Most assessment, accreditation, and IE directors didn’t set out to be in their roles. Typically the jobs were filled by organized faculty and staff with a true desire to understand and improve their institution. Happily this important field is growing, and is filled with people like YOU. While yes, assessment and accreditation do “check some […]
CAS for Regional Accreditation: 3 Tips To Leverage
The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) has promoted standards in student affairs, student services, and student development programs for over 20 years.CAS helps you create a culture of assessment while preparing you for regional accreditation. Your institution can leverage CAS to ensure an excellent review by using its program to focus on mission fulfillment, collect constructive data, and enact quality action plans for improvement.
Effects of COVID-19 on Accreditation: Accreditor Interview
Recently Weave convened a group of accreditors to talk about the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic on accreditation site visits. The five panelists shared their experiences so far, and discussed future planning for virtual and hybrid site-visits.
Program Review 101
Decades ago, setting up annual assessment plans to assess student learning outcomes was the focus of much of our work. As we move forward, we recognize the potential value of stepping back from that annual cycle to take a broader look at program effectiveness. It’s the view from 10,000 feet so to speak, and it allows us to take a less iterative look at how programs contribute to the overall mission of the school, as well as how students learn both inside and outside of the classroom.
Accreditation and Assessment Resources When the Unexpected Happens
If there’s anything the last two years have taught us, it is to expect changes and be flexible. But how has this played out in more rigid institutions, like higher education assessment? To help give some insight, we reviewed accrediting sites and interviewed Dr. Tisha Paredes, the Assistant Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment at Old Dominion University.
A Review: Accreditation Struggle to Success
Are you involved in accreditation success for your institution? Wish you could hear from someone who’s been there? We talked with colleagues from three Texas community colleges about their accreditation struggles and success stories, and their challenges, successes, and surprises are useful to anyone working on this project.
The Accreditation Process: Your 4-Year Countdown
An accreditation event is one of the most enormous yet often invisible projects an institution undertakes. It is also imperative that it be done well, and if approached in the right way can yield some inspiring change. The entire process is an opportunity to shift the culture around assessment and accreditation at your institution. Sounds daunting? It can be, if you don’t have a comprehensive plan.
Identifying and Articulating Student Learning Outcomes
When I first joined Virginia Tech, we were two years away from our ten-year reaccreditation report and I was tasked with making sure roughly 240 degree programs were in compliance with accreditation standards. Although we had a strong faculty and curriculum, many people weren’t used to setting learning outcomes and preparing for accreditation. I, of […]
When Schools Dump Their Accreditor
I recently attended several of the accreditation conferences on the Fall conference circuit and spent time learning about current trends and thinking from the perspective of both accreditors and accredited institutions and programs. It was clear that this statement is as true as it was a couple of years ago: “No one really likes accreditation […]
What is Assessment Worth?
Assessment in Higher Education Erik Gilbert’s recent article in The Chronicle, “Does Assessment Make Colleges Better? Who Knows?” and Joan Hawthorne’s response has made for very interesting conversation of late. Gilbert asserts that after all the time and resources spent on assessment, there’s little or no proof student learning has been improved, which is why the students and parents […]
