The visiting committee has the option of including three types of findings in its report, and the entire committee is required to agree on each finding. Recommendations are made when, in the judgment of the committee, the institution is not in compliance with a particular element of the criteria. The Self-Study Report, prepared by our own study committees, included 38 recommendations, and most visiting committee reports include 25 to 30. We were justifiably pleased to learn that the exit report included only 11 recommendations. They do not address specific accreditation criteria.
Commendations underscore particularly exceptional achievement.
Visiting committee reports usually do not include more than one or two commendations, and many do not include any. In what was one of the most gratifying aspects of the exit report, our committee included 8 commendations. The University is in compliance with all the provisions of this section, including the required thirteen Conditions of Eligibility in Section 1.4. The Committee commends FGCU for an institutional self-study process that is both comprehensive and broadly participatory, producing a document that included a complete institutional analysis and critical evaluation of the university's strengths and weaknesses. The Committee suggests that the institution develop a plan for periodic review and evaluation of the purpose statement consistent with the pace of the institution's development and use the mission to guide the institution's decisions .