Despite the summer being upon us (and a hot one!), we have continued to review and approve a number of pre-applications and self-studies. In mid-August we’ll review the comments from our posting of the draft Accreditation Standards earlier in the summer. If you haven’t had a chance to make comments, you have about another week – we are soliciting and appreciate your feedback.

As we move toward one set of Accreditation Standards, we are also working on our new structure – we will share more details later this fall. Currently we are discussing possible models with our MPCAC Board and MPAC and MCAC Committees.

We are also developing a training program for site visitors. We are very interested in expanding our pool of site visitors – the number of applications really requires that we do so! A call for site visitors will be disseminated later this fall as well.

Finally, we had our first MPCAC meeting under the excellent leadership of our new MPCAC chair, Dr. Eleonora Bartoli.

Enjoy the remaining bits of summer!

Exciting times here at MPCAC! Three major changes are on the horizon.

First, MPCAC Accreditation Standards. We expect to post our revised Accreditation Standards for public comment by the end of June. We will be emailing far and wide to solicit those comments that are a critical element in our revision process. We are refining, clarifying and strengthening. Particularly noteworthy is the incorporation of measurable competencies as foundational to yield effective education and training in our accredited programs, all in the service of protecting the public. After a period of about six weeks we will review the comments and make changes as necessary and appropriate. We estimate that the Standards will be implemented toward the end of 2017, to allow accredited programs and new applicants time to incorporate appropriate modifications.

Second, MPCAC Structure. Our second change will occur over the next year as we mold our structure to fit our evolution from two sets of (nearly compatible) MPAC and MCAC standards to one MPCAC Accreditation Standards with the focus on competencies. As we move forward we will, of course, be seeking input from our accredited program directors (and department chairs). Our two overall aims are to protect the public and to provide a structure that meets our needs as an accrediting organization.

Third, MPCAC Chair. After six excellent years as our esteemed MPCAC chair, Sabina Widner is stepping down. Sabina has been extraordinary, leading us through the process of solidifying the incorporation of MCAC into MPAC with the resulting MPCAC, and now through the process of Standards revision. She is always thoughtful, patient, and level-headed; some of the transitions periods have been difficult but Sabina’s ability to find calm has resulted in our being so successful, crafting a new organization to accomplish new tasks. And, BTW, she is a lot of fun! We will miss Sabina terribly though she has agreed to stay on MPCAC for one more year in a past-chair/advisor capacity.

We are in the most fortunate position, however, as Eleonora Bartoli has agreed to become the new MPCAC chair. Many of you know Eleonora already as the chair of MCAC where she has demonstrated that she is well organized, focused and will be excellent at continuing our forward movement! With Sabina as her backup Eleonora will slide easily into this new role. Congratulations to Eleonora! We continue to stand together to accomplish the work necessary to have outstanding programs for those seeking master’s degrees in counseling and psychology.

We are delighted to announce that two more programs have MPCAC accreditation: Columbia Teachers College in New York City and Towson University in Baltimore. We have several site visits scheduled in the coming months and a number of programs completing their self-studies.

Our current structure includes the Council (MPCAC) and two Committees (MCAC and MPAC); each of the Committees has seven members. The Council comprises three members from each Committee and one public member. Each meets once a month via conference call and the Executive Director (Pat O’Connor) participates in each meeting ex officio. Our Executive Assistant (Kim Yetto) takes minutes at each of the meetings. There is an annual MPCAC meeting each January which all MCAC and MPAC members attend.

The primary focus of MPCAC, other than accrediting programs, remains on the revision of the MPCAC Standards. MPCAC members recently provided in-depth feedback at our annual MPCAC meeting and we have a (potentially) final draft version which will be sent out to the directors of our accredited programs in the next couple of weeks. We look forward to your comments and suggestions.

Finally, at the annual MPCAC meeting we discussed our annual fee structure. We are committed to keeping our fees as low as possible in the context of maintaining a vibrant and growing organization. To that end, we have decided to simplify to a single annual fee of $300 per year. This is an increase for some programs and a decrease for others, specifically those with tracks or concentrations or specializations for which we were requiring an additional fee. Now we will have a flat fee of $300 per degree program.

We all anxiously await spring!!

Keeping You In The MPCAC Loop

It’s an exciting time for MPCAC! And we want to keep you in the loop so we are starting a monthly blog. We will post this on our website each month and send it to you through our listserv. As some of you have suggested, we want to keep you informed about MPCAC. This month will be a bit longer as we get started ….

CURRENT STATUS
We have 40 accredited programs at 34 institutions across 20 states. We have 7 programs in progress and over 15 recent pre-applications.

STATUS OF CHEA RECOGNITION
We are working toward seeking CHEA recognition, though CHEA has a moratorium on new applications until early 2017 while they undergo revisions of their standards. We are in touch with Tom Cornacchia (VP at CHEA) and our consultant, Dr. Susan Zlotlow, as we move forward so we are ready to GO when we get the green light!

ATTENDANCE AT AASCB CONFERENCE
Three of us (Eleonora Bartoli, chair of MCAC, Chris Walter, Member of MCAC, and Pat O’Connor, executive director) attended the AASCB (American Association of State Counseling Boards – these are the folks who actually license counselors in their respective states) conference in January. We were able to speak and network with licensing board representatives from across the country. MPCAC is an organizational affiliate of AASCB which enabled us to attend the business meetings and report on our activities. As one of the (four) conference sponsors, we were the hosts of the Award Tea. In that capacity, our name was prominently displayed in the conference program schedule, on advertisement material outside of the main hall, as well as projected on a PPT during some of the plenary sessions and business meetings. We were able to meet privately with the AASCB executive board (together with a number of allies) to discuss MPCAC’s added value to the counseling field and counseling accreditation landscape. Finally, we staffed an exhibit table, which gave us much visibility and which experienced much traffic.

STANDARDS REVISION – IN PROCESS
Probably most important is that MPCAC is in the process of standard revision, in accordance with our Manual. We are moving towards a competency-based (inspired by current trends in the field and as required by CHEA) and a unified set of standards (integrating the original MPAC and MCAC standards). Most of our accredited programs participated in town hall conference calls so we could get your feedback on our work up to that point. We will be sending out the draft standards shortly, seeking comments from you as our primary audience, and your feedback may lead to further revisions. We plan to seek broader public comments later this spring, from you and other stakeholders nationwide. The public comment period will be widely publicized. We plan to finalize the new standards early this summer, after the public comments period is closed.

SITE VISITOR TRAINING – IN PLANNING STAGES
MPCAC is also in the process of creating a training program for additional site visitors, which we plan to develop in the next few months. More information will be disseminated when the training becomes available.

WEBSITE REDESIGN – IN PROCESS
We are also in the process of re-designing our website, in both structure and content. We expect that process to take a few months.

We welcome questions and offer our support in the application process!