Thus, the QEP Is a Document Developed by the Institution That

TCU’s QEP

Town Hall Meeting

As part of TCU’s preparation for our 2013 reaffirmation visit, we will be developing a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP).

According to SACS, the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) is the component of the reaffirmation process that reflects and affirms the commitment of the Commission on Colleges to enhancing the quality of higher education in the region and to focusing attention on student learning. By definition, the QEP describes a carefully designed course of action that addresses a well defined and focused topic or issue related to enhancing student learning. The QEP should be embedded within the institution’s ongoing integrated institution-wide planning and evaluation process and may very well evolve from this existing process or from other processes related to the institution’s internal reaffirmation review. Developing a QEP as a part of the reaffirmation process is an opportunity for the institution to enhance overall institutional quality and effectiveness by focusing on an issue or issues the institution considers important to improving student learning.

Thus, the QEP is a document developed by the institution that

(1)  Includes a process identifying key issues emerging from institutional assessment,

(2)  Focuses on learning outcomes and/or the environment supporting student learning and accomplishing the mission of the institution,

(3)  Demonstrates institutional capability for the initiation, implementation, and completion of the QEP,

(4)  Includes broad-based involvement of institutional constituencies in the development and proposed implementation of the QEP, and

(5)  Identifies goals and a plan to assess their achievement.

Stemming from our strategic planning process, we have identified the following possible topics for TCU’s QEP:

·  Academic Advising

·  Study Abroad and Global Opportunities

·  Ethical Leadership

·  Integrating Service Learning Activities

·  Enhancing Student Research and Creative Activities

·  Student Engagement

·  Critical Thinking

Some examples of QEP plans from other universities (more can be found at www.sacscoc.org/2009TrackBQEPSummaries.asp):

·  Engaging Undergraduate Learners – Baylor

·  Communication Fluency – Converse College

·  The Development of Informed, Critical, and Creative Thinkers Who Communicate Effectively – Eastern Kentucky University

·  Learning for Civic Engagement in a Global Context – Mary Baldwin College

·  Enhancing Student Academic Engagement – Nova Southeastern

·  The Scholars Initiative – Samford

·  Active Learning: Pathways to Higher Ordering Thinking at UT Arlington – UT Arlington

·  Enhancing Student–Faculty Engagement – University of Virginia

·  Improving Research Skills and Writing through Information Literacy – Southwestern Adventist

·  Quantitative Literacy for the Twenty-First Century – Emory and Henry College

·  Global Duke: Enhancing Students’ Capacity for World Citizenship –Duke

·  Integrating Students into the Academy of Thought and Knowledge through Interdisciplinary Studies – Schreiner

·  Creating a Culture of Reading – Troy

·  Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum (CTAC) - Fisk

QEP Timeline

Questions? Contact Catherine Wehlburg or Ed McNertney

More Information? Go to www.sacs.tcu.edu