5. D. 1 The institution develops and documents evidence of performance in its operations.
Miller College utilizes a comprehensive Assessment Plan to gather evidence of institutional effectiveness and inform strategic planning activities. The Assessment Plan specifies sources of data and benchmarks for assessing the achievement of objectives and initiatives laid out in the Strategic Plan covering three broad areas: Academics, Student Services and the President’s Office.
Evidence:
An Assessment Committee, comprised of the Deans, Vice President, and additional faculty and Student Services representatives, develops and annually reviews the Assessment Plan as well as annual Assessment Status Reports submitted by each division of the College. As necessary, the Assessment Committee recommends curriculum or program changes, catalog revisions, and assessment strategies to the Academic Affairs Committee and the President’s Council for consideration and implementation. The Assessment Committee is chaired by a full-time faculty or staff member who receives an annual stipend to serve as the College’s Assessment Coordinator.
Evidence:
The assessment of Miller College’s General Education outcomes is governed by the Assessment Committee. Every semester, the Assessment Committee oversees the administration of the ETS Proficiency Profile (formerly known as the Measure of Academic Proficiency and Progress, or MAPP) to cohorts of incoming students in Junior Seminar (LBAR 300) and to all graduating seniors in Senior Seminar (BSRN/BUSN/EDUC/LBAR 499). The MAPP assesses proficiency in four core skill areas (critical thinking, reading, writing and mathematics), which align with the Miller College Mission. The Assessment Committee triangulates MAPP performance data comparing Junior and Senior cohorts with response data from the Exit/Alumni Surveys that are administered to all graduating seniors each semester and grade distribution reports, prepared by the Registrar at the conclusion of each semester.
Evidence:
The Academic divisions of the College (i.e., the Schools of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Nursing) prepare annual Assessment Status Reports that assess achievement of each school’s respective learner outcomes and fulfillment of the College Mission, as well as provide guidance for continuous improvement of academic offerings. These reports triangulate data from internal and external surveys, internal and external learning assessments, and feedback from stakeholders such as each school’s Program Advisory Committee to provide a snapshot of progress across the College. Internal surveys that serve as sources of data for Academic Assessment Status reports include student end-of-course evaluations and Exit/Alumni Surveys completed by all graduating seniors, while external surveys include graduate, supervisor and SB-CEU surveys administered by the Michigan Department of Education. The electronic portfolio, an ongoing assessment tool completed by all Miller College students and assessed in the Senior Seminar, is the core internal learning assessment used in the Academic Assessment Status report to gauge mastery of each school’s learner outcomes. The portfolio contains an artifact completed by the student from each course taken at Miller College in his/her program of study that best demonstrates the student’s mastery of the course objectives, reflective essays completed at the beginning and end of the student’s program of study that address the student’s understanding and fulfillment of the Miller College Mission, and a record of the student’s service learning and volunteer activities. External learning assessments used in the Academic Assessment Status reports vary by program, but include results from the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification, and MAPP.
Evidence:
To assess the effectiveness of its procedures, Miller College’s Student Services division utilizes a number of sources of data in regular feedback cycles. Enrollment and retention reports are regularly prepared by the Registrar and shared throughout Student Services as well as the College as a whole. The Student Services Survey, completed by currently enrolled students in the Fall and Spring semesters immediately after the drop/add period ends, provides important feedback on advising, registration and financial aid processes. The Student Services division uses this data to modify procedures as necessary to ensure that students experience the most seamless induction into Miller College and transition from semester to semester. Finally, IPEDS data provides valuable demographic information to assess the extent to which Miller College’s enrollment mirrors the population of its service area, which in turn informs recruitment and marketing efforts in the community and on junior college campuses.
Evidence:
To assess the ongoing efficacy of instruction, Miller College relies on two regular feedback cycles: end-of-course evaluations and faculty evaluations. End-of-course evaluations are completed by students during the 13th and 14th weeks of Fall and Spring semesters, and during the sixth week of Summer semesters. These evaluations are completed anonymously through Blackboard, and the results are prepared and reported to the Vice President by the Registrar. The Vice President then shares the survey results with the Deans, who then share them with individual faculty members after grades have been submitted.
Evidence:
The annual faculty and staff evaluation cycle begins in June of each year, as faculty and staff, in consultation with their supervisors, develop specific goals and objectives for the coming academic year. Goals and objectives are tied to the Strategic Plan (revised in Fall 2012), and a mid-year evaluation occurs during the first week of January to assess progress toward achieving the identified goals. The faculty and staff evaluation instruments integrate supervisor’s feedback, self-evaluation and, in the case of faculty evaluations, end-of-course evaluation data. These evaluation processes inform continuing employment decisions and shape individual professional development agendas.
Evidence:
In addition to the largely internal processes described above, Miller College seeks external assessments of its effectiveness and engages in regular cycles of professional peer review with external accrediting bodies. The School of Nursing recently secured initial accreditation through the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) after a site visit during the Fall 2010 semester. The Binda School of Education is currently a candidate institution with the Teacher Education Accreditation Council and is on a timeline to achieve initial accreditation by October 2014. The Binda School of Education also regularly participates in peer reviews of its programs as directed by the Michigan Department of Education, most recently to assure candidate proficiency in Michigan’s new certification standards for elementary education, social studies, and early childhood education. Finally, the Binda School of Education is evaluated annually by the Michigan Department of Education in its Teacher Preparation Institution Performance Score, which integrates data from the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification, demographic profiles of candidates recommended by Miller College for certification and MDE surveys of graduates and their mentor teachers.
Evidence:
Designed and created by DDM Marketing & Communications.