The highest university accreditation organization in the nation has added Eagle pride to its board of directors.
Pauletta Bracy, Ph.D., professor of library science and director of the Office of University Accreditation at North Carolina Central University, is among new members named to the board of directors for the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
“I am honored to have been nominated and selected to represent CHEA, a renown accrediting body that is both recognized nationally and internationally,” Bracy said.
With 30 years of accreditation experience under her belt, Bracy first became involved in the field as a member of the American Library Association, where she was appointed to represent the organization for an education accrediting process.
“I gained a lot of experience serving on teams and chairing the executive boards of the accreditors, so that gave me much experience in governance as well in the field of working with different programs and institutions,” Bracy explained.
After joining NCCU, university leadership learned of her vast accreditation experience and asked her to assist in coordinating accreditation activities. She was then tapped to serve as the liaison for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). To date, Bracy has led three SACSCOC affirmations for NCCU: in 2009, 2014 and 2019.
Bracy is the only currently-serving CHEA board member from a historically black campus, which makes the appointment, effective July 1, 2019, even more important to her.
“Representing North Carolina Central University on the board means everything, because my entire career in higher education has been at NCCU,” Bracy said. “I’ve served on a few boards, and it isn’t atypical that I am the only minority at the table. I am dedicated to sharing the HBCU perspective so my peers can gain more insight and knowledge about our esteemed institutions.”
Founded in 1996, CHEA is an association of degree-granting colleges and universities that recognize institutional and programmatic accrediting organizations. It is also the only national organization in the U.S. focused exclusively on higher education, accreditation and quality assurance.
