Revised Standards Released for Registrar Services

The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) is pleased to announce the release of a revised set of standards for Registrar Services.

CAS, a consortium composed of over 40 collaborating professional associations representing over 115,000 professionals in higher education, has developed standards for 47 functional areas and 3 cross-functional teams, and rooted them in the scholarship and work conducted within their respective fields. These revised standards delineate expectations for practitioners and educators in related functional areas, and are an update to the standards published in the 2019 CAS Professional Standards for Higher Education (10th ed).

The CAS revision committee was chaired by Patricia Carretta, a retired Assistant Vice President for University Life at George Mason University and a CAS Representative from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). Carretta commented on the significance of these revised standards, noting that they “reflect and align current CAS criteria and AACRAO guidelines, and in so doing, provide a comprehensive set of standards and guidelines against which registrar officers may judge or evaluate the quality of the services they offer.”

Carretta was joined by other CAS Representatives on the multidisciplinary revision committee, including Megan Adams (CIVSA, University of Louisville), Laura Sanders (NCLCA, Valparaiso University), and Kristen Vickery (NCTA, Anne Arundel Community College). Three experts from the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) participated in the core revision team as well, helping to shape the research and practice recommendations from experts into the CAS standards. Those individuals include Brooke Holt (University of Arkansas), Robert Hornberger (Missouri State University), and Rebecca Mathern (Oregon State University).

Hornberger, Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management and Services at Missouri State University, highlighted areas of focus in the revised standards, including “the addition of new standards in assessment, leadership, management, and particularly the evolving nature of technology.” Mathern, Associate Provost and University Registrar at Oregon State University, underscored the significance of the revision as the new standards “reflect the evolution from a tightly focused record-keeping to a role of managing the delivery of services while ensuring data protection of those records.”

CAS partnered closely with a number of additional experts from AACRAO in this revision of the standards. CAS is grateful to AACRAO and this large team of experts for sharing their knowledge and expertise about the services provided by Registrars, and how they play a crucial role in the execution of an institution's educational mission and in advancing student learning, development, and success. Hornberger notes the importance of the diverse review team, commenting that the revised standards are “grounded in current research and collaboration with nine expert reviewers and three subject matter experts, representing different sizes and types of institutions.”

Significant contributors to the revised standards and contextual statement include:

-  Michael Burke, Harvard University
-  Cheryl Dobson, Missouri Southern State University
-  Jonathan Helm, Baylor University
-  Rhonda Kitch, North Dakota State University
-  Rebecca Mathern, Oregon State University
-  Audra McQuarie, University of Phoenix
-  Julia Pomerenk, University of Oregon
-  Brenda Selman, University of Missouri
-  Emily Shandley, Yale University
-  Jennifer Thorpe, Columbia College
-  Kristi Wold-McCormick, University of Colorado, Boulder

This 2019 revision of the Registrar Services standards is the third since its initial release by CAS in 1995, and the first in over a decade. Mathern commented that the new standards “reflect the diversity of the work performed by registrar services offices at all types of institutions and provide the scope and purview so that emerging leaders in the professional can gain guidance and structure from CAS.”

CAS is proud to release this revised set of standards for an important and continually evolving functional area in higher education.

The new standards for Registrar Services are now available at:
https://www.cas.edu/store_product.asp?prodid=144

An accompanying Self-Assessment Guide (SAG) is available at:
https://www.cas.edu/store_product.asp?prodid=71

Please direct all questions and inquiries about the revised standards to the CAS Executive Director ([email protected]).