2014–18 FLCC Strategic Plan Project Book

10/23/14

Academic Focus AreaAcademic Goal: Graduate Proficiency in Written Communication Graduates will demonstrate proficiency in written communication

Measures: A1.1: In academic year 2017-18, 60 percent of students referred to developmental composition will successfully meet the established learning outcomes of a subsequent college-level composition course for which their developmental course was a prerequisite.

Developmental Writing

A1.2: Future Measure: In academic year 2017-18, 46 percent of graduates will meet established proficiency levels in composition. With regards to goal A.1.2 of the strategic plan, “In AY 2017-18, 46 percent of graduates will meet established proficiency levels in composition,” the following methodology is recommended. Please note, this plan is written with the assumption that we will not have assessment software available1.

Each spring semester, with Spring 2014 establishing baseline data:

1. Sample A. Each spring semester, a sample of student writing from 200 level courses that are identified as meeting the FLCC learning outcome of writing2 (verifiable from the curriculum maps on the Curriculum Committee intranet site) will be created. Any program not offering a 200 level course meeting the writing outcome in any given spring semester will work with the Assessment office to identify an appropriate course, if possible. No more than 5 total programs can be absent from the sample in any given spring semester. The sample will comprise of the assignment identified by the professor as assessing the writing outcome, from 30% of the students enrolled in these courses, who have filed for graduation and/or have more than 45 credits. The following steps will be taken to create this sample and ensure appropriate representation of the population.

1This outcome may be impacted by the current curricular discussion being undertaken by Academic Assessment. Nonetheless, writing competency will remain an outcome of an FLCC education based on SUNY and Middle States Requirements; a revision to this methodology should be submitted once that discussion and its subsequent resolutions have been concluded. This should not impact the overall sampling plan.

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013* 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

% Passed ENG 101 50% 37% 37% 40% 44% 48% 53% 57% 60%

Targets

Actual

Academic Year 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

% Passed ENG 101 34% 37% 40% 43% 46%

Targets

B. By March 1st of each spring semester all professors teaching 200 level courses with a writing outcome will have been notified, by the Assessment office, that their courses will be part of the strategic plan annual measure of writing proficiency. The faculty will, by this date, submit a copy of the assignment and rubric identified in their course as assessing the writing outcome. This will be used to create an assignment reference book for use during the assessment process and to verify the course in question is not erroneously listed as meeting the FLCC writing outcome. Collection of the assignment and rubric are in no way evaluatory.

C. The Assessment office will furnish a list of spring semester 200 level courses meeting the FLCC writing outcome to the registrar by March 15th each spring semester.

D. The registrar will provide the name and ID number for all students enrolled in the listed courses, who have applied for graduation and/or have more than 45 credits. It is expected this list will contain circa 1200 students’ names. In addition to this list, the registrar will deliver an excel database with the following demographics for each student listed:

i. Program area ii. Year/Semester of first enrollment iii. High School iv. High School GPA v. Full-time/Part-time vi. Total number of semesters enrolled at time of data pull (e.g. 6 semesters) vii. Developmental Studies in Reading viii. Developmental Studies in Writing ix. Developmental Studies in Mathematics x. Gender xi. Race xii. Ethnicity xiii. Home language xiv. First generation status xv. Military status

E. By April 1st each spring semester, the Assessment office will provide each course instructor (meeting the above explained criteria) with a list of the students who have applied for graduation and/or have more than 45 credits and are enrolled in the instructor’s class. At this time the instructor will also be given a coversheet for each student. This coversheet will contain the student’s name, program area, student ID number and enrolled course name/number/section number. The instructor should make a copy of the instructor identified assignment meeting the writing outcome from each of the students listed. All of the copies must be kept in a locked office until they are delivered to the Assessment office by May 20th each spring semester.

F. By June 1st each spring semester the Assessment office, in conjunction with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness will create a stratified sample of 30% of the collected artifacts. The sample will be stratified based on program area. Stratification will achieve representation, within the sample, proportional to the actual enrollment of students in the program (e.g. if 10% of graduates are from the Liberal Arts program, then 10% of the 30% sample should be from students in the Liberal Arts program). Actual stratification will occur by hand. Artifacts will be divided into each program area and numbered. A random number generator will be used to select the artifacts from each program in proportion to the stratification guidelines.

G. Once stratification is complete, the artifacts included in the sample will be blinded. A database key connecting the number assigned to each artifact and the student’s actual name and student D number will be created. This will be stored in password protected format on a computer in the Assessment office and backed up, in a password protected format, in the Office of Institutional Effectiveness. All artifacts not being used in the sample will be shredded immediately.

2. Assessment Process A. In the first year of the plan (Spring 2014) a group of 4-8 faculty with expertise in writing (primary appointment area in writing, English, language, developmental studies, education or other areas as approved by AVP for Instruction and Assessment) will be convened to create a writing rubric for assessment of the artifacts collected to measure this goal. The rubric will be piloted on collected assignments not used in the actual assessment. The existing ENG 103 and Writing Rubric from American Association of Colleges and Universities will be used as guidelines.

B. By June 15th of each academic year, a group of 10-12 faculty, including adjuncts, with expertise in writing will be convened to norm and assess the sample. This will be a 3 day process with faculty and adjunct paid for 3 days of work. Day 1 will involve professional development in writing to learn as a principle of writing in content areas. There will also be professional development on assessment and using the rubric. The second part of Day 1 and as necessary Day 2 will be a norming process. Day 2 and 3 will be group assessment with faculty having 1 additional week to finish assessing their circa 36 artifacts. After all assessing is completed the Assessment office will create a random 5% sample to be re-assessed by a second assessor. Faculty participating in this second assessment round will be compensated for 1 day pay. The Assessment office in collaboration with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness will compute interater reliability using intraclass correlation (ICC). ICC is the appropriate statistical tool to assess consistency of measures of the same item, made by different observers, as in this case.

3. Data analysis A. All data will be entered from the assessment scoring into excel. Clerical support, with expertise in excel, will be provided to the Assessment office for this task. The Assessment office and the Office of Institutional Effectiveness will convert the excel data to SPSS or other relevant statistical software as needed.

B. Descriptive statistics counting the number of students in the sample whose portfolio achieve a proficient or higher on the rubric. Subsequently post-hoc analysis using Chi Square, and when appropriate T-tests will examine the influence of any of the demographic factors on writing proficiency.

C. The yearly summative report on goal A.1.2 will be written jointly by the Assessment office and the Office of Institutional Effectiveness by July 15th of each year. Report will be read for face validity by 2 writing faculty and the AVP of Instruction and Assessment prior to its public release. A formal presentation to the faculty will be made with the results and a follow up committee will use the data to inform continuous improvement.

4. Other considerations A. While portfolio driven assessment is a best practice in the assessment of writing, it should be noted that this measurement plan only provides a summative report. Creating the infrastructure to have a pre-measure of writing (initial work in 101, for example) and continuous measures (key writing artifacts across program) will yield a more nuanced understanding of our students’ writing proficiency.

B. It should be noted that this remains a guideline. After the initial baseline data are collected, a detailed report of the collection and analysis process will be written. Changes to the process that result from this report will be noted in the research book for the strategic plan.

Operational GoalsOperational Goal One: Financial Strength The College will strengthen its financial position by improving the efficiency of its operations, identifying new sources of revenue and increasing philanthropic support, thereby enabling investments in innovative programs and college-wide improvements.

Measures: O1.1: The 2017 annual audited financial statement will show unrestricted net assets as of August 31, 2017 between 7 and 10 percent of budget.

[Note: unrestricted net assets = fund balance + Board designated net assets]

Targets

Net assets are defined as total assets minus liabilities and unrestricted net assets are those net assets that have no restrictions placed on their use or those that are temporarily restricted for a particular purpose by the Board of Trustees. Fund balance is the accumulation of revenues minus expenditures over time. In most cases the fund balance plus Board designated funds will equal unrestricted net assets.

Methodology: Upon receipt of the college’s audited financial statements the unrestricted net assets will be reported from the balance sheet and compared to the target.

O1.2: In 2017-18, annual grants, scholarships and operating support of the College from the Office of Resource Development will increase by at least $325,000 over the base year of 2013-14.

Grants are monies received from an agency of the government, organization or foundation for a specified purpose with certain obligations on the part of the recipient. Scholarships are defined as monies given to the College for students for their education; the student must usually meet certain qualifications to be eligible to receive the funds. Operating support refers to purchases made or support provided to the College through Foundation raised funds in the given year.

Methodology: At the end of the College’s fiscal year, a report will be prepared that details the amount provided to the college from grants, scholarships and other operating support and compared to the target.

8/31/13 8/31/14 8/31/15 8/31/16 8/31/17

9.1% 9.9% 7.1% 6.9% 7.1%

Academic Year 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Total Raised $2,210,124 $2,236,384 $2,316,384 $2,396,384 $2,476,384 $2,561,384

Targets

Actual

Operational Goal Two: Institutional Effectiveness The College will develop and implement systems and processes that lead to continuous improvement in support of the College’s strategic plan.

Measures: O 2.1: Annually, the Institutional Effectiveness Dashboard will indicate positive trends in 80 percent of selected measures of institutional effectiveness as established by the American Association of Community Colleges.

The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) is “the primary advocacy organization for the nation’s community colleges. The association represents nearly 1,200 two-year, associate degree-granting institutions and more than 13 million students” (AACC, 2014). To view the AACC website visit www.aacc.nche.edu/About/. The AACC partnered with community college leaders to create the Voluntary Framework of Accountability (VFA). The VFA “is the principle accountability framework for community colleges with measure defined to encompass the full breadth of the community college mission and the diversity of students’ goals and educational experience” (VFA, 2014). Over 60 community college leaders worked for 18 months to develop the VFA, which underwent an extensive pilot process. The VFA Brochure and VFA Metric Manual are excellent resources for explaining the measures and what the VFA hopes to accomplish. (www.aacc.nche.edu/Resources/aaccprograms/vfa_archive/Pages/default.aspx)

The Institutional Effectiveness Dashboard was created using the VFA is the framework. Dr. Deborah Ortloff (Director of Academic Assessment) and Mary McLean-Scanlon (Director of Institutional Effectiveness) went through each VFA metric to determine if they were measureable using available data and if they aligned with the strategic plan goals. This alignment is crucial because the Institutional Effectiveness Dashboard’s purpose is to show trends of measure related to each strategic plan goal so the college has real time data to see if interventions (strategic plan projects) are having an impact.

The metrics of the Institutional Effectiveness Dashboard are as follows (note all metric definitions are the definitions in the VFA Metric Manual):

Metric Strategic Plan Goal Alignment Target Trend

% of students who attempt first developmental Writing course A 1.1

% of students who complete highest level developmental Writing course A 1.1

% of developmental Writing students that attempt English 101 A 1.1

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

% Positive Trends n/a n/a n/a n/a 55% 60% 65% 75% 80%

54%

Targets

Actual

Metric Strategic Plan Goal Alignment Target Trend

% of developmental Writing credit hours successfully completed by cohort A 1.1

$ of grants received to date* O 1.2

$ of scholarships received by FLCC students* O 1.2

$ of operating support provided by the FLCC Foundation* O 1.2

% of students that reach credit thresholds by end of year two (24=part-time, 42=full-time) SG 1.1

% of students that are retained from fall to spring SG 1.1

% of credit hours successfully completed at end of year two SG 1.1

# of students earning an associate degree with a transfer path (AA’s and AS’s) SG 1.1

# of students earning an associate degree with a career path (AAS’s) SG 1.1

# of students earning a certificate SG 1.1

% of students who are still enrolled during the 4th academic year SG 1.1

% of students who left institution after one year, no award, no transfer, with 25+ credits SG 1.1

% of students who left institution after one year, no award, no transfer, with <25 credits SG 1.1

Number of awards in CTE SG 1.2

# of CTE credentials awarded with accreditation SG 1.2

Non-credit workforce enrollment SG 1.2

Number of state/industry-recognized credentials SG 1.2

% of students who complete TASC SG 1.3

% of TASC students who enrolled in more education SG 1.3

# of Fall students enrolled in Gemini courses SG 2.1

# of Spring Students enrolled in Gemini courses SG 2.1

% of high school students that take Accuplacer as Junior that place in college writing* SG 2.2a

% of high school students that take Accuplacer as Junior that place in college mathematics (College Alegebra, Pre-Calculas, or Calculus) SG 2.2b

* Measure is not part of the VFA but was added so that SG 2.2b would have dashboard metrics that aligned and informed progess of that goal. ** Note: O 1.1 does not have a measure in the IE Dashboard due to the complexity of calculating unrestricted new assets

Strategic GoalsStrategic Goal One: Student Completion

The College will contribute to sustainable futures for our students and the cultural and economic vitality

of the region by increasing the number of certificates, degrees or other credentials our students complete.

Measures:

S1.1: In academic year 2017-18, the College will confer a total of 1,254

certificates and degrees, an increase of 20% from base year 2012–13.

A certificate is a credential which requires up to 30 credit hours to complete. A degree requires (##) credit hours to complete. An academic year begins with the Fall semester and ends at the conclusion of summer semester.

Methodology: Each academic year credit degrees and certificates conferred will be tallied and percent change* from base year, 2012-2013, will be calculated. Students that earned multiple degrees/certificates during the academic year will have each credential counted separately.

*Percent change formula: = (new value-original value)/original value*100

S1.2: The College will award 767 state or industry recognized credentials

in academic year 2017–18, an increase of 12% from base year 2012–13.

Non-credit programs are housed in the office of Professional Development and Continuing Education. An academic year begins with the Fall semester and ends at the conclusion of summer semester.

Methodology: Each academic year non-credit credentials awarded will be tallied and percent change* from base year, 2012-2013, will be calculated. Students that earned multiple non-credit credentials during the academic year will have each credential counted separately.

*Percent change formula: = (new value-original value)/original value*100

Academic Year 2009 2010 2012 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

PDCE 249 245 315 362 478 317 489 504 519 535

Targets

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Associate and Certificates 878 943 981 1043 1075 1107 1150 1201 1254

933

Targets

Actual

S1.3: The College’s program for students seeking a New York State High School

Equivalency (HSE) diploma through the new Test Assessing Secondary

Completion (TASC) will award 70 HSE credentials in academic year 2017–18.

*notes when test became TASC from GED

The Test Assessing Secondary Completion (www.tasctest.com) is “a state-of-the-art and affordable national high school equivalency assessment that assesses five subject areas including Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. It measures examinees’ levels of achievement relative to that of graduating high school seniors, and career and college readiness, as outlined by the Common Core State Standards” (TASC, 2014). TASC has replaced General Education Development (GED) testing in New York State. An academic year begins with the Fall semester and ends at the conclusion of summer semester.

Methodology: Each academic year the number of HSE diploma’s awarded through TASC will be tallied.

Strategic Goal Two: Regional Educational Leadership

The College will provide regional educational leadership by partnering with service area school

districts to strengthen the educational pipeline. The College will align non-credit and credit programs

in support of regional workforce needs.

Measures:

S2.1: In academic year 2017-18, 2,850 high school students will enroll in Gemini courses,

and increase of 43% from base year 2012-13.

In Fall 2014 Gemini courses become free to students. Cost has been a prohibitory factor for many high school students. Thus, the college expects enrollment in Gemini courses to increase with cost no longer acting as a barrier to enrollment.

Methodology: Each academic year the number of students completing Gemini courses will be tallied and the percent change* from base year, 2012-2013, will be calculated. Complete is defined as receiving a grade of C or better. ‘C’ is thelowest grade eligible for transfer to post-secondary institutions.

*Percent change formula: = (new value-original value)/original value*100

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014* 2015 2016 2017 2018

GED/TASC 98 86 73 101 70 45 55 60 70

115

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014* 2015 2016 2017 2018

Gemini Registrants n/a n/a n/a 1991 2014 2696 2856 2877 2850

2071

Targets

Targets

Actual

Actual

S2.2: a. The percent of first-time full-time students from service area high schools that place into

a college level composition course will increase annually.

FLCC tests math, reading, and writing skills of new students using the Accuplacer test by College Board (accuplacer.collegeboard.org). “Accuplacer is a suite of computerized tests that determines your knowledge in math, reading and writing as you prepare to enroll in college-level courses” (College Board, 2014). For information regarding the cut off scores FLCC uses for math and writing placement, see appendix.

Methodology: Each academic year the percent change* of Accuplacer reading and writing scores of first –time, full-time service area high school graduates matriculating at FLCC, will be calculated in comparison to the previous academic year. College level composition Accuplacer cut scores are currently defined as 86 or above on the Sentence Skills test and 79 and above on Reading Comprehension test.

*Percent change formula: = (new value-original value)/original value*100

b. The percent of first-time full-time students from service area high schools that place into

a college-level mathematics class as required in their academic program will increase annually.

[Note: The placement process is under review. Specific targets will be established after

the pilot study is complete.]

S2.3: In academic year 2017-18, the College will have in place five internal articulation agreements

between non-credit and credit offerings.

Methodology: Each academic year the number of internal articulation agreements between non-credit and credit offerings will be tailed.

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014* 2015 2016 2017 2018

% placed college level 56% 57% 59% 61% 63% TBD TBD TBD TBD

68%

Academic Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014* 2015 2016 2017 2018

Articulation Agreements 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 5

1

Targets

Targets

Actual

Actual

Appendix I Placement Test Results (Updated: 8.22.13) Reading Writing

*May have DST 092 as a corequisite if reading score is 78 or below.

Mathematics (Placement Level)

Mathematics (Completed Courses C- Or Better)

Music

Level Course Cut off Scores

Level 1 DST 092 Foundational Reading 78 and below on Reading Comprehension test

No reading course 79 and above on Reading Comprehension test

Level Course Cut off Scores

Level 1 DST 095 Foundation Writing 75 and below on Sentence Skills test

Level 1 DST 095 Foundation Writing/Gray Zone (eligible to write essay) 76-85 on Sentence Skills test

Level 2* ENG 101 Freshman English 86 and above on Sentence Skills test

Level 3 ENG 104 Honors English 106 (reading) + 112 (sentence skills)

Level Course Cut off Scores

1 MUS 105 Basic Musicianship Below 13

2 MUS 106 Music Theory I 13 and over

Level Course Cut off Scores

Level 0 DST 042 Fundamentals of Math 30 and below on Elementary Algebra test

Level 1 DST 043 Intermediate Algebra 31-60 on Elementary Algebra test

Level 1 and higher MAT 121 Statistics I 31-60 on Elementary Algebra test or better

Level 2 MAT 145 College Algebra 61 and above on Elementary Algebra (and 39 or less on College Level Math test (if taken))

Level 3 MAT 152 Pre-Calculus 40-80 on College Level Math test

Level 4 MAT 271 Calculus I 81 or greater on the College Level Math test

Any LevelMAT101 College Mathematics IMAT 110 Business Mathematics

MAT 180 Math for Elem. Teach. IN.A.

Course Completed/Prerequisite Qualifies Student To Register For:

No math course successfully completed DST 042 Fundamentals of Math

DST 042 Fundamentals of Math DST 043 Intermediate Algebra

DST 042 Fundamentals of Math MAT 121 Statistics I

DST 043 Intermediate Algebra MAT 145 College Algebra

MAT 145 College Algebra MAT 152 Pre-Calculus

MAT 152 Pre-Calculus MAT 271 Calculus I

Appendix IIAdvising Into Mathematics Courses (effective for students entering Fall 2012)

MAT 101 College Mathematics and MAT 110 Business Mathematics do not have pre-requisites, and do not require Math placement. These courses meet minimum requirements for programs that do not specify a particular MAT course. These courses do not prepare a student for a future study in any area of Mathematics or the Sciences. Students are advised to check requirements at 4-year institutions to which they may transfer. These courses do carry SUNY Gen Ed credit and are suitable for many students who do not wish to pursue further mathematics or science courses.

MAT 180 Math for Elementary Teachers I does not require Math placement. While this course does earn a student MAT credit, it should only be taken by students pursing programs related to this. The course does not carry SUNY Gen Ed credit.

MAT 121 Statistics I requires Math placement, as given in the chart below. This course is suitable for students in programs that specify this course and students whose programs do not specify a particular MAT course. This course does carry SUNY Gen Ed credit and is suitable for many students pursing degrees in social sciences and other programs.

MAT 145 College Algebra, MAT 152 Pre-Calculus and MAT 271 Calculus I all require Math placement, as given in the chart below. These courses earn MAT credit, but should only be taken by students whose programs or transfer institutions require them. These courses also carry SUNY Gen Ed credit.

DST 042 Fundamentals of Math and Algebraic Skills and DST 043 Intermediate Algebra do not earn a student MAT credit or SUNY Gen Ed credit. These courses should only be taken by students that need to take MAT 121, MAT 145, MAT 152 or higher, or certain Science class and are placed into them because of the placement exam.

*Achieving various Math Levels is determined by a student’s scores on the ACCUPLACER Elementary Algebra test and the ACCUPLACER College Level Math test as follows:

Level 0 = 30 or less on the Elementary Algebra test Level 1 = 31-60 on the Elementary Algebra test Level 2 = 61 or greater on the Elementary Algebra test and 39 or less on the College Level Math test Level 3 = 40-80 on the College Level Math test Level 4 = 81 or greater on the College Level Math test

Students may register for: If student has achieved: OR has met the prerequisite:

DST 042 Fundamentals of Mathematics Level 0*

MAT 121 Statistics I Level 1* or higher C- or higher in DST 042

DST 043 Intermediate Algebra Level 1* C- or higher in DST 042

MAT 145 College Algebra Level 2* C- or higher in DST 043

MAT 152 Pre-Calculus Level 3* C- or higher in MAT 145

MAT 271 Calculus 1 Level 4* C- or higher in MAT 152