Excerpts from:
Report to the
Faculty, Administration, Trustees, Students
of
ALFRED STATE COLLEGE
by
An Evaluation Team representing the
Middles States Commission on Higher Education
Prepared after study of the institution’s Self-Study report
and visit to the campus on February 27 – March 2, 2005
regarding: Assessment and General Education
(full document found at: http://web.alfredstate.edu/assessment/MiddleStates/MSReport2005.pdf
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STANDARD 7: Institutional Assessment
STANDARD 14: Assessment of Student Learning
Alfred State College meets these standards.
Summary of Evidence and Findings
Examination of the Self-Study, review of various materials, and participation in a series of
interviews with administrators, faculty, staff, and students suggest that Alfred State has a
clear understanding of and is showing development in student learning and institutional
assessment. However, engagement in a process of institutional assessment is not as
evident as student learning assessment. Fundamental elements:
• Expectations of student learning are visible in course syllabi, program descriptions,
goals and objectives, the General Education Plan, and Core Competencies. Additionally,
the institution notes that it expects its students to become “intentional learners,”
• The Team notes that the institution engages in a variety of assessments of student
learning guided by a very comprehensive campus-wide assessment plan that
incorporates the General Education Assessment Plan. Both plans reflect the College’s
mission
and goals, have campus-wide input, are consistent with the SUNY Assessment Initiative
and are discipline-centered for the improvement of teaching and learning. The General
Education Assessment Plan, which has gone through several iterations, was developed
by the Faculty Senate.
• Departments/programs report using various types of course and curricular student
learning assessment activities, to include pre- and post tests, portfolios, course
embedded examinations, project assessments, research papers, and assessments
mandated by
relative program accrediting agencies, to assess student learning. Some departments
report reviewing student job placement in their disciplines as a part of their overall
learning outcome indicators.
• Student learning outcomes data is submitted from departments to deans. It is not clear
to the faculty what is done with the data and analyses.
• The comprehensive assessment plan includes guidelines for assessing non-academic
areas, including Student Affairs, Administrative Affairs, Marketing and Enrollment and
Institutional Advancement.
• Student Affairs and Marketing/Enrollment Divisions are engaged in ongoing assessment
of student expectations, opinions and satisfactions, using standardized instruments (i.e.,
CIRP, HERI), interviews, service evaluations, and focus groups.
Significant Accomplishments, Significant Progress, or Exemplary/Innovative Practices
• Alfred State College has a visible, clearly articulated plan for assessing student learning
outcomes at various levels.
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• Alfred State College has made a commitment for a Director of Assessment.
• In a relatively short time, Alfred State College has encouraged active faculty buy-in and
participation in the student learning outcomes assessment process.
• The Team notes that some departments have formed assessment committees, which
may include Alfred State College members outside of the department and representative
local employers, to examine and make recommendations on student learning outcomes.
• Non-academic areas are included in the assessment process.
Suggestions for Improvement
1. Provide more consistent and systematic feedback to units regarding their
assessment efforts. Share best practices with the campus.
2. Demonstrate the use of results in institutional as well as programmatic
decision-making.
3. Establish a research and assessment office, staffed with an assessment director
and a director of institutional research.
4. Develop a more comprehensive plan for assessing institutional effectiveness.
5. Continue to make Alfred State College assessment more systemic and less
fragmented.
Standard 11: Educational Offerings
Standard 12: General Education
Alfred State College meets these standards.
Summary of Evidence and Findings
Based on a review of the Self-Study, other institutional documents, and interviews with
administrators, faculty, students, and others, the team developed the following
conclusions relative to this standard:
Alfred State College is an institution in transition from a two-year institution offering
Associate degree programs, to a College of Technology that offers two-year and four-year
programs with plans to expand the Baccalaureate Degree offerings while reducing the
number of Associate Degree programs. The faculty profile is in a state of transition as
faculty requirements change with the increased offering of four-year degrees. On the
other hand, as the College continues to prepare graduates for the workplace, it is
important that faculty in these programs has professional experience in addition to
academic credentials.
Programs offered and their curricula are appropriate to the College’s Mission.
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The College has a well established approval process that takes into consideration factors
that lead to sound course offerings. Assessments of student learning and program
outcomes are used to assure continued quality. Student performance on National
licensing exams, as well as program accreditation by external agencies, provide
continuous improvement feedback. General Education requirements are mandated by the
SUNY Board of Trustees, and vary for different degree designations. As the College is
expanding its offering of Baccalaureate Degree programs, a change from BT degree to
the BS
degree has increased the number of required General Education courses,
necessitating in some cases a reduction in the number of credits in the major.
Significant Accomplishments, Significant Progress, or Exemplary/Innovative Practices
• Increased number of Baccalaureate programs
• Goals of academic programs, as per the new mission for the College, demand an
integrated approach to providing a rigorous curriculum. This approach will enhance the
overall quality of education at the institution.
• Emphasis on acquiring information literacy skills in the English courses is an important
educational component.
• The designation of upper- and lower-level General Education courses is an important
step towards clarifying the General Education offerings.
• Plans for providing programs that will allow students enrolled in AOS Degree programs
to continue their education towards a Baccalaureate Degree are very desirable.
• The great strength of Hinkle Library is the dedication of its staff. The librarians and
classified personnel are highly regarded by both the College faculty and administration,
and despite years of inadequate library funding, the staff never lost sight of their vision of
what the library could be, and they are now poised to revitalize the facility and services.
• The librarians’ role in university governance (three of the five are on the Senate, and
one is a member of the Curriculum Development Committee) is commendable, and
important to the success of the library.
• $300,000 has recently been set aside for the first stage of a library renovation. While
this is only a first step, it is the beginning a very broad discussion of the role and evolution
of the library as it relates to the evolving university mission. While short-term critical
needs have already been identified, conversations are beginning about using library
space not only as an “information commons,” but possibly as a site for professional
development space for faculty and staff, an active learning classroom, a dedicated space
for intentional learning, and even collocation of other academic support services.
Suggestions for Improvement
1. A maximum number of credits in programs should be established.
2. All courses satisfying General Education requirements should be clearly
identified.
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3. An assessment of learning resources, facilities and instructional equipment,
needs to be made in order to ascertain adequacy as the College continues to
increase the offering of four-year programs.
4. The creation of new 4-year programs offers the opportunity to develop
comprehensive upper-division information literacy experiences that can build
directly on the strong foundation of the information literacy experiences in English
classes.
5. As the campus creates its own general education assessment pretests and
post-tests, information skills assessment could be included in those instruments.
6. Long-term library budget planning should be based on benchmarking
with peer institutions, including aspirational peers.
7. Staffing levels are a significant challenge for the library. With five librarians,
including the Library Director, everyone must perform multiple functions. As was
noted in the 1999 Periodic Review Report, the small clerical complement (four,
with one located in Wellsville) makes it necessary for the librarians to perform
duties that they could delegate in other environments.
8. As Alfred State makes progress toward its institutional goals, pressure on the
library staff can only build. Increasing the number of students, and, in particular,
increasing upper division and general education courses, will lead to additional
library instruction sections, and more public service activity in general. New
programs will bring with them new needs. As the library acquisitions budgets grow,
and if external funding initiatives are successful, there will be more materials to
select, process, and manage. The library has been able to gain some economies
and efficiencies, in particular as part of SUNY’s shared online catalog and shared
database procurement (SUNYConnect), but any new initiative can only be
undertaken with the recognition that the library staff resources are already severely
stretched.
9. The liaison program between librarians and departments and schools should be
reassessed and reinvigorated. The mechanisms for requesting instructional
equipment might serve as a local model of an open, inclusive process.
10. Electronic resources would be more accessible if there were a direct link from
the Alfred State homepage to the Hinkle library homepage.
11. Any new plans for the Hinkle library should also address the role and needs of
the library at the Wellsville campus, sensitive to the needs of the Wellsville
students and faculty.
12. As the use of Blackboard increases, the activities of librarians in working with
classroom faculty to take full advantage of Blackboard resources and to use
Blackboard to enhance access to library instructional materials should be
supported.
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