Dear Alumni Community:
Every seven years, our accrediting body, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), performs an accrediting review on all aspects of universities in the northwest region.
During our recent accreditation review the University of Providence received many commendations from NWCCU. However, the commission shared concerns about our university failing to receive the commission’s prior approval for changes to its governance and operating model relative to its relationship with Providence St. Joseph Health. As a result of these concerns, the commission placed the university on probationary status until these issues can be resolved.
Be assured this status change is absolutely not related to the quality of our educational programs or the education students are receiving. It’s important to note, during this probationary period, we remain fully accredited while we work with NWCCU to address their governance concerns. It’s also important to note this has no effect on your degree that was granted by the institution.
We take the governance issue raised by NWCCU very seriously and we look forward to working with them on a comprehensive action plan to address it. In the coming months, we will be working closely with NWCCU to resolve all outstanding issues by the end of this year. The University of Providence is proud to have been accredited by NWCCU since 1935, shortly after our founding in 1932. Our students and their parents, faculty, and community can be confident that we will take this opportunity to ensure our operations and governance structure are in keeping with the high-quality education we have been providing for over 85 years. Day-to-day operations on campus will not change and students, parents, and alumni will not feel the effect of this probationary action.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Julie Edstrom, vice president for enrollment management, at 406.791.5271 or Julie.Edstrom@uprovidence.edu.
