Steering Committee

Steering Committee Co-Chairs

Laura Smith, Professor of Psychology and Education, Chair of the Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology

Portia Williams, Vice Provost for Academic Planning and Global Affairs

Steering Committee Members

Katie Embree, Vice President for Planning and Strategy, Chief of Staff to the President and Secretary of the College

Lisa Seales, Vice President for Administration

Elisha Rodriguez, Associate Vice President & Controller

Judy Chen, Associate Vice President for Budget and Planning

Michael Torres, Executive Director of Institutional Research

Tamara Britt, Vice President and General Counsel

Tom Rock, Vice Provost for Student Affairs

Tani Castaneda, Vice President for Enrollment

Barbara Bashaw, Arnhold Professor of Practice in Dance Education
Pam A. Koch, Mary Swartz Rose Associate Professor of Nutrition and Education
Jessica Fitzsimons Riccio, Senior Lecturer, Science Education

Ben Lovett, Associate Professor of Psychology and Education
Jebraune Chambers, Student
Eduardo Marti, Trustee

Steering Committee Charge

The Teachers College Steering Committee will provide leadership for the self-study process. During the two-year period (2023-2025), the Steering Committee has ultimate responsibility for preparing the documentation required for accreditation: the Self-Study Design, the Self-Study Report, and the Evidence Inventory. Reporting to President Bailey and Provost O’Meara, the Steering Committee will:

1. Review and approve the Self-Study Design and timeline.
2. Establish processes, guidelines, and templates to ensure that Working Groups fully address the criteria of the assigned Standards and relevant Strategic Priorities.
3. Guide the Working Groups to ensure that they meet set deadlines, minimize duplication of efforts, and provide evidence-based arguments for reaffirmation of accreditation.
4. Review the Working Group drafts and provide feedback and assemble the final documents into a cohesive and comprehensive Self-Study report.
5. Develop and implement a communication plan to apprise the broader College community of the self-study progress and outcomes.
6. Ensure that Self-Study Report, Evidence Inventory, and Verification of Compliance are completed on time.
7. Participate in the MSCHE Review Team visit in the spring of 2026.

To facilitate the coordination of the Working Groups, the chairs of each group are members of the Steering Committee. The Working Group chairs will regularly report on their progress to the Steering Committee and work together to eliminate redundancies and ensure self-study cohesiveness. The Steering Committee Co-Chairs and Working Group chairs attended the Self-Study Institute in September-October 2023. The Office of Accreditation and Assessment will help with scheduling Steering Committee and Working Group meetings, attend each meeting, take minutes, and maintain a list of action items for each group. The Steering Committee will review the minutes of the Working Groups to make sure that the groups are staying on target with respect to the standard criteria and the strategic priorities and are using evidence to support their claims.

General Charges for the Working Groups 

The Working Groups will contribute to the Self-Study Report and Evidence Inventory for the College’s MSCHE accreditation review. Over a two-year period (2023-2025), the Working Groups will conduct a robust review and evaluation of the College’s programs, policies, and practices relevant to the assigned MSCHE standards and relevant Strategic Priorities. Reporting to the Steering Committee, each Working Group will:

1. Review the criteria for the assigned MSCHE standards in light of the College’s mission and Strategic Priorities.
2. Determine which of the five priorities to incorporate into the discussion of the Working Group’s standards.
3. Identify existing evidence relevant to the standards along with any gaps in evidence; work with the Evidence Inventory Group to gather missing information.
4. Identify TC community groups that are most important in providing input into the standards and solicit their participation and feedback.
5. Engage in a thoughtful discussion and analysis of the work of the College in light of the Strategic Priorities and the assigned MSCHE standards.
6. Create and submit to the Steering Committee an outline of their chapter by April 26, 2024 along with evidence needed for the standards.
7. Based on the feedback, submit to the Steering Committee the first draft of the chapter by November 26, 2024 linking standard criteria to the evidence in the Evidence Inventory.
8. Based on the feedback and any new evidence, revise the chapter to be shared with the community by April 30, 2025. Final draft is due September 26, 2025. 
9. Participate in the MSHCE Review Team’s visit in the spring of 2026.