Ricke Elected to Associate Board of Commissioners

Pratt Community College’s business instructor Carol Ricke was elected to the Associate Board of Commissioners for the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs. Ricke was nominated by another member of the board.
 
PCC’s business department was accredited through ACBSP in 1994 and was reaffirmed in 2004. In Kansas there are currently five community colleges that have received this accreditation. It is a two-year process to become accredited.
 
“It basically means that our business department provides the students with a quality education,” Ricke said, “and we continuously monitor that to ensure a quality education.”
 
Ricke has been on five site visits to other colleges to verify their accreditation reports, taken mentoring training, participated as Secretary of the Region for several years, attended regional meetings. She has also won the Teacher Excellence Regional award, was a part of the national Bylaws Committee for two years and went through the national Baldrige training.
 
“It was because of this training and experience that I was nominated,” Ricke said. “I was also told in the Board of Commissioner’s meeting that they picked some of the best site visitors they have to be on the Board, so I was very honored and humbled by these remarks.”
 
Ricke said being on the Board of Commissioners will help her better understand the accreditation process and outcomes assessment. That in turn will assist her with PCC’s business department continual improvement, which will ultimately help the students achieve success in the classroom.