Higher Learning Commission Improves Efficiency Across Accreditation Processes

Accrediting a college or university isn’t a one-time event. It’s a continuous process that spans years and generates extensive documentation at every step, including evaluation reports, institutional filings, compliance materials and records.

For the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), an institutional accreditor that works with approximately 1,000 institutions to evaluate all aspects of their offerings and operations, managing this volume of records is essential to ensuring quality and accountability across higher education. HLC depends on accurate documentation and timely access to information.

“Behind every accredited college or university is a decade-long trail of documentation,” said Jon Davenport, CIO at HLC. “From initial evaluations to ongoing compliance reviews, we have hundreds of thousands of documents tied to institutions.”

Each institution’s accreditation cycle involves multiple review points and hundreds of associated documents. Over time, HLC digitized many records and relied on a legacy document management system. But as the organization grew, that system couldn’t effectively manage the volume and diversity of document types. Search functionality was inconsistent and slow. And retrieving records for accreditation reviews took valuable time.

Much of this work began in Salesforce, where staff manage institution data and track accreditation activity. However, accessing supporting documentation required switching systems and manually searching for records, adding friction to everyday workflows.

At the same time, retention processes relied on manual tracking. This created compliance challenges and increased the risk of human error.

HLC set out to find a more capable and scalable platform. To ensure the solution met both technical and day-to-day needs, HLC involved stakeholders across departments such as records management, IT, legal and regulatory affairs, human resources and accreditation operations in the selection process.

Joan Mitchanis played a key role in evaluating potential solutions and ensuring the platform could support HLC’s long-term records management requirements. “We needed a system that was built for content and records management,” said HLC’s records manager. “Retention, security and the ability to manage information over the long term were all critical considerations for us.”

Working with Laserfiche solution provider Modified Logic, HLC migrated hundreds of thousands of documents into a centralized repository. The team approached the project with careful planning, focusing on maintaining user familiarity while improving structure and performance.

The migration prioritized:

This approach enabled a smooth transition and laid the foundation for continued growth and innovation.

HLC quickly saw improvements across daily operations, particularly in how staff access and work with information. Teams can now search within documents, quickly locate key details and manage large volumes of records with greater ease. Combined with automation and system integrations, these changes reduce manual work, improve consistency and lower the risk of human error.

With a strong foundation in place, HLC continues to expand its use of Laserfiche. The organization created a governance group to prioritize new initiatives and evaluate opportunities for automation and process improvement. Future plans include expanding workflow automation, increasing use of Laserfiche Forms, enhancing integrations with internal systems and exploring AI capabilities. “Laserfiche helps us do our job better every day,” said Davenport. “It directly supports our mission of ensuring quality in higher education.”