Middle States Steering Committee Overview of Standards March 20, 2008.

Middle States Steering Committee

Overview of Standards

March 20, 2008

Standards at a GlanceStandard 1: Mission and Goals

– The institution’s Mission clearly defines the purpose within the context of higher education and indicates who the institution serves and what it intends to accomplish. The institutions stated goals clearly specify how the institution will fulfill its mission.

– The mission and goals are used to develop and shape its programs and practices and to evaluate its effectiveness.

Fundamental Elements of Standard 1: Mission & Goals

• Clearly defined mission and goals;

• Mission and goals that relate to external as well as internal contexts and constituencies;

• Institutional goals that and consistent with mission; and

• Goals that focus on student learning, other outcomes, and institutional improvement.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 1: Mission and Goals

• How are the major themes of the mission reflected in the institution’s goals?

• How are the institutions operations consistent with its mission and goals

• How does the institution determine whether it is achieving each aspect of its mission?

Standards at a Glance Standard 6: Integrity

– The institution demonstrates adherence to ethical standards and its own stated policies, providing support for academic and intellectual freedom.

Fundamental Elements of Standard 6: Integrity

• Fair and Impartial processes; published and widely available to address student grievances promptly, appropriately, and equitably;

• Fair and impartial practices in hiring, evaluation, and dismissal of employees; Sound and ethical practices and respect for individuals through its teaching, scholarship/research, service, and administrative practice.

• Equitable and appropriately consistent treatment of constituencies

• Availability of information

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 6: Integrity

• How consistently does the institution follow through on its stated policies?

• What evidence is there that the institution adheres to principles of academic freedom?

• What patterns, if any, are evident within student grievances over the past three years?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 2: Planning, Resource Allocation,

and Institutional Renewal– An institution conducts ongoing planning and

resource allocation based on its mission and goals, develops objectives to achieve them, and utilizes the results of its assessment activities for institutional renewal. Implementation and subsequent evaluation support the development and change necessary to improve and maintain institutional quality.

Fundamental Elements of Standard 2: Planning, Resource Allocation,

and Institutional Renewal• Goals and objectives or strategies, both

institution-wide and for individual units are clearly stated, reflect conclusions drawn from assessment results, and are linked to mission and goal achievement;

• Planning and improvement processes are clearly communicated and provide for constituent participation;

• Decision-making processes are we– defined• Periodic assessment

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 2: Planning, Resource Allocation,

and Institutional Renewal• Is the relationship between the institution’s

strategic plan and the budget development process well understood and effectively implemented?

• How and why have institutional planning processes changed over the past five years?

• What issues should the institution be planning for?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 3: Institutional Resources

– The human, financial, technical, physical facilities, and other resources necessary to achieve an institution’s mission and goals are available and accessible.

– The effective and efficient uses of the institution’s resources are analyzed as part of ongoing outcomes assessment.

Fundamental Elements of Standard 3: Institutional Resources

• Strategies to measure and assess the use of institutional resources required to support the institution’s mission and goals are in place;

• Consistent policies are in place to determine allocation of assets;

• A financial planning and budgeting process aligned with the institution’s mission and goals and plan that provides for an annual budget and multi-year budget projections.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 3: Institutional Resources

• What are the most significant challenges facing the institution relative to human resources, technology resources, and physical plant resources over the next five years?

• What steps have been taken to evaluate how effectively resources are allocated and expended? What specific changes have been implemented and with what results?

Standards at a Glance Standard 4: Leadership and

Governance

The institution’s system of governance clearly defines the roles of institutional constituencies in policy development and decision-making. The governance structure includes an active governing body with sufficient autonomy.

Fundamental Elements of Standard 4: Leadership & Governance

• A well-defined system of collegial governance;

• Written governing documents;

• Appropriate opportunity for student input;

• Periodic assessment of the effectiveness of institutional leadership and governance.

Sample Essential Questions

Standard 4: Leadership & Governance

• In what ways and for what reasons have the institution’s governance systems changed over the past five years?

• What might improve institutional governance?

• To what extent are existing structures utilized for decision-making?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 5: Administration

The institution’s administrative structure and services facilitate learning and research/scholarship, foster quality improvement, and support the institution’s organization and governance.

Fundamental Elements ofStandard 5: Administration

• A chief executive whose primary responsibility is to lead the institution toward the achievement of its goals;

• A chief executive with the combination of academic background, professional training, and/or other qualities;

• Administrative leaders with appropriate skills, degrees and training;

• Qualified staffing appropriate to the goals, type, size, and complexity of the institution.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 5: Administration

• How effective are current processes to review and improve administrative operations?

• How can we be sure that administrative structures are facilitating learning?

• When was the most recent review of the effectiveness of administrative structures undertaken?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 8: Student Admissions &

Retention

The institution seeks to admit students whose

interests, goals, and abilities are congruent

with its mission and seeks to retain them

through the pursuit of the students’

educational goals.

Fundamental Elements ofStandard 8: Student Admission and

Retention• Admission policies developed and implemented,

that support and reflect the mission of the institution;Programs and services to ensure that admitted students who marginally meet or do not meet the institution’s qualifications achieve expected learning goals;

• Statements of expected student learning outcomes and information on institution-wide assessment results;

• Ongoing assessment of student success, including but not necessarily limited to retention.

Sample QuestionsStandard 8: Student Admissions and

Retention• Are retention goals consistent with long term

strategic and financial plans?• Are the admissions goals sufficiently clear,

realistic and consistent with the institutions mission?

• Is the institution successful in providing financial assistance to students?

• How are lessons learned from retention studies to improve academic and student support programs?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 9: Student Support

Services

The institution provides student support services reasonably necessary to enable each student to achieve the institution’s goals for students.

Fundamental Elements ofStandard 9: Student Support Services

• A program of student support services appropriate to student strengths and needs, reflective of institutional mission, consistent with student learning expectations, and readily available.

• Qualified professionals to supervise and provide support services;

• Appropriate student advisement procedures and processes;

• Reasonable and widely disseminated procedures for equitably addressing student complaints and grievances.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 9: Student Support Services

• How does the institution provide support to enrolled students who are identified as being “at risk”?

• What type of personal and social development does the institution seek to foster?

• What changes in the provision of student support services have been implemented over the past five years?

• Which services should be improved, added, expanded, or eliminated?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 10: Faculty

The institution’s instructional, research and service programs are devised, developed, monitored, and supported by qualified professionals.

Fundamental Elements forStandard 10: Faculty

• Faculty and other professionals are appropriately prepared and qualified for the positions they hold;

• Educational curricula are designed, maintained, and updated by faculty;

• Faculty demonstrate excellence in teaching;• Recognition of appropriate linkages among

scholarship, teaching, student learning, research, and services

• Adherence to principles of academic freedom.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 10: Faculty

• How are faculty involved in academic program development, assessment, and improvement?

• Are faculty development opportunities equitably distributed?

• Are there differences across departments in the criteria for faculty appointment, tenure, and promotion?

• How has the utilization of part-time and adjunct faculty changed over the last five years? What has been the impact on student learning?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 11: Educational Offerings

The institution’s educational offerings display academic content, rigor, and coherence appropriate to its higher education mission. The institution identifies student learning goals and objectives, including knowledge and skills, for its educational offerings.

Fundamental Elements forStandard 11: Educational Offerings

• Educational offerings congruent with the mission of the institution and conducted at levels of rigor appropriate to the programs and degrees offered;

• Formal undergraduate, graduate, and/or professional programs are designed to foster a coherent student learning experience;

• Program goals are stated in terms of student learning outcomes;

• Collaboration among professional library staff, faculty and administrators in fostering information literacy and technological skills across the curriculum

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 11: Educational Offerings

• In what ways do transfer students have a learning experience that is different from that of students in the same program who have completed all their courses at the institution?

• How well do students understand the purpose and interrelationship of each requirement of their academic program?

• How should we select and assess future educational offerings?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 12: General Education

The institution’s curricula are designed so that students acquire and demonstrate college-level proficiency in general education and essential skills, including at least oral and written communication, scientific and quantitative reasoning, critical analysis and reasoning, and technological competency.

Fundamental Elements forStandard 12: General Education

• The general education program has sufficient scope students’ intellectual growth, and equivalent to at least 30 semester hours for baccalaureate program;

• Consistent with institutional mission;• Skills and abilities developed in general

education are applied in the major area of concentration;

• Assessment of general education outcomes within the institution’s overall plan for assessing student learning.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 12: General Education

• What evidence exists that the institution’s graduates meet expected, acceptable levels of competency in oral and written communication, scientific and quantitative reasoning, technological capabilities, information literacy, and critical analysis and reasoning?

• In what ways and for what reasons has the general education program been changed over the past five years?

• How is general education coordinated with the overall curriculum?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 13: Related Education Activities

The institution’s programs or activities are

characterized by particular content, focus,

Location, mode of delivery, or sponsorship

meet appropriate standards.

Fundamental Elements forStandard 13: Related Education Activities

• Clearly articulated program goals, objectives, and expectations of student learning that include student knowledge, skills, and competency levels;

• Available and effective student support services;• Credit awarded for experiential learning that is supported

by an evaluation of the level, quality, and quantity of that learning;

• Non-credit offerings are consistent with institutional mission and goals

• Academic oversight to assure comparability and appropriate transferability of non-credit courses if they are applicable to a degree program.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 13: Related Education Activities

• How significant is the institution’s commitment to providing programs and services for under-prepared students?

• Are the processes for developing, offering, and evaluating certificate programs coherent and consistent across the institution?

• What evidence exists that students in distance learning courses achieve learning goals comparable to goals achieved by students in face-to face courses?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 7: Institutional Assessment

The institution has developed and implemented an assessment process that evaluates its overall effectiveness in achieving its mission and goals and its compliance with accreditation standards.

Fundamental Elements forStandard 7: Institutional Assessment

• Documented, organized, and sustained assessment process to evaluate and improve the total range of programs and services; achievement of institutional mission, goals, and plans; and compliance with accreditation standards;

• Evidence that assessment results are shared and discussed with appropriate constituents and used in institutional planning;

• Written institutional strategic plan that reflects consideration of assessment results.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 7: Institutional Assessment

• How adequate is campus support for institutional assessment? (Policies, financial support, professional development and resources)

• How well does the institutional-level of assessment policies, structures, plans, methods, results, and use of results demonstrate coherence among assessment efforts?

• Does the assessment of institutional effectiveness incorporate results from student learning outcomes assessments?

Standards at a GlanceStandard 14: Assessment of

Student Learning

Assessment of student learning demonstrates that, at graduation, or other appropriate points, the institution’s students have knowledge, skills, and competencies consistent with institutional and appropriate higher education goals.

Fundamental Elements for Standard 14: Assessment of

Student Learning• Clearly articulated statement of expected

student learning outcomes at all levels and for all programs;

• A documented, organized and sustained assessment process to evaluate and improve student learning;

• Support and collaboration of faculty and administrators;

• Evidence that student learning assessment information is shared and discussed with appropriate constituents.

Sample Essential QuestionsStandard 14: Assessment of

Student Learning• How effectively do all academic and support

programs document that the curriculum or program helps students achieve each key learning outcome?

• Are assessment of student learning of adequate quality? Are they related to the program’s key learning outcomes?

• If some programs have not yet implemented sufficient assessments of their key student learning outcomes, how adequate are their plans to do so?