WASC Self Study: A First Look
Co
Co-sponsored by President Castro
and the Academic Senate
www.wascsenior.org
submit questions to @Fresno_State and use #FresnoStateWASC
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Outline
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Overview of WASC and accreditation
Our process so far
Summary of key points from the self study
Feedback
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Regional Accreditation
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Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
Western Association of Schools and Colleges
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Regional Accreditation:
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Assures quality
Allows students to transfer credits
Allows students to receive federal financial aid
Provides institutions an opportunity to reflect
on their practices and improve
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
WASC Standards
CFRs
Standard 1: Defining Institutional Purposes and Ensuring
Educational Objectives
1.1-1.8
Standard 2: Achieving Educational Objectives Through Core
Functions
2.1-2.14
Standard 3: Developing and Applying Resources and
3.1-3.10
Organizational Structures to Ensure Quality and Sustainability
Standard 4: Creating an Organization Committed to Quality
Assurance, Institutional Learning, and Improvement
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
4.1-4.7
CFR Examples:
1.2 Educational objectives are widely recognized
throughout the institution, are consistent
with stated purposes, and are demonstrably
achieved. The institution regularly generates,
evaluates, and makes public data about
student achievement, including measures of
retention and graduation, and evidence of
student learning outcomes.
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
CFR Examples:
3.3 The institution maintains appropriate and
sufficiently supported faculty and staff
development activities designed to improve
teaching, learning, and assessment of learning
outcomes.
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
The Self Study - provides evidence of the
CFRs through
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Introduction: Institutional Context; Response to Previous Commission
Actions
Compliance with WASC Standards and Federal Regulations: Self-review
under the Standards; Compliance Checklist
Degree Programs: Meaning, Quality, and Integrity of Degrees
Educational Quality: Student Learning, Core Competencies, and Standards
of Performance at Graduation
Student Success: Student Learning, Retention, and Graduation
Quality Assurance and Improvement: Program Review; Assessment; Use of
Data and Evidence
Sustainability: Financial Viability; Preparing for the Changing Higher
Education Environment
Conclusion: Reflection and Plans for Improvement
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Our Campus Process:
• Fall 2012 – Meaning Quality and Integrity
Subcommittee and Core Competency
Subcommittee
• Executive Committee
• Steering Committee
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Our Campus Process:
• Fall 2013 – Essays written by groups (from Exec
and Steering) – 2 rounds of revision
• Jan 2014 – Outside review / revision
• March – Editing and revision by Gil Harootunian
• April 2014 - draft circulated to campus for input
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Looking forward:
• Aug 2014: Self narrative submission
• November 20, 2014: Offsite Review
• October 20-22, 2015: Accreditation Visit
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Introduction: Institutional Context;
1. Sets institutional context as regional, minority
serving, primarily first gen commuter campus.
2. Changes over last 10 years including:
a. Demographics (more Hispanic, more Pell eligible)
b. Classification as Carnegie engaged institution
c. Capital Campaign and infrastructure
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Introduction: Response to Previous
Commission Actions
3. Strengthening GE and University Wide
Assessment
4. Faculty Expectations for Research /
Universities place within Higher Ed.
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Compliance with WASC Standards and Federal
Regulations: Self-review under the Standards;
Compliance Checklist
1. Compliance Review
– Policies clear and Shared governance string
2. Self review
– Strengths
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Strategic planning
Student success focus
Faculty evaluation
Values diversity
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Self Review (cont’d)
Challenges:
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Values and character weak in mission statement
SLO standards generally nonexistent
Lack of publicly available data on achievement of SLOs
MQI not language we have used
Information literacy not a focus
ILOs just now being developed
GE assessment course rather than program based
Student affairs program review processes unclear
Broader concept of faculty development needed-address
part-time faculty
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Degree Programs: Meaning, Quality, and Integrity
of Degrees
• Development of Institutional Learning
Outcomes for undergrad (and potential for
eportfolios)
• Less work done for graduate programs
• Reviewed assessment processes in place to
insure quality
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Educational Quality: Student Learning, Core
Competencies, and Standards of Performance at
Graduation
1. Fresno State evaluated written communication
core competency in spring/summer 2013.
Seventy-one percent (71%) of W course samples
and 94% of W exam samples are rated at
competent or accomplished levels (on a rubric
developed by The Framework for Success in
Postsecondary Writing, and adopted by Writing
Across the Curriculum Committee at Fresno
State).
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Educational Quality: Student Learning, Core
Competencies, and Standards of Performance at
Graduation
2. Fresno State is planning to evaluate all five
cores (Oral and Written Communication,
Information Literary, Critical Thinking and
Quantitative Reasoning) by selecting student
work samples via an E-portfolio system that
will be implemented in 2014-15 academic
year.
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Educational Quality: Student Learning, Core
Competencies, and Standards of Performance at
Graduation
3. Standards of Core competency will be
determined either universally (all students
are expected to reach a certain level) or by
discipline (students are expected to reach
varying degrees of competency across
disciplines).
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Student Success: Student Learning,
Retention, and Graduation
1. Fresno State has had an unwavering focus on
improving student learning, retention and
degree completion for well over a decade.
2. A wide variety of discipline specific initiatives,
pedagogy, technology and intervention
strategies have been deployed to support
student retention and degree completion.
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Student Success: Student Learning,
Retention, and Graduation
3. Fresno State is well on track to surpass the
goal of increasing the six year graduation rate
by six percentage points (from 45 to 51%) and
is making good progress with closing the
achievement gap between underrepresented
minority groups and non-Underrepresented
minority groups.
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Quality Assurance and Improvement: Program
Review; Assessment; Use of Data and Evidence
• Culture of evidence and use of data are evolving
• University-level use of data is strong; programlevel use of data needs to be strengthened
• Fall short in follow-through on Program Review
Action Plans
• Currently lacking a means by which we periodically
review the Program Review process
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Sustainability: Financial Viability; Preparing for
the Changing Higher Education Environment
1. Organization
2. Fiscal
a) Process
b) Alignment
3. Strategic planning
a) University
b) Division
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Sustainability: Financial Viability; Preparing for
the Changing Higher Education Environment
4. Identify and Respond to changes in higher education
a) Access
b) Accountability
• EPortfolios
c) Accommodation
• Common core
• Learning strategies/pedagogies
• Technology
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014
Feedback:
• Twitter: submit questions to
@Fresno_State and use
#FresnoStateWASC
• Submit feedback on the web:
www.fresnostate.edu/wasc
California State University, Fresno – WASC Campus Open Forums April 28-29 ,2014