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April 10, 2000
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Montclair State President Susan A. Cole, School of Business Dean Alan Oppenheim, and Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Richard Lynde proudly display the School¹s two-volume self-evaluation report submitted to the AACSB‹The International Association for Management Education, the premier accrediting agency for business schools. The AACSB accreditation became official April 9 at the organization¹s annual meeting in San Diego, Calif.
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Years of persistence and hard work paid off yesterday for faculty and staff in the School of Business when the School was granted accreditation by the AACSB‹The International Association for Management Education, the premier accrediting agency for business schools.
"We did it!" said SBUS Dean Alan Oppenheim, who was at the AACSB annual meeting in San Diego, Calif. yesterday when the news was made official. "We couldn't be more pleased."
Only 375 of the approximately 1,500 college business schools in the United States are AACSB accredited. Montclair State's accreditation makes it the third public university in New Jersey (Rutgers University and the New Jersey Institute of Technology are the others) to achieve accreditation for both its undergraduate and graduate programs.
"This confirms what employers and our alumni in business have been telling us for some time‹that our students are exceptionally qualified and effective in their organizations," said Karen Dennis, assistant dean of the School of Business, which is entering its 20th year of operation. "This, however, puts the gold seal on it." A seal that, in the business world, is a recognized sign of quality and excellence in business and management education.
"Employers realize the importance of the AACSB symbol and the quality of students who come from accredited schools," said Oppenheim. "It also validates the excellence of our faculty, who are regarded as experts in their fields and are seen as potential partners in professional project development."
The accreditation process began eight years ago when the School of Business decided to seek AACSB recognition. In 1992 the School formally entered into candidacy status and, in August 1999, submitted a two-volume self-evaluation report. This past February the AACSB sent a visiting team to campus for a three-day inspection. The team included school of business deans from the University of Dayton, the University of North Florida and Tennessee Technological University. "This was an experienced team," said Oppenheim. "They were professional and extremely thorough."
Oppenheim explained that the accreditation process is a rigorous review of the School's mission and objectives, and how effectively those are met. At Montclair State, business students are well aware of that mission, which is detailed in a Strategic Charter that also includes the School's educational philosophy, vision and core strategies. The Charter hangs on bulletin boards throughout the School and is outlined in brochures about the various programs.
Ramesh Narasimhan of Accounting, Law and Taxation is chair of the 10-member Curriculum Planning Committee, which was responsible for continuously reviewing the curriculum over the period of candidacy. "We had to define what the educational dimensions of the curriculum should be in terms of meeting the School's mission," Narasimhan said. "It was a true process of self-examination and improvement, one that will continue."
Oppenheim said the accreditation process "literally transformed the School."
"We had to take a hard look at ourselves, our processes, the way we assess the curriculum. We had to look at disciplines as a whole and measure everything against this external benchmark," he said. "It also prompted the faculty to have constant conversations about measures and standards. It was a beneficial experience all around."