditation, with the next comprehensive evaluation to occur no later than 2015. This action requires no progress report and was approved on the consent agenda.

Orthotist/Prosthetist

Concordia University, St. Paul, MN

The following program had a transfer of sponsorship approved, with a status of continuing accreditation, with the next comprehensive evaluation to occur no later than 2023. This action requires no progress report and was approved on the consent agenda.

Surgical Technology

Baton Rouge Community College, Baton Rouge, LA

The following program was placed on probationary accreditation, with one or more Standards requiring critical attention and timely resolution to bring the program into compliance with the Standards and Guidelines. The letter outlining the reason(s) for probation is available upon request.

Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic

Black River Technical College, Pocahontas, AR

1361 Park Street, Clearwater, FL 33756

727-210-2350 727-210-2354 fax

mail@caahep.org www.caahep.org

� CAAHEP 2013