TWU chancellor named Woman of Distinction

Texas Woman’s University Chancellor Ann Stuart was recently named a Woman of Distinction by the American Association of Uni­versity Wo­men of Texas at its annual convention.

Stuart was one of 100 female leaders from around the state honored for their accomplishments in their professions and communities. Stuart was nominated for the award by the Denton branch of the association.

Every other year, the association and TWU co-sponsor the “Expanding Your Horizons in Science and Mathematics” conference, which showcases math and science careers to more than 400 middle school girls in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

For more information, visit www.aauwtexas.org .

Commuter program nets national recognition

TWU received the Commuter Student and Adult Learners’ Outstanding Collaboration Award during the American College Personnel Association’s national convention.

TWU’s commuter services and housing departments were recognized for the Commuter Neigh­bors Educated Together program, which offers commuter students the opportunity to develop an academic peer support group. TWU students in the program take three classes together and take part in campus activities during their first semester at TWU.

About 83 percent of students on the Denton campus are commuter students, Amy O’Keefe, director of TWU commuter services, said in a news release.

“Commuter students who also are first-time-in-college students have one of the highest dropout rates after their first semester,” O’Keefe said. “The Commuter NET program was implemented in fall 2007 as a counterpart to the Living Learning Community program in our residence halls, and we have already seen an increase in retention rates for commuter students in the program.

“Commuter NET students are able to establish a network of friends and develop a sense of community spirit,” she said. “The average GPA of the Commuter NET students also is higher than those not enrolled in the program.”

The program is a collaboration with TWU’s housing department, the Academic Advising Center, the College of Arts and Sciences and commuter services. Several other TWU departments, including the registrar’s office, university scheduling and various academic departments, also are involved in the program.

For more information, visit www.twu.edu/osl/studentcenter/commuter .

Accreditation renewed for counseling program

The counseling and development program at TWU has earned renewed accreditation for its school and community counseling components from the Coun­cil for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Edu­ca­tional Programs.

“Receiving this accreditation is a seal that indicates we are willing to go above and beyond because we want to have a quality program and graduate students who become quality counselors,” Susan Adams, assistant professor of counseling and development, said in a news release. Adams is council coordinator for TWU’s counseling and development program.

The master’s program in community counseling received an eight-year accreditation, the maximum period awarded by the organization. The master’s program in the school counseling component received a two-year accreditation. According to the council Web site, www.cacrep.
org, a two-year accreditation status is given to programs that substantially meet council standards, yet have minor deficiencies to address.

“There were some minor issues with our internships, plus we’re in the midst of a faculty search for a school counselor educator,” Adams said. “I’m very pleased with the outcome. For us to go through this lengthy process and have only one standard we didn’t quite meet — something that can easily be corrected — is wonderful.”

Faculty members in the two TWU counseling programs began preparing for the accreditation process in January 2005, examining their curriculum, faculty resources, program objectives and more, then defining how these areas met council standards. A council team then visited the university last September to verify the information provided in the programs’ self-study.

The council board of directors met in January to make decisions on accreditation. TWU’s community counseling program is accredited through March 31, 2016. The school counseling program’s accreditation runs through March 31, 2010.

According to the council Web site, programs accredited for a two-year period are required to submit a report before the end of that period showing how the issues cited have been addressed. “If that report is satisfactory, council will review the program and could grant an additional six years of accreditation,” Adams said.

As part of their eight-year accreditation, all programs are required to submit a mid-cycle report to document any major changes in faculty or curriculum.

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