OAPRAA Team
Eric Cummings, Director Email
Dr. Eric Cummings has been hired as the inaugural Director of the Office of Academic Program Review, Assessment, and Accreditation (OAPRAA), and has taken on the role of SACSCOC Institutional Liaison for Vanderbilt. Dr. Cummings spent the last 14 years at Cumberland University where he was most recently Dean of the School of Humanities, Education, and the Arts; and Professor of Education. At Cumberland, Dr. Cummings taught in the educator preparation programs at the graduate and undergraduate level, as well as freshman first-year experience classes, and in the Master of Science in Public Administration program. He helped lead Cumberland through multiple SACSCOC reviews, worked with joint CAEP/TN Department of Education approval, led their initial educator programs accreditation effort, and has been a consultant for several types of institutions across the Southeast on SACSCOC reaffirmation work. In a previous life, Eric was an instructor at the North Carolina Outward Bound School. He, his wife, and three children have lived in Nashville since 2007.
Office: 615-343-1453
Jie Zhang, Assistant Director Email
Dr. Jie Zhang serves as the Assistant Director of the Office of Academic Program Review, Assessment, and Accreditation (OAPRAA). She joins us from Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey, where she served as the Assistant Director for Assessment. She has expertise working with the Middle States regional accrediting agency as well as ABET and AACSB. She has experience in assessment, surveys, program evaluation, and institutional research at multiple universities, including the University of Connecticut, Baylor, and the University of Missouri. She holds a PhD in Higher Education from Missouri, as well as degrees from universities in China, Norway, and Finland. She is excited to be bringing her experience to Vanderbilt and will be focusing on supporting schools and colleges with the program lifecycle.
Matthew Sinclair, Program Manager Email
Matthew Sinclair, M.Ed. is beginning his 9th year at Vanderbilt after having first joined the Office of Residential Education as an Area Coordinator in early 2013. Since then, he has served as an Assistant Director for Residential Education, Senior Coordinator for Assessment & Special Projects in the Division of the Dean of Students, and, most recently, as the Assessment Consultant in the Office for Data and Strategic Analytics. Leveraging his expertise in the practice of assessment, analytics, and survey design and administration, he currently serves as the Program Manager for the Office of Academic Program Review, Assessment, and Accreditation (OAPRAA), supporting Vanderbilt’s overall assessment efforts, particularly related to accreditation and compliance with other regulatory agencies’ policies and standards. Furthermore, he also serves as the liaison to the Office of Digital Education, primarily focusing on accreditation & compliance, assessment, and market research. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Andrea, and son, Warren, as they travel, boat on Nashville’s lakes, and undertake small home renovation projects.