The paperwork alone can bury you. Nursing education accreditation — particularly through internationally recognised bodies — is a gruelling, years-long undertaking that defeats institutions with far more resources than a single determined professor. Dr. Jordan Tovera Salvador knows this firsthand. He has done it twice, across two different accrediting systems, in a country that is not his own.
A Filipino nurse educator based in Dammam in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Region, Dr. Salvador currently serves as assistant vice-dean for development and community partnership, chairperson of the Quality Assurance and Accreditation Unit, and assistant professor of nursing education at the College of Nursing, Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University. The titles are a mouthful. The story behind them is longer.
From first accreditation to full reaccreditation
Twelve years ago, Dr. Salvador was among the few who pushed for the college’s very first formal accreditation — a milestone that, at the time, had no precedent within the institution. He was the only Filipino professor in the room when it happened. “Marking my 12 years in the college had given me respect and recognition for all my contributions,” he said, “especially in the quality assurance and accreditation journeys, which provided a good reputation for the college as one of the best in nursing education.”
That foundation proved durable. This year, the College of Nursing secured reaccreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, or ACEN — a US-based, non-governmental, non-profit body recognised by both the US Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. The reaccreditation, covering both undergraduate and bridging programmes, runs from Fall 2025 to Fall 2033. The college is now among a small number of universities in the kingdom to hold this status.
A parallel accreditation front
The ACEN achievement does not stand alone. Simultaneously, the college earned full re-accreditation under Saudi Arabia’s National Commission for Academic Accreditation and Evaluation, known as the NCAAA — the kingdom’s primary body overseeing post-secondary academic quality. That accreditation runs from 2024 to 2029. Dr. Salvador was a key figure in both processes, navigating the distinct requirements of an international certification body and a national regulatory one at the same time.
Recognition built over years, not overnight
In 2025, Dr. Salvador received the Star Icon Award for Excellence in Nursing Leadership and Education — an acknowledgement that arrived after more than a decade of quiet, consistent work. His contribution to the college’s standing has less to do with a single achievement than with the cumulative weight of showing up for every standards review, every documentation requirement, every cycle of evaluation that most people find exhausting.
