LACC held candidacy status with the WASC's Accrediting Commission the past seven years. The college will be re-evaluated for continuation of its accreditation with the commission at the end of 1998.
The college received high marks from the WASC for its ADVANTAGE program curriculum, and for meeting the changing demands of health care.
LACC's President Dr. Reed B. Phillips detailed the accreditation process and offered his comments:
"LACC initiated the WASC accreditation process in 1982, with three subsequent site visits in 1985, 1989, and 1993. On each occasion, the college received commendations for achievement and recommendations for continued improvement. The effort required to meet the standards of WASC has been monumental and no half-hearted commitment would have sufficed. Many ask, 'Why is this accreditation so important?' Our reply is equally simple. We intend to move chiropractic education into the community of higher education in the Western region. The transformation we have experienced through this process has brought about what we call our ADVANTAGE educational program, a competency-based, problem-centered approach to learning. The result has been well worth the effort. Our students are able to begin clinical experience in their first trimester, the learning curve is higher, retention greater, student/teacher ratio low, and student enthusiasm higher than ever before.
"The external benefits are yet to be realized and the impact of moving towards the requirement of a baccalaureate degree and a 3.0 GPA on entrance (scheduled for 2000) is yet to be measured. Nevertheless, we have demonstrated our commitment to the ADVANTAGE method of teaching by our willingness to increase operating costs, retrain faculty, and update facilities. Amazingly, this major curriculum revision of two years ago paralleled a temporary enrollment decline. Still, we continued in our commitment to a quality educational experience and the ADVANTAGE phenomenon. Enrollment is now on the increase, with applicants being more prepared than ever.
"By example, Los Angeles College of Chiropractic hopes to lead chiropractic education into the 21st century. Come and join us."
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