A Heartfelt Thank You for your Participation in WSCUC

Dear WesternU Community, Trustees, Administrators, Faculty, Staff, and Student leaders,

I write with immense gratitude and deep pride to acknowledge the extraordinary work that made the WesternU – WSCUC Site Visit such a meaningful, productive, and successful milestone visit for our university.

Over the past year, and especially in the final weeks leading up to the visit, the university community demonstrated exceptional professionalism, extraordinary skill, exemplary teamwork, and unwavering dedication to WesternU’s mission. The quality of the preparation, the integrity of the process, and the outstanding execution during the visit itself reflected the very best of our institution. Your thoughtful collaboration and steadfast commitment were on full display, and I offer my sincere thanks to each one of you.

Accreditation, when approached with seriousness and purpose, does far more than confirm compliance. It brings a university together. It calls upon us to reflect deeply on who we are, what we value, and how we continuously strive to do better for our students, our communities, and the future of healthcare. Throughout this 2026 WSCUC site visit process, I have had the privilege of witnessing that spirit of collective purpose come alive across our campuses in powerful and inspiring ways.

I am so proud of this WesternU community. Thank you for devoting countless hours, deep expertise, and a genuine heart to this effort. The resilience, discipline, pride, and excellence demonstrated truly represent the very best of WesternU.

To our esteemed Trustee team, who made the journey to the Pomona and Lebanon campuses and participated in meetings with the WSCUC visiting team both in person and via video, I wish to convey my immense gratitude. Thank you for your time, presence, and commitment.

I wish to offer special appreciation to Dr. Siegel who quietly ensured the integrity, clarity, and strength of our data, reports, and institutional presentation. Your efforts were foundational to the success of this visit.

I also wish to recognize Dr. Henson for his exceptional leadership, mission-driven vision, and the extensive training sessions that prepared our community to engage with the visiting team in a thoughtful, confident, and reflective manner. Your steady guidance helped shape this process from beginning to end and set the tone for a successful outcome.

A special thanks to Dr. Crone, and the entire Provost team for guiding and building the Office of the Provost from a group of 4 members to over 20 strong, with the exceptional expertise and band width to implement the academic vision for the institution, and to seamlessly and effectively prepared/provided the data required by the WSCUC visiting team.

Gratitude to Josh McFarlen, and the entire Finance Office team, Dr. Cornish and the Institutional Shared Services team, Dr. Bowlin, Sil Han, and the Office of Human Resources, Shelby and the compliance team, and Simone Miller and the Legal team, and other members of the university executive operation team, for your highly valued input and support in this critical process.

My heartfelt thanks also extend to the Office of the President, Jill, Angie, Selina, Steve, Danny, and Josh, for your unwavering support, flexibility, responsiveness, partnership, and hospitality throughout this process. Your presence was invaluable.

A special expression of gratitude to our faculty at large, Academic Senate, Staff, and Staff Council, Deans, and Dean’s Council, Students, and Student Government representatives, for the extraordinary and valued commitment to the critical accreditation process and for the highly valued input offered.

Having participated in many accreditation outcomes over the decades at varied universities, I view the recommendations in this report as a testament to the extraordinary progress, maturation, and positive changes underway at WesternU. The recommendations affirm that we are on the correct path forward. In many instances, we have already enacted changes; in others, we are actively implementing processes in real time that align with the recommendations received. This affirms the strength of our trajectory as we continue to mature, strengthen, and elevate our university.

The visiting team’s commendations are especially affirming. WesternU was recognized for its strong mission focus, humanistic and student-centered culture, impressive clinical and simulation capabilities, interdisciplinary educational model, meaningful community engagement, growing financial diversification, and robust budgeting processes. These commendations reflect the values we hold dear and the disciplined work of so many across our institution.

At the same time, the recommendations offered by the review team provide a constructive roadmap for continued institutional strengthening in areas such as shared governance, policy operationalization, institutional research, assessment, compensation equity, and infrastructure investment. We embrace this guidance with seriousness, confidence, and optimism, knowing that this work is already underway and aligned with our commitment to continuous improvement.

Moments such as this remind us that WesternU’s greatest strength is, and always will be, its stakeholders, aligned to support and educate our cherished students. When we come together with shared purpose, mutual respect, thoughtful preparation, and a commitment to excellence, we elevate the entire institution.

Bravo to each one of you. Thank you for your extraordinary work, your dedication, and your belief in the mission of WesternU. I firmly believe that the whole is far greater than the sum of the parts. I am deeply grateful, and I am honored to serve alongside such an exceptional team.

With my deepest appreciation and warmest regards,

Robin Farias-Eisner, MD, PhD, MBA
President

I wish to share a summary of the WSCUC Commendations and Recommendations for your review. The WSCUC convention is to provide 6 Commendations and 6 Recommendations for a university site visit.

Key Commendations for WesternU

WesternU earned praise for its strong mission focus, student-centered culture, clinical capabilities, community engagement, financial strategy, and budget processes.

1. Mission-driven humanism and student-oriented culture praised
2. The student-led first patient ceremonies highlight respect for human life and ethical values. Faculty and staff show strong commitment to professionalism, academic rigor, and student feedback. Support services like the LEAD Program and Disability Center create an integrated learning environment.
3. Interdisciplinary and team-based learning enhances clinical preparedness and student success. Clinical simulation and skills labs noted as exemplary. Both campuses feature state-of-the-art clinical simulation spaces and equipment. Curricula link closely with hands-on pedagogy starting from the first year. These facilities support practical learning essential for clinical readiness.
4. Community engagement and financial diversification recognized. The PALS program in Lebanon, Oregon, blends student learning with community service.
5. Efforts to reduce tuition reliance include growing philanthropic revenue and investment returns.
6. Robust budgeting involves broad stakeholder collaboration focused on data-driven goals.

Recommendations for Institutional Strengthening

The review team suggested six key areas where WesternU should focus efforts to enhance governance, policy execution, research, assessment, compensation, and infrastructure.

1. Refine shared governance structures and processes. Develop clear, documented roles and timelines to avoid duplication. Ensure inclusive decision-making with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and trustees. Create mechanisms to document and communicate governance decisions transparently. Align governance with strategic goals, linking decisions to outcomes like patient care or academic quality.
2. Formalize and operationalize decision-making policies. Assign clear ownership for policy implementation and standard operating procedures. Establish periodic reviews to maintain consistent execution and compliance.
3. Strengthen institutional research and data coordination. Broaden the scope of research to support data-informed decisions across the institution. Improve coordination between research and other institutional functions.
4. Enhance institutional assessment practices. Increase capacity of assessment leaders to move beyond compliance to actionable insights. Adopt realistic assessment schedules, such as focusing on one institutional learning outcome per year. Standardize “closing the loop” reports to highlight changes driven by assessment results. Align assessment tools to support coherent data integration and accountability.
5. Advance compensation plans to address market equity. Continue evolving staff compensation to improve retention and job satisfaction.
6. Invest in existing infrastructure alongside growth. Prioritize funding to address deferred maintenance on current assets.