My name is Claire Kimberly, and I am excited to be NCFR’s new Academic Program Review (APR) Liaison. I received my CFLE in 2012 after completing my doctorate at the University of Kentucky. I then accepted an assistant professor position at the University of Southern Mississippi in the Department of Child and Family Studies. It was during this time that I was provided with multiple opportunities to learn about assessment and accreditation. I was put in charge of our department’s annual review process with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, collected and reported information for our accrediting and certification organizations (i.e., National Council on Family Relations and American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences), and was a part of the university committee to review accreditation reports. In addition to supporting our undergraduate program in maintaining its CFLE approval, I also submitted and received approval for our graduate program to be CFLE-approved and was a part of the NCFR APR review committee.

With that said, I acknowledge the weight and responsibility that come with being NCFR’s new APR Liaison. I have always associated CFLE-approved programs with Dr. Deb Gentry. Watching her speak at NCFR conferences, I was consistently impressed with her ability to answer questions and support the goals of our programs. The additional hours she has spent training me only reinforce the high expectations I feel need to be met with this position. I would like to openly thank her again for her work and ask that others do the same.

Our process of reviewing and approving programs has received input from many of CFLEs over the years. I knew that if there is any new perspective I can provide, it will be based on my own experiences as an assessment coordinator, associate professor, program coordinator, and adjunct faculty member. I have personally experienced some of the challenges we can face in reaching out to colleagues for feedback, adjusting programs to meet criteria, maintaining the changes made, and disseminating information gathered to those who might not be familiar with the department or CFLE. These experiences will likely influence many future discussions that will be held about the APR process, but one change that has already occurred is simplifying our application process. Thanks to the support of NCFR staff, we have developed and piloted a fully online submission process for programs seeking renewal. We are in the process of doing the same for programs seeking first-time approval. I hope this is one step toward simplifying and improving our process, but I look forward to continuing the discussion around what else we can do.

I want to conclude by asking for your support. My own experiences obviously do not include the diverse perspectives we have within our organization. I hope that you learn that I am a listener who appreciates feedback I receive. I cannot promise that all recommendations will be acted on, but I assure you that all will be taken seriously.

I also want to specifically reach out to those who are not working in academic settings to share how the education of our students can be improved. Without hearing from those working in various helping professions and contexts and making sure that their expert advice is included in our review and approval process, we would be doing a disservice to our students.

If I have kept your attention to this point, I would like to make one last request for assistance. There is no way we can improve our process without the support of our APR Review Committee. This group of individuals not only provides feedback on CFLE-approved programs but also improves the support that we provide to current and future CFLEs. If you are interested in learning more about a position on the APR Review Committee, please contact me or Dawn Cassidy for more information.

I am excited to start this adventure and work with our programs to guide the next generation of CFLEs. I look forward to meeting and speaking with more CFLEs and NCFR members to learn how we can become even stronger as educators.