Higher Learning Commission

Accreditation has never been much of a mystery for Andrew T. Bolger, who discovered from an early age – thanks to his father, HLC Peer Reviewer and Team Chair Eric Bolger – that an assurance argument can have meaning and value.  

The younger Bolger, a dean and professor at College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri, recently took the advice of his father, a Vice President for Academic Affairs and also a dean at College of the Ozarks, by joining the HLC Peer Corps as a new peer reviewer.  One of the younger Bolger’s aims is to build a toolkit, much like his father has done, that he hopes can be a guidepost for success as both a higher education leader and an accreditation expert.  

When and how did you first learn about accreditation?  

As a child, my father coordinated and wrote several self-studies now called assurance arguments. At that time, I didn’t realize how comprehensive and critical his work was. I simply remember him working diligently on it for a long time. This memory is probably my first memory of accreditation. Now, as a 13-year employee of an HLC-accredited institution, I see just how comprehensive and critical the work is for all we strive to do as higher ed leaders. 

How do you explain your work with HLC to people who aren’t familiar with accreditation, in 10 words or less?  

I’d probably describe it this way: HLC ensures the programs and processes that encourage institutional sustainability. 

Why did you want to get involved with HLC?  

As a higher ed administrator, accreditation plays a significant role in how and why we make decisions. Thus, understanding the grammar and syntax of accreditation and the processes that shape the accreditation process allows me to speak more thoughtfully in my own context.  At the end of this process, I hope to have a more fully-formed higher education and accreditation toolkit that can serve me and the institution(s) where I may work well. 

How important was your father’s experience in higher education and as an HLC peer reviewer in your deciding to get involved?  

My father’s positive experience in higher education and as an HLC peer reviewer, and now chair, shaped my desire to apply to the Peer Corps. For the last five years, he has encouraged me to apply for the Peer Corps because his work as a peer reviewer offered him a practical higher education toolkit that informed many of his decisions as a vice president for academic affairs. The Peer Corps also helped shape his awareness of the various models and frameworks that shape higher education. This new learning has strengthened his leadership and service, and I am hoping my work as an HLC peer reviewer also will strengthen my own leadership and service. 

What aspects of your background do you think will be particularly helpful in your work as a new peer reviewer with HLC?  

Four things in my background and current context will be beneficial as a new peer reviewer: 

• I work in an incredibly distinct institution with a strong missional awareness and focus on the students it’s intended to serve. This background is helpful because it assists me in grappling with the plurality of distinct institutional missions and the students they were developed to serve. 

• I had the opportunity, beginning in 2015, to shepherd our institutional quality initiative at the institution where I work. This experience gave me a special appreciation for HLC’s desire to partner with institutions in ways that are consistent with their mission to continue to mature and develop. It also gave me operational experience in executing an institutional quality initiative and the reporting that accompanies it. 

• My educational background will also be beneficial because of the content and toolkits I have developed. I have a Ph.D. in Higher Education with a workforce policy focus, an M.B.A., a Master’s in Divinity and Bachelor of Arts degrees. This combination offers me a variety of tools (e.g., higher education and workforce policy toolkits, higher education administration toolkits, business strategy and finance toolkits, religious institutions’ toolkits, etc.) 

• Finally, each degree I earned occurred in a different modality, including residential four-year, hybrid learning, and entirely online. These educational experiences will help me to empathize with the experiences of both students and employees at institutions where I may serve during my career. 

What have you learned in HLC’s recent training for new peer reviewers that can be beneficial to you and others? 

In our most recent training, I was reminded of how dynamic the higher education landscape is and how diverse the institutions HLC serves remain. Often, as an administrator at a college, it is easy to become insulated from others' experiences. Participating in the training reoriented me to distinct and different challenges and opportunities each institution of higher education faces in its context. Truly, this awareness has been a gift. 

How will you find the time to volunteer with HLC?  

My institution, College of the Ozarks, has been and is incredibly supportive of both my and my father’s work with HLC. Institutionally, leaders have found benefits and opportunities in this partnership, and I am thankful to work at such an extraordinary and distinct institution. 

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? 

As a kid, I wanted to be an archaeologist and study dinosaurs and other Ice Age creatures. 

What is your greatest career or life achievement so far?  

My greatest achievement thus far is getting married to my wife, Connie, and having three wonderful daughters, ages 10, 8, and 6 years old. They are a gift, and I love playing with them at home. 

What’s your favorite part of being a member of the HLC community?  

Thus far, my favorite part has been the opportunity to break out into the smaller peer reviewer working and discussion groups and to be able to learn about others’ institutions and their work.