The UWI Open Campus Gains Accreditation for another Seven Years
Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal. Thursday 06, 2019 - The leadership and staff of The University of the West Indies Open Campus were in celebration mood on the afternoon of Tuesday, June 04, when it was announced that the Campus has been reaccredited for seven years, the maximum period achievable.
The announcement was made by Chairman of the Board of Directors, Barbados Accreditation Council (BAC), Mrs. Margo Lady Ann Hewitt at a ceremony hosted at the Open Campus Headquarters in Barbados.
The accreditation team was very complementary of the Open Campus Self-Evaluation Report, describing it as “reflective and analytical and addressing the various challenges faced by the Open Campus.”
“The accreditation criteria and its standards are clearly met,” the accreditation team declared in its report.
“In the view of the team, the Open Campus is poised to take advantage of the opportunities presented by Global Online Strategy, its ambassadorial role in the non-physical campus countries and the growth of continuing professional education,” the report stated.
The team commended the Open Campus for several positives including: “the honesty of the self-evaluation and the use of the exercise to identify opportunities for improvement; improvements in administrative system and the commensurate reduction in students’ complaints, following the introduction of the Banner Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system; and the commitment of all staff at all levels to serve the under-served in the region.”
According to the accreditation report, the Open Campus has made significant improvements in the performance of its administrative systems, and also enjoys “strong support from its alumni, who value the opportunities that it provides, and who consider that the university lives it student-centred values.”
Acting Principal, Professor Julie Meeks Gardner accepted the instrument of accreditation on behalf of the Open Campus and attributed the accomplishment to the staff. “This Certificate of Institutional Re-Accreditation which I have just accepted on your behalf, granted for seven years, the maximum time achievable, is testimony to your commitment, dedication and in so many cases to your efforts beyond the call of duty to ensure the success of our beloved Campus,” Professor Meeks Gardiner explained.
The Acting Principal said the re-accreditation exercise provided the Open Campus with an excellent opportunity to critically evaluate its operations and processes, and to identify recommendations and future actions that will ensure that the Campus continues to provide first-class service, and a world-class education to its students.
The re-accreditation period runs from June 18, 2019 to June 17, 2026 and the Campus will undergo a mid-cycle review in another three years.
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Margo Lady Ann Hewitt, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Barbados Accreditation Council presents Professor Julie Meeks Gardner, Acting Principal of The UWI Open Campus with the Certificate of Institutional Accreditation. Professor Alan Cobley, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Board for Undergraduate Studies is at left, and Ms Valda Alleyne, Executive Director of the Barbados Accreditation Council is at right.
About The UWI
For the past 70 years The University of the West Indies (The UWI) has provided service and leadership to the Caribbean region and wider world. The UWI has evolved from a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948 to an internationally respected, regional university with near 50,000 students and four campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, and an Open Campus. As part of its robust globalization agenda, The UWI has established partnering centres with universities in North America, Asia, and Africa such as the State University of New York (SUNY)-UWI Center for Leadership and Sustainable Development, the UWI-China Institute of Information Technology, the University of Lagos (UNILAG)-UWI Institute of African and Diaspora Studies and the Institute for Global African Affairs with the University of Johannesburg (UJ). The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Food & Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities & Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science & Technology, Social Sciences and Sport.
As the region’s premier research academy, The UWI’s foremost objective is driving the growth and development of the regional economy. Times Higher Education has ranked The UWI among the top 1,258 universities in world for 2019, and the 40 best universities in its Latin America Rankings for 2018, and was the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists. For more, visit www.uwi.edu.
(Please note that the proper name of the university is The University of the West Indies, inclusive of the “The”, hence The UWI.)
