Board grants full accreditation to Tri County Technology Center's distance practical nursing program

Agency accreditation staff recommended full accreditation for Tri County Technology Center's practical nursing distance-education program after an on-site approval visit. Andrew Beyer, accreditation coordinator, outlined the DE (distance education) approval process and the standards the agency uses to assess program integrity, technology, instruction, student support, skill assessment and program effectiveness. Beyer said examiners interviewed administrators and staff, observed demonstrations of the DE platform, and will follow up with a midyear review to verify attendance tracking and program quality.

Beyer told the board that the program approval examiner team found the Tri County program met the standards and recommended full accreditation; Tara Gotwalt of Tri County thanked the team and described extensive work to implement the DE model. Board members asked about scoring variability among reviewers and whether the approach could scale to meet nursing workforce shortages. Agency staff noted that distance education in a clock-hour system is difficult and must preserve verifiable attendance and supervised skills assessment; though expansion is possible, certain clinical and competency requirements create limits.

A motion to grant full accreditation was made and approved by the board. Agency staff said they will report back if midyear review findings require changes.