OAPRAA Team

Eric Cummings, Director Email

Please contact Eric for questions related to institutional accreditation (SACSCOC), approvals for new programs, substantive changes to programs, or program closures, as well as questions about support OAPRAA provides for programmatic or administrative unit assessment and external reviews.

Eric Cummings, Ph.D. is the inaugural Director of the Office of Academic Program Review, Assessment, and Accreditation (OAPRAA), and is Vanderbilt University’s SACSCOC Institutional Liaison. Prior to Vanderbilt, Eric was Professor of Education at Cumberland University, where he spent 14 years on the faculty and served nine years as Dean of the School of Humanities, Education, and the Arts. He has worked on joint CAEP/TN Department of Education approval teams, been a consultant for several types of institutions across the Southeast on SACSCOC accreditation, and served on several SACSCOC on- and off-site visits. At Cumberland, he helped lead multiple SACSCOC reviews, spearheaded a successful initial programmatic accreditation effort, and taught graduate and undergraduate courses in educator preparation programs and in research design. 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

Matthew Sinclair, Solutions Manager Email

Please contact Matthew for all questions related to assessment of academic programs, student support units, and administrative units, and for any questions about or assistance with software systems used by OAPRAA and/or the Office of Faculty Affairs and Professional Education.

Matthew Sinclair, M.Ed. first joined Vanderbilt in the Office of Residential Education as an Area Coordinator in early 2013, serving as an Assistant Director for Residential Education, Senior Coordinator for Assessment & Special Projects in the Division of the Dean of Students, and Assessment Consultant in the Office for Data and Strategic Analytics. Leveraging his expertise in matching systems with unit needs to provide solutions, as well as in assessment, analytics, and survey design and administration, he serves as the Solutions Manager for OAPRAA. In this role he supports Vanderbilt’s overall assessment efforts, particularly related to accreditation and compliance with other regulatory agencies’ policies and standards. 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.

Talia Kolikant, Program Coordinator Email

Please contact Talia to learn about support OAPRAA offers for academic program review, assessment, and accreditation, questions related to PCCAP meetings and proposals, as well as scheduling for OAPRAA and project management.

Talia Kolikant joined OAPRAA as a Program Coordinator in 2023. After earning a BA in Economics from New Mexico State University, Miss Kolikant spent several years in both the private sector, including Granite Communications and Toyota Research Institute, and higher education, acting in research and senior administrative capacities. She moved from Boston to Nashville to support OAPRAA and Vanderbilt University with her skills and experience in data collection & analysis, technical writing, and project management.