Program Planning and Assessment (PPA)
for Academic Programs
Comprehensive Review, Annual Review & Action Plan
Spring 2014
The purpose of Program Planning and Assessment at Hartnell College is to obtain an honest and
authentic view of a program and to assess its strengths, opportunities, needs, and connection to the
mission and goals of the college. The process is based on the premise that each academic program
reviews assessment data and uses these data to plan for improvement. The results of these annual
cycles provide data for a periodic (every five years) comprehensive review that shows evidence of
improvement and outlines long-range goals.
The Program Planning and Assessment process will improve and increase the flow of information
about student learning, student success and student behavior at Hartnell College. The result of the
process will also improve institutional effectiveness.
Program/
Discipline
Economics
Date Completed (must be
in final form by 3/31/14)*
3/24/2014
Date Submitted
to Dean
3/24/2014
*Please note that you should work with your colleagues and dean to ensure that this report is
completed, revised as needed, in its final form and submitted no later than the end of March.
Tina Esparza-Luna
List of Contributors, including Title/Position
This PPA report is organized in 3 sections and 11 subsections as follows:
I.
II.
III.
Comprehensive Review – a. Overall Program Effectiveness, b. Instructional Staffing,
c. CTE Programs – Labor Market & Achievement, and d. Program Goals.
Annual Review – a. Course Data & Trends, b. Teaching Modality, c. Curriculum,
d. Outcomes, and e. Previously Scheduled Activities.
Annual Action Plan – a. New Activities and b. Resource Requests.
INSTRUCTIONS
 For programs/disciplines scheduled for comprehensive review in spring
2014, please complete Sections I, II, and III.
 For programs/disciplines scheduled for annual review, please complete
Sections II and III.
I.
COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW
Please complete this section for programs/disciplines scheduled for
comprehensive review in spring 2014. Go to Section II for programs/disciplines
scheduled for annual review in spring 2014.
A. OVERALL PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS
1. Describe your program in terms of its overall effectiveness over the past several
years.
Please consider the questions below in describing your program/discipline/area.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
How are students/employees served by the program?
What are the unique aspects of the program?
How does the program relate to the needs of the community?
How does the program interface/collaborate with other programs on campus?)
What is working well in the program/discipline?
If there is a sequence of courses in your program, what process or framework is used to
ensure alignment?
How is consistency maintained between/among multiple sections of a single course?
Has the program explored alternative scheduling approaches?
Do prerequisites, co-requisites and strongly recommended skills continue to meet program
needs? Are there special considerations regarding capabilities of incoming students?
What professional activities have faculty recently (last three years) participated in?
[Begin response here]
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B. INSTRUCTIONAL STAFFING
1. In the table below enter the number of sections offered and the number of full
time and adjunct faculty in your program/discipline by term over the past several
years.
Term
No. of
Active
Sections
Full-time
Faculty
Adjunct
Faculty
2. What staffing factors/challenges have influenced the effectiveness of the program?
[Begin response here]
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C. CTE PROGRAMS – LABOR MARKET & ACHIEVEMENT
Please complete this section if the program is Career Technical Education
(CTE). Go to subsection D if the program is not CTE.
1. Describe the demonstrated effectiveness on the program over the past several
years with levels and trends of achievement data, including degree/certificate
completions (awards) and employment statistics.
[Begin response here]
2. Describe the number of, activities of, and recommendations resulting from
advisory committee meetings that have occurred over the past two years. What
information and/or data were presented that required or currently require
changes to be made to your program?
(Please attach copies of meeting minutes over the past two years and a list of committee
members and their respective industries/areas.)
[Begin response here]
3. Does labor market data and/or the need for additional education indicate that
changes should be made to your program? Does the program (continue to)
meet a labor market demand and/or fulfill an important step toward
higher/additional education?
[Begin response here]
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D. PROGRAM GOALS
1. List and describe program/disciplinary goals for the next comprehensive
review cycle—Fall 2014 through Fall 2018. Be sure to highlight innovative,
unique, or other especially noteworthy aspects.
A new mission and vision is currently before the board for approval in February. In considering
your program’s future goals, please review the proposed new mission and vision statements.
VISION STATEMENT
Hartnell College will be nationally recognized for the success of our students by
developing leaders who will contribute to the social, cultural, and economic vitality of
our region and the global community.
MISSION STATEMENT
Focusing on the needs of the Salinas Valley, Hartnell College provides educational
opportunities for students to reach academic goals in an environment committed to
student learning, achievement and success.
[List and describe program goals here]
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
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II. ANNUAL REVIEW
This section must be completed for ALL academic programs, including those
scheduled for a comprehensive review in spring 2014.
A. COURSE DATA & TRENDS
1. Please evaluate the 3-year trend of enrollment and success of courses in your
program/discipline. Identify the courses you are choosing to examine this
current year in the list below. You do NOT need to evaluate trends for each
course every year.
Course
Number
ECO 1
ECO 5
Course Name
Principles of Macroeconomics
Principles of Microeconomics
Does the course have any DE
(online or hybrid) sections?
Yes
Yes
Please use the data that have been provided. Analyze trends that you observe with respect to
the data for the identified courses and answer the following questions.
ENROLLMENT
2. Review the enrollment data. Describe and analyze any patterns or anomalies
that you notice. What do you make of these patterns or anomalies? What
actions should be taken to ensure continuous improvement?
For both ECO 1 and ECO 5 we have seen relatively stable enrollment numbers. In Fall 2012,
we saw enrollments up slightly and I believe this is because of a reduced number of sections
offered in other disciplines and so some students were “forced” to take ECO 1 or ECO 5 because
they needed a class and spaces were available. Proportionally, fewer sections of ECO 1 and
ECO 5 were cut because there are so few sections offered already.
SUCCESS
3. Review the success data. Describe and analyze any patterns or anomalies that
you notice. What do you make of these patterns or anomalies? What actions
should be taken to ensure continuous improvement?
In looking at the success rates, we see significant spikes in success rates in Spring 2012 and
Spring 2013.
I believe the reason for increased success in Spring 2012 is because a full time instructor was
hired in Fall 2011 and we began to see the positive impact of this hiring decision.
We have historically seen lower success rates in Fall semester for ECO 1 as compared to
Spring, which I believe partially explains the success rates in Fall 2011 and Fall 2o12. But
specifically in Fall 2012, there were three issues that were observed:
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1.
In ECO 1 we offered 1 face-to-face section and 2 short-semester DE sections and for ECO 5
we offered 1 face-to-face section and 1 full-semester DE section. For ECO 1 we offered
short-semester courses, 1 in a 6-week format and 1 in a 9-week format. Ultimately, these
short-semester DE courses yielded far lower retention and success rates as compared to
full-semester DE equivalent. Moving forward, the recommendation from the discipline is
to only offer DE courses in a full-semester format.
2. Fall 2012 was the first semester that 60% of the ECO courses were offered in the DE
modality. This was determined to be too many DE sections. Since Fall 2012, we have
offered no more than 50% of the courses in the DE modality to best meet student demand.
3. As mentioned in the enrollment numbers, many sections were cut college-wide. However,
proportionally fewer ECO sections were cut as compared to the rest of the college. Because
of this, I believe that there were students who enrolled for the ECO courses solely to get
enough units. Economics is already a demanding discipline for students who have an
interest in the area and for students who are not interested in the subject matter, it would
be doubly difficult. Ultimately, this most likely impacted success rates.
DEGREES AND CERTIFICATES
4. Describe the demonstrated effectiveness of the program over the past several
years with levels and trends of achievement data, such as degree and certificate
completions/awards.
There is not a degree program for Economics.
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B. TEACHING MODALITY
1. Enter the number of Distance Education Courses, both fully online and hybrid
sections, along with the number of full-time and adjunct faculty.
Term
Fall 10
Spring 11
Fall 11
Spring 12
Fall 12
Spring 13
No. of DE/
Online
Sections
0
0
0
2
3
2
No of
Hybrid
Sections
0
0
0
0
0
0
Fulltime
Faculty
0
0
1
1
1
1
Adjunct
Faculty
0
0
0
0
0
0
2. Compare student success in the DE teaching environment with success in the faceto-face teaching environment in the same course. Are there differences? To what
do you ascribe the differences in your program? Discuss any other relevant factors
regarding diverse teaching modalities and environments, such as specific
locations.
There are differences in student retention and success in DE sections vs. face-to-face sections.
The face-to-face sections have higher retention and success rates. This is trend that we see
across the board with all DE courses. There are three issues that were facing the success rates
for the ECO courses of the last few semesters.
1.
The drop policy for online courses at Hartnell. Prior to Fall 2013, the policy did not allow
for instructors to drop students for non-participation. This meant that there were students
that were enrolled in the course for the entire semester, but did not do any of the work.
Ultimately, these students would fail the course and negatively impact the success rate. I
anticipate that we will see an improvement in success rates because of the new drop policy
effective in Fall 2013 that requires active participation in the first 48 hours of the class.
2. As discussed in the course data and trends section above, we had some issues with the
scheduling of the online courses the first couple of semesters that we offered DE courses
(Spring 2012 and Fall 2012). Moving forward, the plan is to offer only 2 DE sections (1
section each of ECO 1 and ECO 5) both in the full-semester format. Early results from Fall
2013 show promise. We will continue to monitor this moving forward.
a. Spring 2012 was the first semester that we offered DE courses and we offered 2 DE
sections of ECO 1; 1 full-semester and 1 as a 6-week short semester course. In this
first semester there was some pent-up demand for the full semester course and so
we got some dedicated students. For the short semester course, we had low overall
enrollments so as a percentage, the success rate looked reasonable.
b. In Fall 2012, we offered too many DE sections (60% of total ECO course offerings)
with 2 DE sections in short semester format. The short semester sections in
particular had very low retention and success rates and pull down the average for
DE sections overall.
3. DE courses in the ECO discipline are relatively new at Hartnell. Spring 2012 was the first
time DE courses were offered and taught by an instructor new to the modality of DE. With
more time and experience on both the side of the instructor and the students, we anticipate
that retention and success will improve over time and we have already seen this begin to
happen.
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3. Describe the process to change and improve student success in DE
courses/sections in your program, and any other relevant factors regarding
diverse teaching modalities and environments, such as specific locations.
As discussed above, we are working on scheduling the appropriate number of ECO courses
along with the appropriate course length. The scheduling has had a major impact on the
student success in these courses. Given the student demand, the current recommendation is to
offer 1 DE section each of ECO 1 and ECO 5 both in the full-semester format for the time being.
If the discipline experiences significant growth, we will have to determine how that will impact
scheduling in the future.
Additionally, the full-time instructor teaching all DE courses is actively participating in
profession development and serves on the DE committee to stay informed about best practices
and strategies to improve student success in the years to come.
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C. CURRICULUM
Complete the following tables pertaining to courses scheduled for review.
Courses scheduled for
review during AY 201314 as previously
specified
ECO 1
ECO 5
Courses scheduled for
review during AY 201415
None
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Faculty member(s)
responsible for
coordinating
Tina Esparza-Luna
Tina Esparza-Luna
Faculty member(s)
responsible for
coordinating
(a) Was the course
reviewed and (b) taken
through the curriculum
process?
Yes
Yes
Date of approval (or
anticipated approval)
by Curriculum
Committee
3/6/2014
3/6/2014
Target semester and
year—Fa 2014 or Sp 2015
D. OUTCOMES
Use your Program Outcome Maps to assist you in this subsection. As you plan your course
assessments, keep the higher level program outcome in mind. While course level assessment
serves the purpose of examining the teaching and learning for that particular course, it also
provides the data that will be viewed collectively for assessment of the associated program
level outcomes.
PROGRAM LEVEL OUTCOMES
1. Please complete the following tables.
List Program level outcome(s)
scheduled for assessment as
previously specified
N/A – ECO does not have a
program
What changes have occurred
in the program/discipline as
a result of dialogue?
List Program level outcome(s)
scheduled for assessment in
AY 14-15
Have your course level
SLOs needed for this
program level outcome
been assessed or
scheduled for assessment?
N/A – ECO does not have a
program
Was the Program
Outcome Assessment
Summary completed?
2. Describe how program level outcomes were specifically addressed by the
program/discipline during the past year.
For example, were data gathered at the course level? Was there review and analysis of the
data? How did the discipline faculty engage in discussion? Were any interventions conducted?
Are there any plans to make changes to certificate/degree programs or improvements in
teaching and student learning?
N/A – ECO does not have a program
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CORE COMPETENCIES
3. Describe how Core Competencies were specifically addressed by the
program/discipline during the past year. For example, were data gathered at
the course level? Was there review and analysis of the data? How did the
discipline faculty engage in discussion? Were any interventions conducted? Are
there any plans to make changes to courses or improvements in teaching and
student learning?
All of the learning objectives from the ECO 1 and ECO 5 courses are tied to one or more core
competencies of the college. For each SLO, there are specific assessments that have been
identified to measure the student learning. At the January 2014 Student Success Conference,
the full-time and adjunct faculty discussed the validity of the SLOs and the assessment criteria
for the Fall 2013 data. Some minor adjustments have been made to the assessment
mechanisms so that the assessment tools better match the SLOs. However, overall it was
determined that the SLOs needed to be updated and this update to the SLOs is taking place in
Spring 2014. Many of the assessment tools are remaining the same, but the SLOs needed to be
re-written.
COURSE LEVEL STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
4. Please complete the following tables.
List courses scheduled for
SLO assessment as previously
specified
ECO 1
ECO 5
In what term was
the course
assessed?
Fall 13/Spring 14
Fall 13/Spring 14
Was the Course
Assessment Summary
Report completed?
Yes (Fall 13 completed)
Yes (Fall 13 completed)
*Note: The plan is to assess at
least 1 SLO from each ECO 1
and ECO 5 each semester
moving forward.
List courses scheduled for
SLO assessment in
AY 2014-15
ECO 1
ECO 5
Faculty member(s)
responsible for
coordinating
Tina Esparza-Luna
Tina Esparza-Luna
Target semester
and year—Fa 2014
or Sp 2015
Fall 14/Spring 15
Fall 14/Spring 15
*Note: The plan is to assess at
least 1 SLO from each ECO 1
and ECO 5 each semester
moving forward.
5. Describe course level assessments results and how they will influence your
plans moving forward.
In looking at the SLO assessment results, some of the results were what we had hoped while
others were below the expectations. The resulted in some changes to the assessment tools and
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now that instructors are aware of the gaps in student learning, there will be more of a focus on
these areas in the future.
The current SLOs were written several years ago and at a time when there was no full-time
ECO faculty, we are not clear who wrote the SLOs and when we tried to use them for
assessment, it was clear that the current SLOs needed to be re-written to better reflect the
content of the course. This has been completed and will be in place for assessment of Fall 2014
SLOs.
6. Describe assessment activities that need to be strengthened or improved. What
are the challenges to achieving these improvements?
At this time the biggest issue had been the revision of the current SLOs. Now that the SLO
revision process is completed, we will have to wait and see what impact that has on the
assessment results.
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E. PREVIOUSLY SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES
This subsection focuses on activities that were previously scheduled. An activity can address many
different aspects of your program/discipline, and ultimately is undertaken to improve or enhance your
program/discipline, and keep it current.
Activity scheduled
What success has
been achieved to
date on this activity?
Will activity
What challenges
existed or continue continue into
AY 14-15?
to exist?
Will activity
continue into
AY 15-16?*
1. Revision of SLOs
Completed
None
2. Revision of
assessment tools
Revised as of
January 2014
Communication
and
implementation of
these assessment
tools to the
adjunct faculty
who need to use
them in their
classes as well.
This activity
will continue
to the extent
that we will
continue to
monitor the
overall
effectiveness
of the SLOs.
This activity
will continue
to the extent
that we will
continue to
monitor the
overall
effectiveness
of the
assessment
tools.
3.
This activity
will continue
to the extent
that we will
continue to
monitor the
overall
effectiveness
of the SLOs.
This activity
will continue
to the extent
that we will
continue to
monitor the
overall
effectiveness
of the
assessment
tools.
* For each activity that will continue into AY 2015-16 and that requires resources, submit a separate
resource request in Section III.
1. Evaluate the success of each activity scheduled, including activities completed and
those in progress. What measurable outcomes were achieved? Did the activities
and subsequent dialogue lead to significant change in student learning or program
success?
Both of the scheduled activities have been successful so far because the SLOs are getting
revised now and the assessment tools were modified in January 2014 and distributed to the
adjunct faculty for use.
It is too soon to tell the impact of these activities, so we will have to continue to monitor over
the next several semesters.
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III. ANNUAL ACTION PLAN
This section must be completed for ALL academic programs, whether scheduled
for annual or comprehensive review in spring 2014.
A. NEW ACTIVITIES
This subsection addresses new activities for, and continuing new activities into, AY 2015-16. An
activity can address many different aspects of your program/discipline, and ultimately is undertaken to
improve, enhance, and or keep your program/discipline area current. A new activity may or may not
require additional resources. Activities can include but are not limited to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
NEW CURRICULUM
FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROGRAM OR SERVICE
GRANT DEVELOPMENT AND PROPOSALS
FACULTY AND STAFF TRAINING
MARKETING/OUTREACH
ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT
STUDENT SERVICES
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
SUPPORT OPERATIONS
FACILITIES
1. List information concerning new projects or activities planned. Please keep in mind that
resources needed, if funded, would not be approved until spring 2015 and provided until
FY 2015-16. Ongoing activities involving resources that will no longer be available from
grant funds starting FY 2015-16 must be planned for appropriately.
Activity
1.
Further
development
of the
courses
2.
Faculty
Training
3.
Strategic
Plan
Goal(s)
No. &
Letter
(e.g.,
5A)*
5A
5A
Related
Courses,
SLOs, PLOs,
or goals
Desired
Outcome(s)
Resources
Needed
Person
Responsible
ECO 1, ECO
5
Continuing
review and
assessment of
SLOs and
validity of
SLO tools.
Continued
improvement
of retention
and success in
DE sections.
Full-time
faculty to
coordinate
(existing)
Tina
EsparzaLuna
Full-time
faculty to
coordinate
(existing)
Tina
EsparzaLuna
ECO 1, ECO
5
4.
5.
* See Appendix A for a list of the 11 goals in the college’s Strategic Plan.
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Estimated
Date of
Completion
(can be more
than one
year in
length)
Ongoing
Ongoing
Comments
This is a
continuously
ongoing
activity.
This is a
continuously
ongoing
activity.
*** Please complete this page for each new activity. ***
2. This item is used to describe how the new activity, or continuing new activity, will
support the program/discipline.
Consider:
• Faculty
• Other staffing
• Facilities
• Equipment (non-expendable, greater than $5,000), supplies (expendable, valued at less than
$5,000),
• Software
• Hardware
• Outside services
• Training
• Travel
• Library materials
• Science laboratory materials
a) Describe the new activity or follow-on activity that this resource will support.
Faculty training, particularly in the area of DE, may require funds to achieve that training. $150
is requested.
b) Describe how this activity supports any of the following:
1) Core Competency
2) Program level Outcome
3) Course level Outcome
4) Program/Discipline Goal
5) Strategic Priority Goal
Additional training would support the discipline goals and strategic priority goal of improving
retention and success rates in the DE sections.
c) Does this activity span multiple academic years?
Yes/possibly
If yes, describe the action plan for completion of this activity.
d) What measureable outcomes are expected from this activity? List indicators of
success.
Improved retention and success in the DE sections.
e) What are the barriers to achieving success in this activity?
There are no significant barriers to success. It just requires an investment of time from the
discipline faculty teaching DE sections.
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B. RESOURCE REQUESTS
If new/additional resources are needed for your program/discipline, it is important that you identify
them and project their cost, and that these resources and costs be considered through the College’s
integrated planning (governance, budget development, funding decision making, and resource
allocation) processes. A resource is likely to be something needed to support an activity that you have
identified in IIIA. above, in which case you must link the resource with a specific activity number (first
column below). ). All resource requests completed in the various columns of a specific row
must be linked to the new or continuing activity numbered on the first column of that
same row. A resource could also be something necessary for your program/discipline to function
properly to improve student learning, such as updated equipment in a classroom; in such case be sure
to note that the resource is NOT tied to a specific activity.
Activity
No.
1.
Faculty
Training
Personnel
Classified
Staff/
Faculty
(C/F/M)*
Supplies/
Equipment
(S/E)**
Technology
Hardware/
Software
(H/S)***
Contract
Services
Training
Travel
Library
Materials
Science
Labs
$150
2.
3.
4.
5.
* Personnel: Include a C, F, or M after the amount to indicate Classified Staff, Faculty, or Manager.
** S for Supplies, E for Equipment. If additional supplies, for example, are needed for ongoing activities, this
should be requested through the budget rollover process.
*** H for Hardware, S for Software.
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Projected
Costs
APPENDIX A. Strategic Priorities & Goals
(from Hartnell College Strategic Plan 2013-2018)
Priority 1: Student
Access
Goal 1A: Hartnell College will provide higher education, workforce development, and lifelong
learning opportunities—with seamless pathways—to all of the college’s present and prospective
constituent individuals and groups.
Priority 2: Student
Success
Goal 2A: Hartnell College will provide a supportive, innovative, and collaborative learning
environment to help students pursue and achieve educational success.
Goal 2B: Hartnell College will provide a supportive, innovative, and collaborative learning
environment that addresses and meets the diverse learning needs of students.
Priority 3: Employee
Diversity and Development
Goal 3A: Hartnell College is committed to 1) increasing diversity among its employees; 2)
providing an environment that is safe for and inviting to diverse persons, groups, and
communities; and 3) becoming a model institution of higher education whose respect for
diversity is easily seen and is fully integrated throughout its policies, practices, facilities, signage,
curricula, and other reflections of life at the college.
Goal 3B: To attract and retain highly qualified employees, Hartnell College is committed to
providing and supporting relevant, substantial professional development opportunities.
Priority 4:
Effective Utilization of Resources
Goal 4A: To support its mission, Hartnell College is committed to the effective utilization of
its human resources.
Goal 4B: Hartnell College is committed to having its physical plant, furnishings, and grounds
maintained and replaced in a planned and scheduled way to support learning, safety, security,
and access.
Goal 4C: Hartnell College will maintain a current, user-friendly technological infrastructure
that serves the needs of students and employees.
Goal 4D: Hartnell College is committed to maximizing the use and value of capital assets,
managing financial resources, minimizing costs, and engaging in fiscally sound planning for
future maintenance, space, and technology needs.
Priority 5:
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Innovation and Relevance for Programs and Services
Goal 5A: Hartnell College will provide programs and services that are relevant to the realworld needs of its diverse student population, while also developing and employing a culture of
innovation that will lead to improved institutional effectiveness and student learning.
Priority 6: Partnership
with Industry, Business Agencies and Education
Goal 6A: Hartnell College is committed to strengthening and furthering its current
partnerships, in order to secure lasting, mutually beneficial relationships between the college
and the community that the college serves.
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