COD president expects school to be off probation this fall

Nearly two years after a regional accreditation agency placed the College of DuPage on probation, school President Ann Rondeau says she's confident the sanction will be lifted this fall.

During a meeting with the Daily Herald Editorial Board, Rondeau discussed numerous changes COD has made to address issues raised by the Higher Learning Commission when it decided in December 2015 to put the Glen Ellyn school on two years' probation for failing to act with integrity in its financial, academic, personnel and auxiliary functions.

While COD continues to be accredited and student credits are unaffected, the school must resolve the commission's concerns before the probation period ends.

If it doesn't, the state's largest community college will lose its accreditation - and that could have a devastating impact on students by adversely affecting financial aid programs and the ability to transfer credits.

Rondeau said she doesn't believe it will come to that.

"I anticipate - optimistically - that we will earn being off probation in November," she said. "Then we'll go about the business of just continuing to be great."

Rondeau was hired to lead COD last year after a nationwide search to replace Robert Breuder, who was fired in October 2015 amid state and federal investigations into the school's spending and administrative practices.

By the time Rondeau started last July, school officials already had spent more than six months working to ensure the school meets all 21 of the learning commission's criteria for accreditation - not just the issues that led to the sanction.

"Back in December 2015, it was very clear that the board - and the institution as a whole - had a lot of work to do," COD board Chairwoman Deanne Mazzochi said.

Mazzochi said officials broke down all the issues raised by the commission and took "manageable steps" to address each one.

The board, for example, implemented new policies and changed others. Some of the revised policies dealt with conflicts of interest, investment strategies and the organization of committees. Board members also were given training in parliamentary procedures.

"We are making sure that we have compliance," Mazzochi said. "We are taking proactive action to ensure that institutionally we have a culture of ethics and integrity."

She said the reform efforts got a boost once Rondeau came on board.

Mazzochi said the retired Navy vice admiral's leadership helped change the tone on campus by making everyone feel they are a part of the institution.

"Not only do I see her leading, but I see other people wanting to follow where she's leading - and being excited about it," Mazzochi said.

From the time she arrived on campus, Rondeau said the probation period was an opportunity for the college to learn about itself. And while it has been "painful," she said, "we've gained a lot from it."

"You don't ever want to be put on probation," she said. "But there's an opportunity in every circumstance. So frankly, we used this probation period - and the self-analysis required - to actually be stronger and better."

Earlier this year, the college submitted its assurance narrative to the learning commission. The nearly 40,000-word document made the case for how COD meets all the commission's standards.

"What it demonstrated is that we truly had done an institutional top-to-bottom analysis," said Mazzochi, adding that the school's accreditation task force drew from every aspect of the college operations and management, including professors and other staff members. "It was a very collaborative process."

Mazzochi said the college community came together again in April, when a group of examiners spent several days on campus. The examiners will draft a report that the learning commission board will use to decide if COD's accreditation will remain intact.

Everyone the examiners interviewed knew about the progress that's been made, Mazzochi said. "They were proud to talk about what we had done," she said.

Rondeau said the site visit was beneficial.

"You always have things you need to look at," Rondeau said. "I'm glad that they (the examiners) helped us to see some more things. But we feel very confident that we will be off probation by November."

While they must wait for the learning commission's decision, COD officials say they're pleased with what's been done to improve governance and transparency.

"If readers care about good government, it exists at COD," Rondeau said. "It exists at College of DuPage."