North Idaho College releases special report to accreditor

COEUR d’ALENE — North Idaho College published a special report to its accreditor Friday, asking for reduced sanctions.

The 37-page report, which is available to read at nic.edu/keypoints, describes what progress NIC has made toward meeting specific recommendations outlined in a March 1 action letter from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. 

“The compelling evidence in this report serves as documentation that the college has earned the minimum of a reduced sanction,” the report said in part. “This move by the NWCCU would be seen as a vote of confidence in the board’s effort and encouragement for future success.” 

The commission initially sanctioned NIC with a warning April 1, 2022. The college received the show-cause sanction, the last step before loss of accreditation, Feb. 9, 2023. 

Federal regulations stipulate that NIC has until April 1, 2025, to return to good standing. If the college has not done so by that deadline, the NWCCU will be required to withdraw accreditation. 

North Idaho College’s accreditation is not in jeopardy due to problems with academics or finances, but because of governance issues on the board of trustees that stretch back to 2020. 

While operating on show-cause status, NIC has addressed several of the problems identified by the NWCCU. 

For example, the board has established that NIC has just one president, Nick Swayne, and allowed the contract of former interim president Greg South to expire. NIC has also resolved multiple lawsuits, including the Supreme Court appeal of Swayne’s reinstatement that trustees voted 4-1 to drop. 

“The board's recognition of Dr. Swayne as the sole president of NIC has helped the college in strengthening its connections with the community, particularly with the Coeur d’Alene School District,” the report said. “This has led to a rise in dual credit enrollment. With the board's backing, the college administration has focused on increasing enrollment and retaining students, which has resulted in a positive reversal of the college's declining enrollment trend that persisted for over a decade.” 

The report acknowledges that trustees must show that positive changes to board behavior and governance are real and sustainable. There are signs that the board “continues to work to rebuild from the dysfunction of the last several years,” according to the report. 

“One such indicator comes from the board chair, who has made it a practice to offer specific praise at each meeting to NIC’s devoted faculty, staff and students,” the report said. “Likewise, recent board meetings have seen a redoubled effort among the trustees to be civil to one another when discussing difficult topics. These are hopeful signs of authentic change.” 

A team from the NWCCU will visit the North Idaho College campus Oct. 14 and 15 to verify the contents of the new report. The team will meet with trustees, both individually and as a group, as well as with constituency group leaders to assess NIC’s progress. 

NIC asked its accreditor to bring the college back from the brink of accreditation loss and reduce the sanction. 

“It would be devastating to the students of NIC, to the North Idaho communities, and to the entire state of Idaho if NIC were to lose its accreditation,” the report said, pointing to NIC’s 90-year history of providing access to education. “Simply put, losing accreditation would hurt students the most. It would remove a valued community partner from the region’s educational system and would weaken the entire state.”