By Daniel P. Tapaoan, Jr. 

In another boost to academic excellence, the Mariano Marcos State University - Laoag campus obtained the Institutional Accreditation (IA) Level II bestowed by the Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges and Universities in the Philippines (AACCUP), Inc. 

A plaque of recognition was received by Prof. Reynold Villacillo, MMSU director for quality assurance, during the 36th AACCUP National Conference and General Assembly held on March 27-29 at the Century Park Hotel in Manila. Prof. Villacillo was joined by Dr. Errol John Valdez, university chief for institutional accreditation; Dr. Lawrence Eclarin, chief for programs accreditation; Dr. Michelle Reynera, chief for international accreditation; and Dr. Ryan Samuel Ramos, internal accreditor. 

In 2022, a team of AACCUP accreditors assessed the College of Teacher Education, College of Industrial Technology, and the Graduate School of the MMSU Laoag campus. These colleges were evaluated in terms of governance and management; teaching, learning and evaluation; faculty and staff; research; extension, consultancy and linkages; support to students; library; infrastructure and other learning resources; and, quality assurance culture.

MMSU President Shirley C. Agrupis congratulated the faculty and staff of the Laoag campus, and the university administrators for the new achievement, and thanked them for their commitment in championing quality and excellence in higher education.

In 2021, the MMSU Batac campus achieved the IA Level III, and received four big awards from the agency: Top 4 in the Highest Percentage of Accredited Programs over the total accreditable programs from 1992-2019; Top 3 in the Highest Number of Level III Accredited Programs in 2019; Top 3 in the Most Improved Internal Quality Assurance Unit in 2019; and Top 5 in the Highest Number of Level III Accredited Programs in 2020. (HLY/JVBT, StratCom)