Compliance on Library Standards in Accreditation of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the Province of Albay: An Assessment

The compliance of library standards in accreditation is essential in ensuring quality education and institutional excellence. Accreditation serves as a mechanism for maintaining high academic standards, with libraries playing a crucial role in fostering learning, research, and knowledge dissemination. As accreditation requirements evolve, libraries must adapt to digital transformation, enhance resource accessibility, and improve user engagement. However, libraries worldwide face challenges in meeting these standards, particularly in IT infrastructure, collection management, and staffing. The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) mandates that Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) establish libraries that adhere to specific standards to support academic programs. To achieve the research objectives, a multi-method approach combining quantitative and qualitative techniques was utilized. The respondents of the study included licensed librarians assigned to academic libraries and selected faculty members from HEIs in Albay. To enhance compliance, preparedness, and accreditation readiness of HEI libraries in Albay, a proposed Library Compliance Framework was developed. This framework follows the Plan, Do, Check, and Act (PDCA) cycle, serving as a structured guide for ensuring that library operations align with accreditation standards and institutional goals. Beneficiaries of this study include accreditation bodies, non-accredited institutions, HEI administrators, librarians, faculty, students, and policymakers, who can utilize its findings to improve library compliance and accreditation preparedness.

Library standards, library compliance, accreditation, academic libraries, library assessment, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Albay.