Kaua‘i community college
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- Planning Agenda
Planning Agenda
I.A.4. The institution’s mission is central to institutional planning and decision making. Descriptive Summary In 2003, the college completed a comprehensive review and revision of its mission statement. The mission statement is reflective of the educational needs of our community and is intended to keep planning focused on the present and future needs of students. As noted above, the revision of the mission statement was done in tandem with the development of our campus-wide Student Learning Outcomes and our strategic plan goals. Both the SLOs and the plan goals directly reflect the college mission and goals as articulated in I.A.3. The college’s strategic goals and the elements of the program review process are keyed to these elements of the mission (KCC Strategic Plan and KCCM 1-6). Institutional planning is driven by these goals and decisions are prioritized and shaped by how well a program’s plans can achieve these goals. All resource requests must demonstrate how the proposed expenditure will help the program achieve one of the strategic goals, improve student learning, or otherwise move the campus toward accomplishing our mission. For example, in order to fill a vacant position, a program must complete the Request to Fill a Position form (Exhibit I-12: Request to Fill a Position Form) that asks for an explanation of the relationship between the position and the strategic goals. Finally, as noted in section I.A.1 above, the college’s Student Learning Outcomes, which were developed as the college reviewed its mission and goals, reflect the learner-based outcomes of the mission statement. Self Evaluation The college meets this standard. There has been a great deal of planning since the last self study to assure that the college’s decision making is based on both qualitative and quantitative data. Within this context, faculty, staff, and administrators have been involved in the creation of a strategic plan and discussion regarding the possible revision of the mission statement for the college. The process of continual review has made everyone more aware of and reflective about the mission of the college, and the College Council allocates funds to departments based upon their ability to demonstrate that their proposals will help to fulfill the college’s mission. This has made the departments more accountable and is ensuring that goals are being met. In addition, distance education and the Office of Continuing Education and Training have provided alternate opportunities for the college to address its mission. One way to reach program goals is to review all courses in a regular manner. With the mandate of reviewing 20 percent of our courses annually, each division has worked to clarify its program Student Learning Outcomes as well as the SLOs for each course. The new Course Action Form (CAF) assures that each course’s SLOs are aligned with the program and college goals and SLOs. The following are sources of evidence that show the processes that the institution uses to foster a college-wide commitment to student learning and how the mission statement expresses this commitment. (Exhibit I-13: Flyers; Exhibit I-14: Sign-in Sheets; Exhibit I-15: OCET Schedules for Professional Development and Assessment; Exhibit I-16: Division Meeting Minutes; College Council Notes; Exhibit I-17: Course SLOs; Exhibit I-18: Curriculum Committee Meeting Minutes; KCC Mission Statement; KCC Website; and the KCC Catalog.) Results from a survey conducted specifically for this self study indicate that 45.5 percent of the faculty, staff, and administrators agree that the current mission statement is useful in guiding them in their jobs and helping to set departmental priorities. Of the remaining, a significant number, (37.7 percent) indicated a neutral opinion on this issue, while 16.8 percent disagreed. Each academic unit of the college undergoes an Annual Program Review Update (APRU) that examines the status of the action plans and the budgetary needs of each program. The Assessment Committee, newly strengthened by the addition of our new Institutional Researcher, will develop an integrated assessment plan to draw together the various assessment pieces such as program review, annual Graduate and Leaver Survey, focus groups, and SLO development. This plan will include a professional development component. In addition, the College Council, with representatives from each division and unit, will continue to meet on a regular basis to check off goals that have been met and to create new goals that are aligned with the vision/goals statement and the broader mission statement of the college. This coordinated effort between faculty, staff and administrators should continue indefinitely. Planning Agenda
Standard I.B. Improving Institutional Effectiveness The institution demonstrates a conscious effort to produce and support student learning, measures that learning, assesses how well learning is occurring, and makes changes to improve student learning. The institution also organizes its key processes and allocates its resources to effectively support student learning. The institution demonstrates its effectiveness by providing 1) evidence of the achievement of student learning outcomes and 2) evidence of institution and program performance. The institution uses ongoing and systematic evaluation and planning to refine its key processes and improve student learning. I.B.1. The institution maintains an ongoing, collegial, self-reflective dialogue about the continuous improvement of student learning and institutional processes. Descriptive Summary Kaua‘i Community College, as the only post-secondary institution on the island of Kaua‘i, makes notable efforts to reflect the values of the local community. Both the Faculty Senate and College Council – which include representatives from faculty, staff, student government, and administration – meet regularly to address issues concerning institutional efficiency, budgeting, staffing, and processes (Faculty Senate Minutes and College Council Notes). In addition, program coordinators and chairpersons from all academic and trades divisions meet bi-monthly with the Dean of Instruction to address student learning and administrative concerns. Furthermore, all programs are actively involved in an ongoing program review process, including not only a major program review on a five-year cycle, but an annual review by each program of its action plans, goals, and Student Learning Outcomes (KCCM 1-6). Kaua‘i Community College's student government body, the Associated Students of University of Hawai‘i – Kaua‘i Community College (ASUH-KCC), provides a forum by which students can actively participate in institutional governance and decisions that affect institutional effectiveness. ASUH-KCC representatives have the right to attend division-level and College Council meetings, and students are encouraged to participate actively at these levels. Students involved in extra-curricular clubs and organizations likewise are encouraged to voice their opinions, and the college tries to accommodate reasonable requests and to address legitimate concerns regarding the college's processes, procedures, and operations. Faculty and staff from across campus participate in continuous institutional improvement thorough serving on a number of campus committees, including the Assessment Committee, Professional Development Committee, Buildings and Grounds Committee, Library Advisory Board, Learning Center Committee, Distance Learning Committee, Website Committee, Information Technology Advisory Committee, Title III Implementation Committee, and Curriculum Committee. These committees meet regularly to discuss means to improve institutional effectiveness and to address the learning needs of students, reporting and recommending to the Faculty Senate and/or College Council as appropriate. As issues concerning institutional effectiveness and student learning come up, relevant and focused task forces are created which work to provide essential data and planning for existing committees. Examples of such effective use of task forces include the Exhibit I-19: Assessment Taskforce Report, the Case Management Design Team, and the Information Technology Strategic Plan Taskforce. Frequently, committees and individuals work collaboratively to address overarching campus concerns. For example, the Assessment Committee and the Information Technology Advisory Committee (ITAC) are currently working together to address campus-wide Student Learning Outcomes in the area of information competency. Similarly, the Professional Development Committee, the Institutional Researcher, and the ITAC are working together to ascertain the information technology training needs of faculty and staff. Twice in each academic year, at the beginning of each semester, the college’s staff, faculty, and administration engage in half- or full-day convocations. These convocations are well-attended by a broad spectrum of the college’s employees, indicating that staff, faculty, and administration find the events useful and worthwhile (Exhibit I-20: Convocation Sign-in Sheets and Self Study Surveys). At these convocations, members of the college community are kept informed of institutional plans and processes, college plans and initiatives are presented, reports from various committees are made, and collegial, team-building activities are provided. Often, workshops are held to facilitate heterogeneous groups in addressing college-wide concerns, including Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs), Accreditation Review, and self study activities (Exhibit I-21: Convocation Handouts). At present, KCC faculty are engaged in re-evaluating and updating all course offerings, including both traditional classroom-based courses and those delivered through alternative means (distance delivery technology). Approximately 20 percent of all courses in each division are planned for revision each year for the next five years, and each division and/or department is responsible for determining which of its courses will be revised, when they will be revised, and who will be responsible for the revision. An important facet of this course updating involves the new Course Action Form (CAF) created by the Curriculum Committee (See Exhibit I-18: Curriculum Committee Meeting Minutes). Because the CAF requires SLOs for all courses to be measurable and clearly outlined, this revision process creates productive dialogue concerning not only individual course offerings, but also an assessment of student needs and learning outcomes. This, in turn, assures some uniformity in course sections. By the end of the five-year period, all courses offered by KCC should be on this new form, and approved at both the division and Curriculum Committee level. Kaua‘i Community College also participates in the Institutional Research Cadre (IR Cadre), a UH Community Colleges systemwide group headed by the Office for Academic Planning and Policy Analysis (APAPA) and comprised of Institutional Researchers, Analysts, and/or Computer Support people from each of the community colleges, as well as representative deans of instruction and deans of student services. As a way to ensure that data throughout the system are comparable and consistent, this cadre has put together a minimum set portfolio of demographic information and achievement data (DIAD) to be used by each campus for self study and which has been approved for use by the Council of Chancellors. Most data for this portfolio comes directly from system IRO through its MAPS reports; additional data are supplied by APAPA, along with instructions for any calculations that need to be made. Each campus is allowed to add any other data it would like to examine. Self Evaluation Kaua‘i Community College is dedicated to continuous improvement in how its institutional processes meet the needs of its students. This is evidenced by the broad-based and varied committee activities focused upon the improvement of student learning and institutional processes. These committees are comprised of representatives from a variety of constituent groups (faculty, staff, and, in many cases, students), and the individual divisions, programs, and committees work collaboratively to ensure coordinated implementation of changes intended to improve student learning. Results from a survey conducted specifically for this self study indicate that a majority of faculty, staff, and administrators (53 percent of respondents) either agree or strongly agree that college dialogue concerning Student Learning Outcomes has had a positive impact on student learning. A significant number (30 percent of respondents) indicated a neutral opinion on this issue. Kaua‘i Community College must continue the process already begun (Progress Report 2003, pages 4-6) to ensure that faculty, staff, and administration are able to understand the meaning of data and research, and to apply this information in their evaluation of student learning and success. A critical position in this process is that of the newly-hired Institutional Researcher, a full-time position. The new Institutional Researcher will be able to help us create more effective surveys and to appropriately assess and interpret data from future surveys and DIADs to facilitate the understanding of faculty and staff. Another means of addressing the problem of using data and research in student evaluation may be explored by the Professional Development and/or Assessment Committees. Workshops on the meaning and use of data may be beneficial in assisting constituents understand the role of relevant data in the evaluation of student learning. Planning Agenda
I.B.2. The institution sets goals to improve its effectiveness consistent with its stated purposes. The institution articulates its goals and states the objectives derived from them in measurable terms so that the degree to which they are achieved can be determined and widely discussed. The institutional members understand these goals and work collaboratively toward their achievement. Yüklə 1,69 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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