The demand for public accountability in U.S. higher education has risen since the beginning of the 20th century. To meet these expectations, colleges and universities undergo institutional accreditation reviews to ensure they meet accountability and quality assurance requirements. This increased focus on institutional accreditation has prompted a greater need for accreditation professionals who can address the external requirements placed on their postsecondary educational institutions. To better understand what is needed for accreditation specialists to be successful in their role, this study sought to explore the experiences of Institutional Accreditation Liaisons (IALs) at SACSCOC-accredited colleges and universities. Specifically, the research questions explored the challenges and strategies for overcoming the obstacles that 12 IALs underwent when recently leading their institutions through the decennial accreditation review known as reaffirmation of accreditation. The data revealed three categories of challenges: faculty and administrators' resistance to assessment; faculty and administrators' lack of awareness of accreditation standards; and IALs' feelings of high levels of stress during this accreditation process. The four strategies noted for surmounting these challenges include building relationships with stakeholders, providing professional development for institutional constituents, engaging in shared governance, and undertaking personal stress-management practices. Overall, this study seeks to contribute additional knowledge and insights for how IALs can perform more effective institutional accreditation practices within the higher education environment. The results should prove useful to senior higher education administrators, accrediting agency leaders, and current and prospective IALs by adding to their understanding of what is needed for one in this role to manage the reaffirmation of accreditation process. Lastly, by exploring the experiences of IALs, this study's findings present an understanding of the types of challenges these professionals face when shepherding reaffirmations of accreditation and recommendations for improvement. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]