Alice Interactive Mathematics 1 Maple as a Tool for Selfstudy and Evaluation.
Conclusion - library.com.edulibrary.com.edu/COMHistory/SelfStudy/2004/ssr_Conclusion.pdf ·...
Transcript of Conclusion - library.com.edulibrary.com.edu/COMHistory/SelfStudy/2004/ssr_Conclusion.pdf ·...
Conclusion 7-1
Conclusion1
The Steering Committee, working with the self-study principal committees,2
includes the following recommendations, suggestions, proposals for3
improvement, and commendations within sections 1-6 of this report.4
SECTION I: PRINCIPLES AND PHILOSOPHY OF ACCREDITATION5
Recommendations6
1. The Committee recommended involvement of the Board of Trustees7
(RSP 81). As a result, President Hayes provided regular updates and8
copies of the self-study report drafts to the Board of Trustees.9
2. The Committee recommended that the College revise the Policy FLD10
Local to reflect changes in the procedure (RSP 77). The President’s11
Cabinet assigned responsibility to Vice President for Student Services12
and Institutional Effectiveness Pam Davenport.13
14
Suggestions15
None16
17
Proposals for Improvement18
None19
20
Commendations21
1. If an employer decides a student who has completed the program lacks22
these skills, College of the Mainland will provide additional skill23
training tuition-free (College of the Mainland 2001-2002 Catalog, “The24
Guarantee Plan” 11). For further details see Self-Study Section 4. The25
Committee commends the college for its Guarantee Plan.26
27
Conclusion 7-2
1
SECTION II: INSTITUTIONAL PURPOSE2
Recommendations3
None4
5
Suggestions6
1. The Committee suggested that the College develop a formal mechanism7
to ensure that the Vision and Mission Statements appear in all8
publications where their inclusion would be appropriate (RSP 87). The9
President’s Cabinet approved this suggestion and assigned the Director10
of Public Relations the lead responsibility in developing this11
mechanism.12
13
Proposals for Improvement14
None15
16
Commendations17
None18
19
SECTION III: INSTITUTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS20
Recommendations21
None22
23
Suggestions24
None25
Conclusion 7-3
1
Proposals for Improvement2
1. Early in 2001, the self-study Steering Committee proposed that3
suggestion boxes be placed in convenient locations around campus so4
that students, staff, and community members have a chance to5
informally communicate improvement ideas. The office of the vice6
president for student services and institutional effectiveness monitors7
this process to make sure that the suggestions are collected regularly and8
channeled to the appropriate administrator for action.9
2. The Committee proposes that the College develop an institutional10
training plan that outlines and prioritizes training needs for the College,11
including those related to institutional effectiveness, professional12
development, governance, and technology issues (RSP 90).13
3. The Committee proposes the production and publication of a brief team14
administration manual that includes the annual (or otherwise scheduled)15
procedures each team must follow to assure that the business of the16
College is adequately and appropriately addressed. The contents might17
include procedures for keeping and disseminating required records,18
instructions and submission schedules for required reports, an19
explanation of which councils and committees each team should20
participate in, guidelines for minimum number of team meetings each21
month or semester, and any other helpful information for day-to-day and22
year-to-year team functioning (RSP 71).23
4. In response to a self-study Steering Committee proposal, the Senate24
passed a new College policy that approves the establishment of25
InfoCentral, a shared electronic folder, accessible to all employees, that26
includes meeting minutes, governance documents, and27
forms/publications for all campus entities, including teams and councils.28
Campus-wide training for InfoCentral will begin during spring 200329
convocation week.30
Conclusion 7-4
1
Commendations2
None3
4
SECTION IV: EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM5
Recommendations6
1. The Committee recommends that the College develop a formal7
procedure that includes credit guidelines (including required learning8
outcomes), documentation procedures, and assessment safeguards9
before offering credit for prior experiential learning. The Committee10
recommends that the College not initiate awarding such credit until11
these safeguards are in place (RSP 91).12
2. The Committee recommended that a complete list of majors or areas of13
concentration appear at the beginning of the Workforce Education14
Programs section of the catalog (RSP #39). The Administration15
approved this change; the 2002-2003 Catalog includes a comprehensive16
list of the specific workforce programs available to students (2002-200317
Catalog 111).18
3. Graduation requirements published in the 2001-2002 Catalog contained19
a computational error in the required number of credit hours that a20
student must earn to complete an AA or AS degree at College of the21
Mainland. The Committee recommended that this graduation22
requirement be revised in future catalogs to state, “25% of semester23
credit hours toward all associate degrees must be earned at College of24
the Mainland” (RSP 39). The 2002-2003 Catalog complies with this25
criterion (92, 104, 110).26
4. The Committee recommended that the Academic Master Plan should27
include a comprehensive Distance Learning Plan (including distance28
education delivery components), just as it references a Developmental29
Education Plan, and that the Academic Master Plan or a Distance30
Learning Plan should contain procedures for programmatic and31
Conclusion 7-5
curricular changes as they relate to all categories of distance learning1
(RSP 42). Vice President for Instruction James Templer approved the2
recommendation with changes noted, stating the Academic Master Plan3
references the Developmental Education Plan because developmental4
education is one of the College missions. Distance education is a5
delivery method and is referred to as such in the AMP. The AMP6
should refer readers to the Online Learning Plan, but details do not need7
to be in the AMP. The Curriculum Committee is charged with8
coordinating and reviewing curricular changes. Vice President Templer9
plans to meet with the Curriculum Committee to discuss the integration10
of guidelines for all distance learning categories into a Distance11
Learning Plan. Templer envisions this as the responsibility of the12
Distance Education Committee, which he thinks, should be a task force13
for the Curriculum Committee. He states that the Curriculum14
Committee is the key to integrating all instructional plans (email from15
Templer to Distance Education Self-Study Committee dated 4/8/02).16
5. The Committee recommended a formal mechanism for the analysis and17
application of evaluation data (including data for distance education) be18
addressed as part of the Academic Master Plan and/or the Online19
Learning Plan (RSP 52). Vice President for Instruction James Templer20
approved this recommendation and stated that instructional evaluation21
will be added to the Academic Master Plan. Program review, as22
described in Article 5 of the AMP (10-30-02), will contribute to a more23
effective use of internal and external data.24
6. The faculty members who teach developmental math, reading, and25
writing have requested that Institutional Research provide data on26
developmental students’ success on their second attempt at TASP and in27
their college-level classes, including the “B” rule classes. The28
Committee concurs and recommends that Institutional Research track29
developmental students’ success on their second attempts at TASP and30
in their academic courses following their completion of the31
developmental course sequence (RSP 6, 31).32
Conclusion 7-6
7. The developmental math and reading/writing faculties are located in1
different parts of the campus, making communication and collaboration2
challenging. The Committee believes that they should be housed3
together to ease communication and facilitate the coordination of the4
entire developmental program and that the combined teams would5
create an environment more conducive to study; make advisement,6
counseling, and tutorial assistance more readily available; and facilitate7
the implementation of the Developmental Education Plan (RSP 72).8
8. The Committee recommended that the College develop information9
and/or orientation materials for both faculty and students at remote sites10
(RSP 83). Acting Associate Vice President for General Education11
Andrew Nelson, with the assistance of Joan Fiesel from continuing12
education, is currently adapting the Continuing Education Handbook for13
remote sites to meet the needs of faculty and students at off-campus14
learning centers.15
9. Since the last self-study, applicants have been required to sign a form16
stating that English is their “primary language.” The Committee17
recommended that the College modify the current proficiency statement18
to read that the employee is “proficient” in oral and written19
communication, not that English is their “primary language.” The20
President’s Cabinet approved the recommendation, assigning21
responsibility for correction to associate vice president for human22
resources, Gene Connors (RSP 46).23
10. The Committee recommends that the College review DLA Local and24
the Adjunct Faculty Handbook to assure that guidelines and procedures25
concerning the evaluation and supervision of adjunct faculty are up-to-26
date and followed across campus (RSP 58).27
11. The Committee recommends that all teams and individual faculty28
members comply with the established College policies/guidelines29
concerning documentation of the use of professional development funds30
(RSP 49).31
Conclusion 7-7
12. The Committee recommends that all instructional team agreements be1
reviewed to ensure that they include a procedure regarding special2
assignments and additional duties, including committee and council3
membership. The Committee further proposes that the College maintain4
a list of committee, council, and club sponsorship assignments5
organized by team and team member so that the administration can6
monitor special assignments and ensure that no faculty members are7
carrying an inequitable workload (RSP 99).8
9
Suggestions10
1. The Committee suggests that the College revise ECD Local to include11
the assignment of responsibilities related to awarding credit by12
examination and the methods to assess that credit awarded are13
appropriate (RSP 97).14
2. The Committee suggests that the time requirements stated on page 1 of15
the catalog be repeated under the degree time limit statement (2001-16
2002 Catalog 52) so that students have all relevant information in a17
single catalog section entitled “Graduation Requirements.”18
3. The Committee suggests that the College develop an official procedure,19
including necessary documentation, to assure that all course20
prerequisites are reviewed and updated annually; the Committee further21
suggests that primary responsibility for this task be assigned to22
Terrilynn Rotramel so that the institution can be assured that any23
changes are made to both the catalog and to the course inventory (RSP24
96).25
4. During research, the Committee suggested that the workforce areas26
regularly update SCANS and develop a policy mandating periodic27
updates (RSP 84). As a result, beginning with 2002-2003, all workforce28
program SCANS will be updated by March 1 of each year. The29
planning documents of each program will include this new requirement,30
and the associate vice president for workforce education will monitor31
the process.32
Conclusion 7-8
5. Like the draft of the 2003-2004 Academic Master Plan, the Distance1
Education Plan has not been approved by the administration as of2
November 2002. The Committee suggests that, before either plan is3
approved by the Board of Trustees, the Academic Master Plan be4
revised to include reference to the Distance Education Plan. The5
Committee also suggests that the Distance Education Plan discuss the6
role telecourses should play in future distance learning efforts. The7
Committee proposes that the College’s Academic Master Plan and8
Distance Education Plan include comprehensive goals for distance9
learning, as well as outline college services and student services10
necessary to support all distance learning efforts (RSP 41, 42).11
12
Proposals for Improvement13
1. The Committee proposed creating a syllabus template (RSP 69). This14
recommendation was approved and Associate Vice President for15
General Education Andrew Nelson is currently working on a syllabi16
template for the campus. In addition, he is working with the Computer17
Services Team to study the feasibility of electronic syllabi on the18
campus website.19
2. The Committee proposes that the College enforce GA Local. The20
Committee proposes that all teams submit College publications to the21
Publications and Information Team for review and approval (RSP 92).22
3. The Committee proposes that the College continue to improve the23
services designed to accommodate its distance learning students (RSP24
98).25
4. In order to assure that participants enjoy the best possible experience26
when on campus, the Committee proposed that the College reinstate an27
evening rotation of vice presidents or associate vice presidents at all28
locations (RSP 7). The administration approved this proposal and has29
since named Associate Vice President Bill Raley night administrator,30
Associate Vice President Cissy Matthews as weekend administrator, and31
Conclusion 7-9
Associate Vice President Andrew Nelson as Clear Creek 9th Grade1
Center administrator for fall 2002.2
5. Although it would be difficult to evaluate all community outreach3
activities on campus due to the number of off-campus groups involved,4
the Committee believes that those outreach activities that are5
coordinated by faculty and staff could improve evaluation efforts by6
using a standardized outreach/community program survey at the close of7
each activity, if the location and setting make this feasible. The8
Committee also proposed that one office (such as Institutional Research)9
should act as the collection area for evaluation results (RSP 8).10
President Homer Hayes approved this proposal for further study and11
assigned responsibility for this process to the Continuing Education12
Team and Institutional Research (Community Outreach Evaluation13
Form, Community Outreach Survey, Addendum E).14
6. The Committee proposed that the College hire additional full-time math15
faculty to teach developmental math courses (RSP 74). The Committee16
believes more full-time developmental math faculty would positively17
impact student success in math, increase instructor availability, and18
involve more full-time faculty in developmental curricular decisions and19
committee activities on campus. On June 25, 2002, the President’s20
Cabinet returned this proposal with the following note: “The criteria is21
silent on the proportion of full-time to part-time faculty. An appropriate22
question would be are students achieving the intended outcomes? And if23
not, why not?”24
7. The Committee proposed that the Financial Aid Office and the25
Institutional Advancement Office coordinate efforts with the COM26
Foundation Office to acquire additional grants for supporting student27
tuition.28
8. The Committee finds that the LRC 248 Learning Assistance Center,29
which serves students in developmental reading and writing course, is30
out-of-date when compared to other labs on campus. Of the 5231
computer workstations, only 6 have Internet access, and 20 do not have32
the CD capability to accommodate the most recent versions of33
Conclusion 7-10
instructional software. The Committee proposes the funding of a new1
lab in LRC 248 to replace outdated hardware and software used by2
developmental students (RSP 73).3
9. The developmental math and reading/writing faculties are located in4
different parts of the campus, making communication and collaboration5
challenging. The Committee believes6
a. that they should be housed together to ease communication and7
facilitate the coordination of the entire developmental program8
b. that the combined teams would create an environment more9
conducive to study; make advisement, counseling, and tutorial10
assistance more readily available; and facilitate the11
implementation of the Developmental Education Plan (RSP 72).12
The self-study Continuing Education Committee offered the following proposals13
for further improvements that should have a significant effect on the quality of14
the programs and services offered by CE:15
10. Begin systematic training in COCO1 for all continuing education16
employees concentrating on new hires. Note: The CE Team17
implemented this suggestion and now offers COCO training once a18
month at one of its team meetings.19
11. Implement a part-time faculty orientation and expand professional20
development workshops for all CE faculty, such as “Training the21
Trainer,” “How to Create a Syllabus,” and “What is an Adult Learner?”22
12. Create an annual schedule of publications and courses to streamline23
getting all courses in the schedule and to facilitate better planning for24
continuing education and its students.25
13. Coordinate with director of admissions/registrar, Kelly Musick, to26
update the CE registration form needed to meet new state guidelines,27
including information regarding marital status, income range, and28
1 COCO is the College’s central data management software.
Conclusion 7-11
student disabilities. This form should be reviewed annually and revised1
whenever changes mandated by the state arise.2
14. Develop an employee/employer satisfaction survey form to identify3
strengths and weaknesses of courses designed to meet local business4
needs. Since many businesses request repeat or additional programs,5
one might assume that they are pleased with the courses. However, a6
survey could make a good program even better.7
8
Commendations9
None10
11
SECTION V: EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT SERVICES12
Recommendations13
1. After reviewing current practice, the Committee recommended that the14
College develop a written procedure for weeding out and replacing old15
or out-dated materials (RSP 89). As a result, the Media Services Team16
issued its new procedure on November 14, 2002.17
2. During the self-study, the Committee recommended that the18
administration consider making the professional librarian position a19
tenure-track position (RSP 38). After consideration by the President’s20
Cabinet, the administration informed the Committee that the librarians’21
professional status would remain unchanged.22
3. The Committee recommended that a webmaster be hired to oversee the23
campus’ Internet web needs, a documentation specialist to maintain24
technology documentation standards, and a College software application25
specialist to manage the training of employees on software needs (RSP26
37). The College has funded the webmaster position.27
4. Written documentation outlining the history of changes in information28
technology resources and systems over the last ten years is scarce. The29
Committee recommends that a configuration control document be used30
Conclusion 7-12
to provide documented management over changes to policy,1
infrastructure, hardware, and software (RSP 36).2
5. The Committee recommends that a centralized office be charged with3
identifying training needs and managing technology training at College4
of the Mainland employees (RSP 35).5
6. The Committee recommends that a security policy be designed,6
implemented, and monitored to ensure that future security needs are met7
(RSP 34).8
9
Suggestions10
1. The Committee suggests that the institution explore additional strategies11
to increase participation and input by students in institutional decision-12
making.13
14
Proposals for Improvement15
1. While library and other learning resources are evaluated regularly and16
systematically to ensure that they are meeting the needs of their users17
and are supporting the programs and purpose of the institution, the18
Committee proposes that future campus surveys administered to19
distance learning students include more library-related questions,20
especially those specific to off-campus learning centers (RSP 100).21
Commendations22
1. The Committee commends the library for providing consistently23
superior service.24
2. The Committee commends the College for its incorporation of25
technology into its library and other learning resources.26
3. The Committee commends the College for its student activities27
programs, which contribute to a sense of ownership and responsibility28
by the students.29
Conclusion 7-13
4. The Committee commends Phi Theta Kappa for its outstanding1
accomplishments in the areas of leadership, service, fellowship, and2
spirit. The Committee also commends Phi Theta Kappa advisers Leslie3
Richardson and Cindy Lucas for their superior leadership.4
5. The Student Financial Services Office’s day-to-day and long-term5
procedures will continue to be examined as possible models for other6
teams to follow. The Committee commends them on their fine work7
and efforts to improve service to students in this critical area.8
9
SECTION VI: ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESSES10
Recommendations11
1. After careful review of the following Board Policies BBA Legal (Board12
member eligibility/qualifications), BBB Exhibit (Loyalty Oath), BBF13
Local, BBFA Exhibit, and BBFA Legal (Ethics), and BBG Legal, BBG14
Local, and BBH Local (Board member compensation and expenses),15
the Committee recommends (RSP 10) that the Board of Trustees adopt16
policy with language more closely resembling the language of the SACS17
criterion. In response, the Board of Trustees approved the revision of18
BBF Local on 3-25-02.19
2. The Committee recommended that a systematic assessment process of20
the president and vice presidents be established. The President’s Cabinet21
approved the recommendation. President Homer Hayes stated “DLA22
will be revised this spring/summer to reflect current organization” (RSP23
21).24
3. The Committee recommended that the College keep up-to-date records25
on the locations of former students. College alumni should be26
encouraged to participate in the development of the institution (RSP 76).27
The President’s Cabinet approved the recommendation and assigned28
responsibility to Many Ann Amelang and Heather Flynn.29
30
Conclusion 7-14
Suggestions1
None2
3
Proposals for Improvement4
None5
6
Commendations7
None8
9
10