Accreditation

Hagerstown Community College's emergency medical services program recently received accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions. Accreditation assures students that their education experience meets rigorous standards, with national acceptance and transferability, and serves as a roadmap to future EMS practice. This ongoing review will strengthen and improve the effectiveness and the quality of instruction of HCC's program and afford the college new opportunities for clinical sites.

Broadfording Christian Academy in Hagerstown saw three years of hard work pay off when the school was awarded joint accreditation through the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and the Association of Christian Schools International. Accreditation is the affirmation that a school is providing a quality education that the education world endorses. "Accreditation is assurance to both the public and to the educational community that we have met stringent criteria for quality and integrity within our programs while developing models for continued improvement and self-evaluation," said Principal Rick Burkett.

wandaw@herald-mail.com In the final phase of its accreditation process, Hagerstown Community College received a favorable report Wednesday from the Middle States Association of Colleges, a regional accreditation board. In an hour-long summary at HCC's Kepler Theater, an eight-member team of six women and two men presented its findings on HCC's performance in meeting accreditation standards to an audience of about 100 faculty and staff members. After arriving on Sunday, the team spent Monday and Tuesday visiting with faculty, staff and community leaders prior to their release of Wednesday's report.

The Middle States Commission on Elementary Schools announced that St. Mary Catholic School in Hagerstown has been awarded accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSCES). St. Mary Catholic School is one of more than 100 schools that the commission accredited. The achievement "signifies the educational community of St. Mary Catholic School has engaged in a rigorous process of developing self-knowledge; has hosted an evaluation team of independently-appointed educators; and has created an ongoing Strategic Plan to move school improvement forward," according to a press release.

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- Last month, Vinayaka Missions University announced plans to open its first campus in the United States at the former Allegheny Energy headquarters building on Downsville Pike south of Hagerstown. Vinayaka Missions bought the building and surrounding 45-acre site last month for $8.5 million. While local elected officials and business representatives were pleased that the building had been sold after sitting vacant for several years, many said they were surprised to hear that a foreign university bought the property.

Lab receives accreditation Hagerstown Medical Lab (HML), a division of Washington County Health System, recently received accreditation for transfusion services by AABB, formerly the American Association of Blood Banks. Hagerstown Medical Lab is a full-service clinical laboratory. It is led by four board-certified pathologists who provide medical and technical support and who are available for consultation. The technical staff is comprised of 60 medical technologists and medical laboratory technicians.

City Hospital MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - City Hospital has achieved accreditation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, hospital Chief Executive Officer Jon Applebaum announced. Applebaum said City Hospital voluntarily undergoes a survey by a full team of accreditation commission experts every three years. Edward Jones The financial services firm Edward Jones has been ranked No. 1 among full-service brokers by Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, according to the firm's three Hagerstown investment representatives.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Three Jefferson County schools were named exemplary for 2006-07 by the West Virginia Board of Education, according to a press release from Jefferson County Schools. The three schools were Shepherdstown (W.Va.) Elementary School, Harpers Ferry (W.Va.) Middle School and Shepherdstown Middle School, according to the release. Seventy-four schools in West Virginia received the accreditation and will be honored at a banquet Nov. 8 in Charleston, W.Va., according to the release.

Economic Development Commission The 2013 Business & Industry Directory is now available in electronic format through the Hagerstown-Washington County Economic Development Commission's website. Assembled each year by the EDC, the directory is provided as a free source of information about the business community in Washington County and its municipalities. Businesses and industries listed in the directory include manufacturers, distributors, major employers and companies offering products or services relating to business development.

The nursing program at Hagerstown Community College was recently awarded accreditation by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission. Although HCC's nursing program has been fully accredited by the Maryland Board of Nursing since the associate degree program began in 1969 and the practical nursing program began in 2003, this is the first time officials at HCC voluntarily went through the review process for national accreditation by the accrediting organization. “This is one of the most rigorous evaluations of all nursing accreditations and we are just thrilled to have been successful in our attempt to earn accreditation,” said Karen Hammond, HCC's director of nursing.

Hagerstown Community College's dental-assisting program recently received accreditation by the Commission on Dental Accreditation, or CODA, and has been granted the accreditation status of “approval without reporting requirements.” “This accreditation is a significant step for our dental-assisting program,” said Angela Stoops, director of health sciences at HCC. “Students who graduate from an accredited program are eligible to sit for...

Mountain State University is consolidating operations at the private college's Martinsburg campus and is leaving space it recently renovated at Martinsburg Mall, administrators said Thursday. There are 67 students enrolled at the school's Martinsburg campus, which is down substantially from the spring semester when more than 100 were enrolled in the school's hybrid learning program alone, according to Martinsburg campus executive director David Shahan. There are now nine students in the hybrid learning program, Shahan said.

Hagerstown Community College's pharmacy technician program recently received one-year accreditation by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Commission on Credentialing.  HCC is one of only three accredited technician training programs in Maryland. The commission is responsible for the accreditation of pharmacy residencies and pharmacy technician training programs. This includes formulating and recommending changes in standards, assessing programs adherence to compliance of the standards, and recommending accreditation status of programs.

Hagerstown Community College's emergency medical services program recently received accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions. Accreditation assures students that their education experience meets rigorous standards, with national acceptance and transferability, and serves as a roadmap to future EMS practice. This ongoing review will strengthen and improve the effectiveness and the quality of instruction of HCC's program and afford the college new opportunities for clinical sites.

The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education has denied Mountain State University's bid for national accreditation of its undergraduate program, which includes 35 students at the Martinsburg campus, a MSU spokesman confirmed Tuesday. Mountain State University President Charles Polk informed students of the decision in an email Monday, spokesman Andrew Wessels said Tuesday. The school's undergraduate nursing program remains unaccredited nationally, but still has the authority to operate under provisional accreditation from the state nursing board, Wessels said.

Assessors will arrive on April 9 to examine whether the Hagerstown Police Department meets more than 450 standards to receive accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. Police Chief Arthur Smith said the assessors will stay for four days to scrutinize the police department on its management, operations and other duties. “They spend their time making sure we do what we say we do,” Smith said. “The last time they were here they interviewed more than half the people in the police department.

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office was one of 94 public safety agencies to be accredited last month by the Commission of Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc., according to a commission news release. Washington County Sheriff Douglas Mullendore said the accreditation took two years to obtain. “The accreditation assures that the (sheriff’s office) is using nationally accepted standards and policies,” Mullendore said. He said the accreditation could lower his agency’s insurance rate because it shows that the sheriff’s office meets national law enforcement standards.