The University of Cauca community has embarked on a crucial journey toward institutional reaccreditation, a journey led by the Center for Quality Management and Institutional Accreditation. As 2024 comes to a close, we would like to share with you the achievements we have made on this journey, the key milestones we have already reached, and the path that still lies ahead to reach our ambitious goal in 2027.

To begin, we want to inform you that during this 2024 journey, the Center for Quality Management and Institutional Accreditation developed the Self-Assessment Model, following the guidelines of the National Accreditation Council (CNA) established in Agreement 02 of 2020.

 

 

This model, reviewed according to educational quality criteria and standards, outlines the structural components that guide the essential self-assessment process.

Subsequently, in this journey, the Institutional Work Team, composed of four professors, approved this model and began working on several priority areas, including the methodological design of surveys, the weighting and justification of Evaluation Factors, the collection of documentary information, and the definition of responsible departments. This led to a crucial stop, marking the beginning of the drafting of the self-assessment report.

Similarly, the formal establishment of the Institutional Accreditation Committee through Rectoral Resolution No. 0347 of 2024 was a very important stop on our journey. This committee, composed of representatives from various academic and administrative areas, aims to lead the actions necessary for the renewal of Institutional Accreditation.

During its sessions, the self-assessment work plan was shared, and crucial aspects such as the weighting and justification of the model were approved.

As we approach the end of the year, the balance of activities carried out and the challenges for 2025, the second year of this challenging process, were shared with the community.

Recognizing the importance of keeping our university community informed, in this first phase of our journey, 26 communication products were developed in various formats, including videos, audios, images, and texts, using social media, email, the "Al TablerU" faculty newsletter, university screens, and university radio as dissemination channels.

On the other hand, during this phase of our journey, the Institutional Improvement Plan was reviewed and updated, integrating improvement actions to strengthen the performance of our institution. This process included requests to various departments for evidence on the progress of their improvement actions, achieving a 93% compliance rate, a significant achievement on our way to our final destination: reaccreditation.

"In 2024, we achieved valuable progress in the institutional self-assessment process. We have reasons to be proud: we have a solid model, vibrant communication, and have successfully met the improvements that strengthen our future. Next year, let's join efforts to build a new and exciting story for our University!" expressed Dr. Alexander Buendía, Director of the Center for Quality Management and Institutional Accreditation, with great excitement.

Thus, as 2024 comes to a close, we can proudly say that we have successfully reached the following milestones on this journey:

• First, we comprehensively defined the self-assessment model.
• We arrived at effective communication of the process, identification of opportunities for improvement, and
• We formally began the construction of the self-assessment report.

In this way, we sincerely thank every person in our university community who boarded the accreditation bus and is daily driving different actions so that together, we can make history and reach our final destination in 2027: institutional reaccreditation. Can you imagine a better gift for the Bicentennial University of Cauca? We can't! So, we’re already gearing up to continue this growth-filled journey.

Written by: Communication Management Center