Pace University Assessment Plan - Draft Ten 1

PACE UNIVERSITY ASSESSMENT PLAN FOR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Rationale for Assessment at Pace

As PaceUniversity looks forward to the completion of its first 100 years, it recognizes the importance of quality programs, dedicated faculty, engaged students and committed staff who contribute to the achievement of the PaceUniversity mission to “provide the best possible private education to a diverse and talented student body.” Pace is positioned to increase its national and international reputation in the years ahead through continuous improvement. The Second Century Strategic Plan spans the years 2003-2008 and emphasizes self-evaluation to enhance Pace’s reputation as an internationally recognized institution within the higher education community. This assessment plan is designed to set forth the university’s present activities and future plans for assessment.

Assessment refers to the systematic collection, review and use of information about educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning and development. (Marchese, T.J., AAHE Bulletin, 1987, 40, 3-8). It includes an examination of overall university goals and objectives, evaluation of program and departmental effectiveness and student learning. Assessment of student learning demonstrates that the institution’s students have knowledge, skills, and competencies consistent with institutional goals and that students at graduation have achieved appropriate higher education goals. (Middle States Association, Characteristics of Excellence, 2002). At PaceUniversity, assessment plays an important role in self-evaluation and Pace’s commitment to continuous improvement.

The University-Wide Assessment Plan will target the following areas for assessment purposes:

I. The Second Century Strategic Plan (2003-2008) – The plan will include measures of institutional effectiveness as outlined by the goals and objectives set forth therein. The University-Wide Assessment Committee will be responsible for reviewing evidence of the progress of the University in meeting its goals and objectives.

II. Academic Program and Department Assessment - The plan will set a time
frame for establishing assessment plans, providing guidance and advice for
assessing student learning in all academic programs at both the
undergraduate and graduate levels.
III. Academic Support and Administrative Unit Assessment - The plan will set a
time frame for establishing assessment plans and provide guidance and advice
for all academic support units and administrative units to assess: student
learning, program outcomes and attitudes of major constituencies.

Philosophy of Assessment

The University-Wide Assessment Plan was developed consistent with the Principles of Good Practice for Assessing Student Learning outlined by the AAHE (attached). The plan includes a determination of educational values and specific quantifiable objectives and recognizes the importance of community involvement, long-term commitment and implementing change to meet student needs.

Pace University has already begun to assess various offerings within its programs and departments across the University. It will continue on this path to achieve the following goals:

To improve the effects of teaching and other aspects of the Pace experience on student learning and development

To attract and retain qualified students

To examine and enhance institutional effectiveness

To advance the reputation and image of Pace through the quality of its programs

To maintain and strengthen Pace’s standing among its competitors

To satisfy the requirements of accrediting agencies

Pace University Mission Statement

The basis for assessment is the University’s Mission Statement and the Core Objectives that follow. Each school, department and unit within the University establishes goals and objectives that are consistent with the University mission.

Pace’s Mission Statement emphasizes the following:

•A continuous commitment to Opportunitas that provides the benefits of higher education to students who may otherwise have been excluded due to social or economic factors.

•An emphasis on excellence while strengthening international efforts and investments in technology.

•A commitment to self improvement and civic engagement.

The assessment plan at PaceUniversity also addresses the University’s core objectives to determine the extent to which these objectives are met and to provide direction for improvement. The major core objectives as stated in the Strategic Plan that will be assessed are:

•To strengthen Pace’s academic excellence and reputation by encouraging faculty and staff, improving the University’s standing, strengthening the academic units and increasing international opportunities for students.

•To commit to being a student centered university by increasing diversity, providing competitive services to students, increasing the endowment and increasing student representation.

•To strengthen Pace’s financial situation by growing enrollment, instituting a capital campaign and developing opportunities for supplemental revenue.

•To celebrate our centennial by emphasizing the University’s contribution to the city, state and nation.

The University-Wide Assessment Plan is consistent with the above mission, goals and objectives of Pace for the next five years and will assist the University in achieving its goals.

The Pace Experience

The Pace experience refers to the students’ complete encounter with PaceUniversity during the period they are enrolled, as well as contacts with PaceUniversity after graduation. It includes connections with faculty in class and with administration and staff within the academic support and administrative units through which students learn. Assessment focuses on learning that occurs both inside and outside the classroom.

Learning at Pace includes students growing in knowledge, in the application of that knowledge in their work and in meeting life’s other challenges, and in the continuous development of sensitivities, values, and the capacity to act in ways that benefit those immediately around them and, ultimately, all people. Because learning is a process of lifelong growth, learning at Pace can be seen as making a contribution to a life pattern that began before students became members of the Pace community and will continue long after they have moved on. During their time at Pace, students also should begin to develop the habit of reflecting on their growth, alone and with others, with the goal of becoming mature, fully realized contributors to their community and to the world.

Students are expected to master common material through the University Core requirements at the undergraduate level and through school-based common requirements at the graduate level. In addition, students explore a specialty in depth, whether in the DysonCollege or one of the professional schools. Students not only master the content of their programs, but also develop the ability to identify both routine and unexpected problems and apply their knowledge and skill to the solution of those problems on their own and in the company of others. They develop a habit of reflection and the ability to think critically. Finally, Pace students’ learning includes community engagement – action in service to the societies in which they live and work. Pace students are active participants in the academic, social, co-curricular, and civic life of the University.

Student interaction and engagement is part of the broader mission of PaceUniversity that extends beyond the cognitive and intellectual development of students. It aims to include increased understanding of self and others; expansion of personal, intellectual, cultural, and social horizons and interests; development of personal moral and ethical standards; preparation for useful and productive employment and membership in a democratic society; and the general enhancement of the quality of graduates’ post-college lives.

The University-Wide Assessment Plan requires that programs, departments and units set forth plans and procedures for assessing the Pace experience since learning occurs throughout the University and is not limited to classroom exposure.

The Role of the University-wide Assessment Committee

The Committee has established a philosophy and framework for ongoing, university-wide assessment and improvement. Its continuing task will be to evaluate progress on achieving the goals and objectives of the strategic plan, ensure continuity, dissemination of information, and review of the assessment process in the schools and departments and encourage and shepherd assessment of student learning in all units. The University is committed to developing a sense of faculty, staff, and student ownership of the assessment plan in the hope that ownership will translate into a commitment to use assessment results in improving courses and programs.

The University-wide Assessment Committee was established early in 2002 to work with the Vice President for Planning, Assessment, and Research to recommend an overall assessment plan for the University. The Committee has elected representation from the Faculty Councils and representation from each of the schools augmented by appointed members with experience in assessment. The majority of Committee members – appointed and elected – should come from the faculty.

The University-Wide Assessment Committee will be responsible for establishing overall assessment plans at three basic levels, each of which is described in detail in this document.

I. Assess the progress in achieving the goals and objectives of the Second Century Strategic Plan on an annual basis and recommend courses of action for the University.

II. Advocate, guide and monitor assessment at the Program and Department levels, and develop strategies for analyzing, interpreting and sharing the results of global assessments where appropriate.

III. Guide and assist in the development of assessment plans for the Academic Support Units and the Administrative Units consistent with the Strategic Plan and student learning, departmental effectiveness and service to major constituencies.

I. Assessing Pace University’s Second Century Strategic Plan

The University-Wide Assessment Committee will be responsible for evaluating the progress in achieving the goals and objectives of the strategic plan on an annual basis and will recommend courses of action to the President for improvement when necessary. The Office of Planning, Assessment, Research and Academic Budgeting will be responsible for collecting and disseminating data to the committee members and the committee will meet annually in June to evaluate progress on the strategic plan. The committee will then draft a report to the President comparing actual performance on the objectives of the strategic plan and expected performance as set forth in the document “Reaching New Heights: Pace University Second Century Strategic Plan 2003-2008.”

In some instances quantifiable guidelines are specified in the strategic plan. However, where measures have not been identified, the University-Wide Assessment Committee will serve as a resource to those relevant units and departments identifying measures and methods for evaluating those points within the strategic plan.

II. Program and Departmental Evaluation

Academic program assessment at the undergraduate level will focus on assessing student learning in the core curriculum and within a student’s major. Assessment will include evaluation of both academic knowledge and the skills and abilities learned in the core and major. DysonCollege will be primarily responsible for assessing learning in the Core curriculum, while schools and departments will be responsible for handling assessment of the major. DysonCollege will be responsive to the needs of the professional schools in the assessment of the learning objectives of the Core Curriculum.

Graduate assessment will focus on academic knowledge within the student’s discipline and the skills and abilities learned within the programs. Each school will develop assessment plans for its graduate programs.

All academic units will report assessment results to the Office of Planning, Assessment, Research and Academic Budgeting for overall evaluation purposes.

Undergraduate Programs

The Core Curriculum

Assessment of student outcomes from the Core Curriculum begins with the Core’s learning outcomes. The faculty needs to describe specific learning outcomes related to the Core and indicate how the Core’s outcomes support the University’s mission. Learning outcomes describe what students should know, be able to do, and value at the completion of the Core. Assessment plans developed within DysonCollege will indicate specifically how faculty will determine whether learning objectives have been met. The plan will describe what methods will be used and what target groups will be measured and will include a process for evaluating the assessment plan itself. It will also include a timeline with deadlines for data collection, analysis, reporting, and recommendations for improvement. The plan will identify those responsible for the various elements of the assessment program and will make provisions for sharing data with internal and external stakeholders.

DysonCollege will be responsible for assessing the core curriculum and individual department plans will be in place by December 2004 to assess student learning outcomes. University Curriculum Committees and the Special Task Force on the Core defined the level of acquired knowledge and competencies for a strong general education program and a structure for delivering the learning that should be part of all Pace students’ general education experience. The Special Task Force adopted the following wording:

All Core courses must foster Communication and Analysis.

Communication – Learn to express ideas clearly and effectively.

Analysis – Think clearly and critically. Fuse experience, reason, and training into considered judgment. Comprehend, interpret, and analyze texts, processes, and media.

Core courses will explicitly and comprehensively incorporate and integrate a significant number of the general principles. Specific learning objectives relevant to each of these competencies will be evaluated on an on-going basis, and will be incorporated into the assessment plan.

Intellectual depth, breadth, integration, and application – Examine, organize and use disciplinary ways of knowing and apply them to specific issues and problems in intellectual, professional, and community life.

Effective citizenship – Be involved and responsible in the community. Act with informed awareness of contemporary issues in their historical contexts. Develop leadership abilities. Understand and value diversity within American culture. Integrate service and learning.

Social Interaction – Know how to get things done in committees, team projects, and other group efforts. Listen to and understand the views of others and help reach conclusions.

Global, National, and International Perspectives –Become familiar with traditions that shape our world and nation. Read and discuss texts from diverse traditions and perspectives. Understand the cultural, economic, social and biological interdependence of global and national life.

Valuing – Recognize different value systems. Understand one’s own self and one’s own values, and the values of others. Read important texts that foster humanistic values.

Problem Solving – Figure out what the problem is and what is causing it. With others or alone, form strategies that work in different situations; then get done what needs to be done, evaluating effectiveness.

Aesthetic Response – Study important works of the human imagination in order to develop aesthetic and literary sensibility. Make and defend judgments about the quality of artistic expressions.

Information Literacy and Research – Locate, evaluate, and make efficient and ethical use of information resources.

Scientific and quantitative reasoning – Understand the workings of the natural world. Develop problem-solving strategies using scientific and quantitative reasoning.

Technology Fluency – Make efficient use of technology for personal and professional needs. Use graphics, electronic media, computers, and quantified data.

The Major

Assessment of learning outcomes in the major begins with the goals of the department related to the Missions of their school and the University. Faculty will be responsible for formulating assessment programs that mesh with University goals. To make assessment part of a department’s culture, faculty, with the department Chair’s support, will develop program objectives and express them in terms of desired learning outcomes. Faculty will review syllabi to relate program objectives and learning outcomes to specific courses and to the related Core Curriculum goals. Faculty will be involved in planning, developing or selecting measurement techniques, collecting data, interpreting the results, and using the results to improve the curriculum.

Faculty will decide at what points student learning should be assessed, e.g., at entry into the major, midway through the Major, at graduation, and perhaps for alumni at 1 and 5 years out. At a minimum, faculty will probably want to assess learning at entry and at completion of the program. In implementing their assessment plan, faculty will specify who will get assessment results and how their department and their colleagues will use the results to foster improvement. Faculty will assess knowledge, skills, and values both for their program’s core courses and for specialty courses. This plan provides a set of procedures that departments may choose to follow in outlining their own assessments. It can be found under the title Assessment Plan Procedures.

The College and ProfessionalSchools of the University and their academic departments have developed mission statements and academic goals related to students’ specialties that further amplify the principle of Opportunitas. These include:

Acquisition of specific problem-solving skills and professional competencies that serve as a solid foundation for future graduate or professional studies, or that foster positive immediate and long term outcomes in students’ careers.

Ability to apply professional skills in a manner that reflects ethical values and a commitment to social responsibility.

Acquisition of skills in quantitative analysis, abstract reasoning, information research, and technological fluency appropriate to their profession or discipline.