Texan Mosaic

Contributed to by Noah Lopez/Texan Mosaic

South Plains College celebrated a perfect evaluation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) Wednesday with donuts and coffee at the snack bar on the Levelland campus.

In an email to faculty on September 21, Dr. Robin Satterwhite, president of the college, congratulated faculty and staff on the perfect evaluation.

“I am extremely proud of our college, our employees, and our students,” Satterwhite said in the email. “Congratulations to everyone for this outstanding achievement!”

The SACSOC on-site visit took place the week of September 18 with visits to the satellite campuses on Monday, followed by the Levelland campus on September 19 and September 20.

Celebrations are also scheduled for other campuses, including:

Reese:  Thursday, September 28 in Building 2 upstairs – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Plainview:  Friday, October 6 from 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Downtown Lubbock:  Wednesday, October 4 in the main lobby – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Lubbock CTC:  Thursday, October 5 in the Bistro area – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

At the Board of Regents meeting on September 14, Ryan Gibbs, vice president for academic affairs, said every 10 years, the college must have a new idea on how to improve, also called a Quality Enhancement Program. The college has designated writing as its area for improvement.

“Our hope is to improve the writing abilities of our students across multiple disciplines through the implementation,” Gibbs said.

Following the on-site visit, Dr. Satterwhite reported that the SACSOC team did not have any recommendations regarding the QEP or the principles of being an accredited college.

Also at the Board of Regents meeting, Dr. Stan DeMerritt, vice president for student affairs, reported a 3.5 percent increase in enrollment, along with a close to full occupancy rate of 93.4 percent.

DeMerritt said the increase in enrollment is likely linked with the new dual credit policy and state legislation. He also said the increase in occupancy has put a pause on the planned renovations for Stroud Hall.

DeMerritt anticipates those renovation plans to resume in the spring, as occupancy levels typically decrease in spring semesters.

Before the conclusion of the meeting, Dr. Satterwhite discussed a recent student interest survey that was sent out to all SPC students. He informed the board that on the survey, students were asked if they would utilize the Natatorium if it were renovated.

“The overwhelming response was that more people would use it if it were renovated,” Dr. Satterwhite said.

The complete survey results were not available yet, but will be reviewed by student life and information will be shared with students and administration.