Guidelines for the Preparation of Year One Reports- Draft 12-1-09

Paginate differently when completed.

Shoreline Community College

[Logo goes here]

Year One Report

to the

Commission on Colleges

of the

Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges

October 2011

Table of Contents – Year One Report

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Institutional Context……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…

Preface…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Update on Institutional Changes Since Last Report …………………………………………………………..

Address Topics Requested by the Commission………………………………………………………………….

Standard One: Mission, Core Themes, Goals, and Expectations…………………………………………….……

IA.: Mission…………..…………………………………………………………..……….……………….…………..…..

1B: Core Themes………….…………………………………………………………………………………….………….

  1. Educational Attainment …………………………………………………………………………………
  2. Program Excellence ……………………………………………………………………………………….
  3. Community Engagement …………………………………………………………………………………9
  4. Access and Diversity …………………………………………………………………………
  5. College Stewardship……………………………………………………………………11

Summary ………………………………………………………..………………………………………………….16

Introduction

In accordance with the new standards adopted by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) in 2009, this Year One Report represents an analysis of the College Mission and Core Themes of Shoreline Community College (SCC). Additionally, this report identifies mission fulfillment and an acceptable threshold of mission fulfillment for the College.

Shoreline Community College is located 10 miles north of downtown Seattle. SCC is a scenic campus with 26 buildings nestled among native evergreens over 83acres as well as an extension campus 6 miles away in a mall at Lake Forest Park. SCC was established in 1964 and operates under the regulations of the State Board forCommunity and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) and is governed by the Board of Trustees of ShorelineCommunity College, District Number Seven.

After conducting a nationwide search, the Board of Trustees appointed the Interim President, Lee Lambert, as the new President for Shoreline Community College effective July 1, 2006. He is the College’s seventh president.

Accreditation History

Over its 40-year past to the present, Shoreline Community College has a history of successful compliance with its accrediting agency, the Northwest Commission on College and Universities. Following aFull-Scale Evaluation in October 2002, the College submitted a Five-Year Interim Report in 2007 with a follow-up Progress Report on one recommendation in October 2009. Previous accreditation historyincludes a Focused Interim Visit conducted in 2004, to evaluate the College’s progress on 9 recommendations stated in the October 2002 full-scale evaluation report.

Shoreline Community College was granted initial accreditation in 1966. The last full-scaleevaluation prior to the fall 2002 visit took place in 1992 with a regular interim visitoccurring in 1997. The College has submitted several requests for substantive changesand filed two progress reports that were followed by focused interim visits regardingthese substantive changes. Acknowledging the shortened time frame for completing all standards for the upcoming Full-Scale Evaluation and Visit in 2012, SCC has actively engaged the campus to address the NWCCU Standards for Accreditation. Again, the College very much appreciates this opportunity to improve our institution and measure its performance against the new standards established by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.

Current Report—this is just a filler. It probably will not be used at all.

The Chapter One report was written by the following members of the college community:

President: Lee Lambert, XXXX; Accreditation Liaison Officer: Dr. Norma W. Goldstein; Vice President for Academic Affairs: John Backes; Vice President for Student Success: Tonya Drake

Vice President for Administrative Services: Daryl Campbell; Vice President for Human Resources: Stephen P. Smith;Deans: Dr. Kenneth Lawson, Dr. Susan Hoyne, Gillian Lewis, Tom Moran, DavidCunningham; Institutional Researcher:XXXX; Faculty Members: XXXX; Directors: XXXXXX, Staff:xxxxxxx

Institutional Context – 1 page max

Themes: Disruption yet continuity and growth and development

Positive approach to students, disruption not in the classroom

In the last five years, the College has faced serious budget reductions. Last year’s budget had a 13% reduction or a total of $2.7 million in permanent cuts. The main barrier to mission fulfillment has been the College’s need to deal with its diminishing resources. We have had five (5) consecutive years of budget cuts since summer of 2005, $5.5 million or about $1.1 million per year. Nevertheless, the College and Board of Trustees have been dedicated to its mission and put it front and center in the decisions it has made.

About 60 percent of the college revenue is tied to FTEs, and we have seen an increase in student populations needing more resources. We have a hope for the best, but prepare for the worst attitude that has helped stabilize the college and prepare us for the serious setbacks in state support. The College has successfully, if not painfully, worked through two reorganizations and a rebasing. As we write this report, we are facing another major reorganization. Nevertheless, we have stable leadership and systems in place during these times of constant motion. In fact, in spite of much reduction, there have been growth and development in efficiency, sustainability, service learning and curriculum. The College has seriously taken the Core Themes to bear in its policies and objectives which reinforce a positive approach to students who are themselves faced with serious problems during the economic downturn in the State of Washington and in the nation. Using its Core Themes, SCC has attempted to address the challenges of our students and our institution to keep our focus on students’ educational fulfillment, increasing access and diversity, engagement with our community, maintaining program excellence and college stewardship of resources.

Shoreline Community College is a mission-driven institution. Our mission is codified by the Washington State Legislature in Chapter 28B.50, Section 28B.50.020 of the Revised Code of Washington which reads in part “that each college district shall offer thoroughly comprehensive educational, training and service programs to meet the needs of both the communities and students served” in the areas of “academic transfer courses;” “occupational education;” “community services;” and “adult education.” We at Shoreline Community College are very proud of the comprehensive nature of the program and course offerings in support of our communities and students.

PREFACE

Update on Institutional Changes Since Last Report

In the ten years since its last full-scale evaluation in October, 2002, Shoreline Community College has experienced dramatic campus-wide changes in administration, organization, planning, evaluation, and funding. These changes have been of such magnitude and importance that addressing the College’s current position with respect to Standard One can be adequately accomplished only in the context of those changes.

Since our Five-Year Interim Report to the Commission in 2007, the College has been rebased and reorganized twice in the throes of the economic downturn of the State of Washington. Several administrative, faculty and staff positions have been lost through restructuring and retirements and RIF.

Address Topics Requested by the Commission

Based on our 2007 Five-Year Interim Report, the College submitted a Report on Recommendation One to the Commission October 16, 2009. On XXXXX, we received a reply from the Commission that stated…..[We should get a letter of response to this report and incorporate that here.]

Chapter One – Standard One: Mission, Core Themes, and Expectations

Section I: Mission: [Three (3) pages maximum]

1a. Mission Statement

In June 2007, and subsequently in September 2009, Shoreline Community College’s Board of Trustees officially adopted and reaffirmed the College’s Strategic Plan: Engagement, Equity, Excellence and the following statements:

Vision:We will be a world-class leader in student success and community engagement.

Mission: We are dedicated to serving the educational, workforce, and cultural needs of our

diverse community.

The Strategic Plan contained eight strategic themes and directions by which the College functioned: Program Excellence; Student Success; Diversity, Equity and Access; Infrastructure and technology; Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability; Multicultural and Global Competence; Community Engagement; and Campus culture. Each following year, with input from the whole campus, both the Board and the Strategic Planning Committee reviewed and subsequently reaffirmed these themes and directions which ultimately were the basis upon which our new Policy Governance Manual and Core Themes were built. These themes, reaffirmed time and time again by the College’s constituencies, provide direction for our efforts and lead directly to our mission as an institution of higher education in the State of Washington. Mission fulfillment directly relates to how well we measure qualitatively and quantitatively and meets these themes and goals.

b. Mission Core Themes

With the College’s Vision and Mission statements in mind, in its move to Policy Governance, the Board of Trustees identified five Core Themes as key aspects of institutional mission:

[] Educational Attainment/Student Success [] Program Excellence [] Community Engagement

[] Access and Diversity and [] College Stewardship.

These themes have their roots in SCC’s Strategic Plan, the College’s statutory mission as a public community college, and represent the college’s commitment to serving the needs of its diverse community. Shoreline Community College continues to be widely recognized for its students educational attainment of their academics goals and for academic quality, offering excellent academic, workforce training programs and continuing education to meet the lifelong learning needs of its community. As a comprehensive community college, SCC offers a rich complement of transfer, professional/ technical, basic skills and continuing education programs to over 12,000 full-and part-time students each year in spite of enrollment issues for the past few years for many of the state’s two-year institutions. Shoreline’s core values permeate throughout the instructional programs and guide the college in this changing environment. These values include academic freedom, access to all students, collaboration, diversity, academic excellence, environmental responsibility, innovation, student success, and a supportive environment for students and employees and the community. These values are all embodied in our Vision and Mission statements and now in our BOT Policy Governance.

c. Definition of Fulfillment of Mission and, Within that Definition, Interpretation of an Acceptable Threshold or Extent of Mission Fulfillment.

Shoreline Community College defines fulfillment of mission by substantially meeting the objectives for its Core Themes and strategic directions. These components are integral to the College’s identity and success as a comprehensive community college. The development of our response to the new standards has helped us examine in detail through indicators, their rationales as pertinent to the core theme objectives and benchmarks established for these indicators just what mission fulfillment means for the college. For each set of indicators for an objective or goal, the College identified benchmarks of what would delineate success or mission fulfillment in a simple matrix:

CORE THEME and explication of what the Core Theme means.
Objective: What are our goals in this core theme? / Indicator: How do we measure and assess if we achieved this objective? / Rationale:Why did we choose these indicators? How will they help us achieve the objective? / Benchmark: What is an acceptable threshold of success?

For some Objectives, there are several indicators and benchmarks to get more clarity on addressing the effectiveness of achieving the objective for the Core Theme. Collectively, however, this strategy reinforces an evidence-based analysis of outcomes and goals that provide a framework to support judgments of success or mission fulfillment.

At SCC we fulfill our mission when the community can access the college’s services, activities, and educational programs and when the students complete their goals through engagement and enrichment and empowering the greater community in serving their needs. A measure of success is when the community recognizes the College as an educational and cultural center and feels part of us as a necessary component and resource of the community Another is partnering with schools, cultural organizations and businesses and industry to meet local workforce needs.

At an Accreditation Workshop May 20, 2009, administrators answered What does Mission Fulfillment look like with:

  • When we see students with disabilities serving on campus wide committees and input is valued and encouraged. (diversity)
  • Students get employed
  • Engagement of communities we serve through social, cultural and economical educational activities and programs.
  • Sufficient resources developed and devoted to meeting community needs
  • Knowing the needs of our diverse communities
  • Employers’ Satisfaction – meeting their needs
  • Helping students develop goals to determine who they are and what they want to do.

In addition, Shoreline CC is also accountable to meet its statutory responsibilities as a public agency of WA State government and thus expectations of the SBCTC and the state legislature define additional benchmarks for mission attainment, including FTE generation and compliance with all state and regulatory statutes.

d. Date and Manner of Most Recent Review of Mission and Core Themes

The most recent review of the College’s Mission and Core Themes by the entire campus was Fall 2009. Shoreline Community College has spent the last two years preparing for its Accreditation with the Commission’s new standards. Starting with the all-campus meeting of Opening Week, in September 2009, the College President Lee Lambert set the stage for the campus about the new standards and the Board’s desire to adopt policy governance—a process which instigated a thorough review of the College’s vision and mission statements.

Simultaneously, the College’s Board of Trustees (BOT) formally adopted the Carver Model of Policy Governance in October 2009. Guided by President Lee Lambert and the College’s Strategic Plan which was officially adopted in 2006, the BOT identified Five Core Themes each with several objectives or goals. College teams identified each objective’s indicators and objectives. The College’s mission statement as well as three of the final five Core Themes were then reviewed by the campus at an all-campus working lunch during Opening Week 2009 and then reworked in several training sessions by the entire Operations group during Fall quarter. At the same time, the Board was putting the final touches on its Policy Governance manual.

This congruent focus on governance and policy by the Board of Trustees, all college administrators and campus personnel allowed the College to align policy governance with the new accreditation standards. The Board’s goals were formally adopted and approved in October 2009, which allowed the campus to work with their 5 Core Themes and objectives. A campus accreditation website was created to provide the entire campus with access to the BOT Policy Governance Manual, the new standards, as well as all Strategic Planning materials and activities as well as all drafts and reviews of the College’s mission statement. The College’s intranet posted frequent reviews of our current mission statement and core themes. The Strategic Planning Committee

Section II: Core Themes

II A.Core Theme I: Educational Attainment and Student Success

IIa. Educational Attainment and Student Success: Approximately 49% of students attending SCC enroll in the academic transfer program, 49% in a professional-technical program and 2% take continuing education classes. The College’s first Core Theme focuses on the academic program so that all students will complete their program or course and/or graduate with the academic preparation and skills necessary to continue their education, meet the demands for the workplace or improve their quality of life through leisure-time activity. SCC is committed to facilitating the success of each student’s stated educational goals to supporting students in the attainment of course completion, certificates, degrees, personal enrichment and/or professional development.

IIb.Goals: There are four objectives or intended outcomes for Core Theme 1. Beneath each are the indicators, rationales for the indicator, and approximate benchmarks for success.

Objective #1: University Transfer Students:

Students who successfully complete an academic transfer program with the knowledge and skills to enter baccalaureate or professional programs are prepared to successfully attain their educational goals and compare favorably with students already in such programs.

Indicator1A: Graduation numbers (Student Achievement Initiative ,IPEDS Graduation Rate and Completion

Reports)

  • Rationale: Graduation numbers indicate successful completion. Student Achievement Initiative (SAI) and

IPEDS reports give benchmark data to track graduation rates and completion rates from year to year.

  • Benchmark: Benchmark would be the median of 5 years of enrollment data versus graduation percentage

compared to state and national graduation data.

Indicator1B: Transfer numbers for those who do not graduate (MRTE Database and Data Warehouse

Reports, SAI Reports and IPEDS Graduation Rate Report)

  • Rationale: Tracking students who do not graduate from SCC, but who successfully transfer is another

indicator of student success. Our SAI reports, IPEDS Graduation Rate Reports, past history from MRTE Database and our Data Warehouse create a view of success not captured by IPEDS completion reports.

  • Benchmark: Comparable data to national scores for our non-degree transfer rate

Indicator 1C: Comparative data CC vs native baccalaureates (Reports generated from National Community

College Benchmark Project (NCCBP) and Annual Transfer Data Reports from Baccalaureates)

  • Rationale: The NCCBP allows us to choose peer institutions to compare our completion rates with other

community colleges for comparison to students in similar programs. The Annual Transfer Data Reports provided by baccalaureate institutions in our state give us comparative data of our transfer students to their native students.

  • Benchmark: Our students perform at or higher than the success level of the native student at the BIs.

Indicator 1D: Time to degree (Data Warehouse reports & IPEDS Graduation Rate report)

  • Rationale: Time to degree is another indicator of students meeting their educational goals. We track persistence over time using our Data Warehouse reports for all students and IPEDS Graduation Rate reports (tracks a cohort of full-time, first time degree/ certificate-seeking students showing both completers/ non-completers within 150% of normal time as defined within IPEDS.)
  • Benchmark: IPEDS Graduation Rate Report. Median of 5 year’s data.

Indicator1E: Top 5 transfer Baccalaureate Institution’s data. Track for success. (Annual Transfer Data