LTCC Earns Full Accreditation Reaffirmation
January 23, 2025
LTCC Receives Seven-Year Accreditation and Earns High Praise for Strategic Planning & Program Evaluation as well as Resource Generation & Allocation.
Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) has been awarded full reaffirmation of its accreditation for the next seven years by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). This distinction reflects the dedication, innovation, and excellence of LTCC’s leadership, staff, and faculty in meeting and exceeding the Commission’s thorough standards.
A Decade of Progress and Recognition
This 2025 reaffirmation of accreditation is LTCC’s second consecutive unconditional
reaffirmation (each cycle of accreditation review is now seven years—LTCC’s last reaffirmation
was conferred in 2018). The achievement is particularly significant given LTCC’s growth
and progress over the past decade. In 2012, the College received five recommendations
for improvement from the Commission. Today, LTCC not only meets the ACCJC’s standards
but also received a specific commendation for its strong institutional planning and
resource alignment practices.
ACCJC accreditation is a rigorous process that ensures colleges meet high standards
for quality, accountability, and continuous improvement. LTCC submitted a comprehensive
institutional self-evaluation with robust evidence documentation in December 2023,
responded to follow-up inquiries from the ACCJC team from March to August 2024, and
then finally hosted a five-member peer review team for an on-site visit in October
2024. Through this demanding internal and external evaluation process, LTCC demonstrated
full compliance with ACCJC’s standards.
Commendation for Strategic Planning and Leadership
The ACCJC’s commendation states: "The Commission commends the College for its broad-based, comprehensive, and continuous engagement in strategic institutional planning and evidence-based annual evaluation, referred to as 'progress updates,' that demonstrates quantitative and qualitative progress on the achievement of its goals and the institution’s effectiveness with resource generation and prioritized allocations. This process of integrated planning, resource allocation, and evaluation, with effective and systematic communication, appears to have undergirded the college’s exceptional and ongoing momentum in securing resources and implementing programs and initiatives that have resulted in strong mission advancement."
“Due, in part, to long-term consistency in Board membership and college presidency (current Superintendent-President Jeff DeFranco was hired in 2017 as the fifth permanent president during the college’s 50 years of service), LTCC has a long list of significant accomplishments in terms of program development, facilities improvements, and revenue generation that has supported numerous institutional achievements,” states the report.
What does this mean for LTCC?
The College’s accreditation was reaffirmed without any compliance requirements or recommendations for improvement. The review highlighted the College’s forward-thinking initiatives. Full reaffirmation ensures that LTCC remains eligible for federal funding, including financial aid programs, and that credits earned by students are widely recognized and transferable to other institutions.
To learn more, visit the LTCC Accreditation page.