PC granted NASM status

PC has recently been granted Associate Membership in the National Association of Schools of Music, the national accrediting agency for music and music-related disciplines. PC joins only fifteen other higher education institutions in South Carolina to be granted membership.

"This confirms from an outside accreditation source that we are providing a quality education here at PC," Dr. Ron Davis, associate professor of music, said. "We meet at least the same instructional qualifications as the other members."

The process of accreditation for PC began in 2005 as the NASM began its standard procedures of reviewing the college's educational quality and institutional integrity. Dr. Porter Stokes, chair of the Department of Music, led a self-study that began in August 2005 and lasted through the spring of 2007. A team of NASM evaluators were on the PC campus in the spring of last year. They reviewed the program and the facilities, stating certain qualifications that had to be met in order for PC to be granted membership.

Over the ensuing ten months Stokes and the faculty and students in the Department of Music addressed the issues and submitted progress reports to the NASM. That last of the reports was submitted in April of this year.

Stokes said the three-year-long process resulting in NASM accreditation "is the culmination of the music department's growth." In 1998 two students at PC majored in music. Today there are 50 music majors and 30 minors. Further, beginning in the late-90's, the music department shifted its focus, offering more intense experiences for the growing number of music majors.

Stephen Humphries, who recently graduated from PC after completing the Bachelor of Arts in Music, has seen the growth first-hand.

"PC's induction to NASM is a testament to the hard work that has been going on for many past years," Humphries said. "The four years I spent in the music department gave me the opportunity to see the program grow exponentially in many aspects."

He added, "This is a confirmation and a challenge: confirmation that the PC music department has been doing the right kind of work, and also a challenge to continue to grow in providing quality education and opportunities for more student-musicians."

PC's Department of Music has the following degrees approved by NASM:

• Bachelor of Arts in Music
• Bachelor of Arts in Music with an Emphasis in Performance
• Bachelor of Arts in Music with an Emphasis in Sacred Music
• Bachelor of Science in Music Education (Vocal/ Choral and Instrumental).

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