Since its founding in 1982, the Pennsylvania College of Art & Design has been growing both in size and academic prestige.

Begun as a small school in Marietta, it moved to North Prince Street in 1987 and began offering a bachelor of fine arts degree in 1999.

And it's just added another feather to its academic cap.

The college has earned accreditation from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

"We began this process back in 2001," says Mary Colleen Heil, the president of PCA&D. "This is the final step for us. This is the one you want to have because it's an umbrella accreditation. It looks at the entire college or university."

While the accreditation is voluntary, it tells the world that a college or university adheres to a rigorous set of standards.

Schools as diverse as Princeton, Franklin & Marshall and the Fashion Institute of Technology have earned the accreditation since it was started in 1919.

It is not easy to get.

"It was a very thoughtful and long process," says Heil. "There are 14 characteristics of excellence they look at. It covers everything from financial viability to strategic planning. Do you assess the work you're doing? Do you have proper facilities? How good is the academic program?"

And not just anyone can apply.

"You have to apply to apply," Heil explains. "Then you apply to become a candidate. Then you have to host a visit from other institutions and they will only let you become a candidate if you have a good chance to meet the requirements."

The commission asks the school to assess itself, to show how it meets the necessary criteria, how it is planning for the future.

The PCA&D began the self-study process last fall.

"Our study is about four inches thick, double-sided paper," Heil says with a laugh.

The process of gathering the information and assessing itself was a good experience for the college, according to Heil.

"For us, it reaffirmed a lot of things that we've done right," she says. "It's good because it asks everyone to take a moment and analyze, to make sure you are checking yourself against those high standards."

While the college was working on the Middle States accreditation, it was also working on accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Art & Design, which it will find out about in late April.

That meant two teams visiting the college at the same time, along with a team from the U.S. Department of Education, which was reviewing how schools get accredited.

"We were doing a lot of juggling," Heil says.

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