Restructured Journalism School At CU Granted Full Reaccreditation

BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4) - The journalism program at the University of Colorado has now come full circle. Six years after the Board of Regents voted to close the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, the new, restructured program has been granted full reaccreditation.

"It is extremely gratifying to receive such a strong affirmation of the new directions we've taken in the college," said Paul Voakes, the chair of the new Department of Journalism.

At the time the journalism program was discontinued, the regents called on the university to create a new program geared toward the future of communication. In June 2014, the regents approved the creation of the College of Media, Communication and Information – the first new college on the Boulder campus in more than 50 years.

The next big step came about a year later, when Lori Bergen was selected as the first dean of the new college. Bergen had been the dean of the College of Communication at Marquette University. A press release from the university states, "Bergen was hired to open the new college with a vision of establishing a new standard for teaching and scholarship in communication, media and information."

The Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication visited the new Department of Journalism earlier this year, and Friday voted
unanimously in favor of reaccreditation. Council member Peter Bhatia said, "Reinventing a program is always incredibly difficult and CU Boulder has come a huge distance in a very short time."

CBS4 News Director Tim Wieland is on the Advisory Board for the new journalism program at the University of Colorado. "This is an important day for journalism in Colorado," Wieland said. "Now more than ever, we need great journalists trained to provide fair, accurate, ethical reporting – who can also navigate constantly changing technologies and platforms. The new Department of Journalism in the CMCI is teaching students the skills they will need to be professional journalists today and in the years ahead."