Using HLC Criteria for
Institutional Strategic Planning:
The Acid Test
Dr. Terry B. Smith,
Executive Vice President and Dean for Academic
Affairs
Dr. Steve Wiegenstein,
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Dean for
Graduate Studies
Misty Bush,
Director of Compliance for Adult Higher Education
2013 PEAQ Workshop
Strategic Planning
“The process of identifying the business of the firm today
and the business it wants for the future, and then
identifying the course of action it will pursue, given its
opportunities, threats, strengths, and weaknesses. It
specifies who the firm will compete with and how it will
compete with them.”
Dressler, Gary. 2001. Management: Leading People and Organizations in the
21st Century, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall), p. 162.
Columbia College
• Columbia College is a complex, diverse, 162 year old private liberal arts and sciences
institution that offers a residential education to
1,000 traditional students and distance
education (in-seat and online) to 18,000 adult
learners.
• Progress, indeed survival, requires effective
planning.
Strategic Planning at Columbia College
• 2000 – Previous plan was written using a traditional strategic
planning model
• 2005 – Adoption of HLC Model
• 2007 – First update of plan
• 2009 – Next update of plan
• 2011-12 – Next update of plan = first draft of HLC SSR
2005 - Adoption of HLC Model for
New Plan
• Appointment of committee
• SWOT analysis
• Subcommittees
• Drafts
• Final draft
• Approval by cabinet and board
• Assignment of responsibilities for key goals
Reasons Columbia College Used
HLC Criteria
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They focus decisively and explicitly on higher education;
They use language familiar to higher education stakeholders;
They provide clear prompts for description and evaluation of
achievements and goals;
They give examples of evidence that can be gathered to
demonstrate achievement;
They permit retrospective and prospective analyses of
organizational effectiveness;
They provide strong guidance for departmental planning activities;
and
The college directly engaged the Criteria as it prepared for its 2012
decennial reaccreditation.
Old Criterion Four
The College promotes a life of learning for its faculty,
administration, staff and students by fostering and by
supporting inquiry, creativity, practice and social
responsibility in ways consistent with its mission.
Old Core Component 4c
The College assesses the usefulness of its curricula to students
who will live and work in a global, diverse, and technological
society.
Old Core Component 4c:
Accomplishments
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The B.A. degree includes a foreign language/foreign culture requirement.
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A culminating experience is required in all baccalaureate and masters
programs.
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General education requirements support the liberal arts and sciences
mission.
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A comprehensive Assessment Plan was adopted in 2004.
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All programs undergo rigorous review on a regular five-year schedule.
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All master syllabi have been revised to include course objectives and
measurable learning outcomes.
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The curriculum is constantly being assessed and restructured to meet the
needs of students.
Old Core Component 4c:
Goals
• Degree offerings for traditional and non-traditional students
will increase.
• The College’s expertise in providing innovative and relevant
programs in Adult Higher Education will be further
developed and marketed.
• A five-year plan for programmatic expansion of adult
learning will be developed.
• An effective way to track and survey new graduates and
alumni will be developed.
HLC Self-Study Report =
Detailed Update of Strategic Plan
Process was utterly
transparent to visit team.
They noted our model but
made no comment.
The HLC visit was a
comprehensive consultancy on
our institutional strategic plan.
When we update the Key Goals in
2013, our source document will be
the findings and recommendations
from the team visit report.
Examples of Team Findings and
Recommendations that will be
converted to Key Goals in the
updated Strategic Plan.
Criterion Two (Institutional Action)
The College’s retention rate is far below that of its peers.
Columbia College’s Day freshman first-year retention rate is 61
percent. Retention rates for freshman cohorts at off-campus
locations, and four-, five-, and six-year graduation rates for the
College also are comparably low. (p.18)
Criterion Four (Institutional Action)
The general education requirement has been in place since 2000,
requires a substantial number of credits, and seems to have little that is
reflective of the unique purpose of a Columbia College undergraduate
education. The self-study suggests that it is time to revise the general
education and one of the Dean’s goals is to begin that revision process
this academic year. The team concurs that this is necessary (p. 20).
Criterion Four
(Commission Follow-up)
THIS WILL GENERATE THE #1 KEY GOAL:
Assessment of both general education and the majors needs attention. Columbia College
has an assessment plan in place that is being implemented but there is little evidence of
course-level assessment (by the College’s own admission) and little evidence of use of
assessment data to make changes in student learning outcomes. A logical place to begin
the revision process for both general education and assessment would be to structure a
new general education program around a purposefully crafted set of general education
student learning outcomes and experiences. As indicated above, the team saw little
evidence of how current data are being used to inform curricular decisions to improve
teaching and student learning. Use of current data is made more challenging by use of
standardized ETSPP and major field tests that may or may not be reflective of the
specific learning outcomes desired by majors in either Day, Adult Higher Education or
online programs (p. 20).
HLC Pathways for Reaffirmation of
Accreditation
• Standard Pathway-Available to all accredited institutions at
any time
• Open Pathway-The Commission determines whether an
institution may participate
The Pathways Seek to Achieve the
Following Goals:
Standard Pathway
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To reduce the reporting burden on
institutions by utilizing as much
information and data as possible from
existing institutional processes and
collecting them in electronic form as
they naturally occur over time
To enhance rigor by checking
institutional data annually (Institutional
Update) and conducting
comprehensive evaluations twice in
the ten-year cycle
To integrate as much as possible all
HLC processes and requests for data
into the reaffirmation of accreditation
cycle
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Open Pathway
To reduce the reporting burden on
institutions by utilizing as much
information and data as possible from
existing institutional process and
collecting them in electronic form as
they naturally occur over time
To enhance rigor by checking
institutional data annually (Institutional
Update) and conducting Assurance
Reviews twice in the ten-year cycle
To integrate as much as possible all
HLC processes and HLC requests for
data into the reaffirmation of
accreditation cycle
To enhance institutional value by
opening the improvement aspect of
accreditation so that institutions may
choose Quality Initiatives to suit their
current circumstances
How does this approach work for the
New Criteria?
PEAQ (old)
• Criterion One: Mission
and Integrity
• Criterion Two: Preparing
for the Future
• Criterion Three: Student
Learning and Effective
Teaching
• Criterion Four:
Acquisition, Discovery,
and Application of
Knowledge
• Criterion Five:
Engagement and Service
PATHWAYS (new)
• Criterion One. Mission
• Criterion Two. Integrity:
Ethical and Responsible
Conduct
• Criterion Three. Teaching
and Learning: Quality,
Resources, and Support
• Criterion Four. Teaching
and Learning: Evaluation
and Improvement
• Criterion Five. Resources,
Planning, and Institutional
Effectiveness
The Chief Differences?
• Specificity
– Example:
• PEAQ - Core Component 1A- The organization's
mission documents are clear and articulate publicly
the college's commitments.
• Pathways - 1.B. The mission is articulated publicly.
– 1. The institution clearly articulates its mission through one
or more public documents, such as statements of purpose,
vision, values, goals, plans, or institutional priorities.
– 2. The mission document or documents are current and
explain the extent of the institution’s emphasis on the
various aspects of its mission, such as instruction,
scholarship, research, application of research, creative
works, clinical service, public service, economic
development, and religious or cultural purpose.
– 3. The mission document or documents identify the nature,
scope, and intended constituents of the higher education
programs and services the institution provides.
The Chief Differences?
• Heightened focus on ethics and
integrity
– Separate category, split out from “mission”
– Specific evidence:
• Autonomous governing boards
• Separation of authority between administration and
faculty
• Freedom of expression
• Education as primary purpose, not financial return
or support of a parent organization
The Chief Differences?
• Avoidance of overlap
– PEAQ 3B: The organization values and supports
effective teaching.
– PEAQ 4B: The organization demonstrates that
acquisition of a breadth of knowledge and skills
and the exercise of intellectual inquiry are integral
to its educational programs.
– PEAQ 4C: The organization assesses the
usefulness of its curricula to students who will live
and work in a global, diverse, and technological
society.
Impact on Using Criteria for
Strategic Planning
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May actually make the process of using criteria for strategic planning easier,
as increased specificity permits a closer alignment with measurable
outcomes
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On the other hand, the greater detail of the standards may leave less room
for mission-specific or unique elements to strategic planning if using HLC
criteria as a template.
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On the other hand, the HLC criteria don’t have to be the entire strategic plan
– other elements can be added as appropriate.
The Quality Initiative
• The inclusion of a mandatory “quality initiative” in HLC accreditation
makes its inclusion in strategic planning a necessity
• Internally considered in Years 3-4, + proposed to HLC and proposal
reviewed in Years 5-7, + report filed and reviewed in Years 7-9 =
must be a long-term project (i.e., one that is part of a strategic plan)
Examples of 2010 Key Goals
1.1 Undergraduate and graduate degrees will be selectively added and
strategically retained or eliminated (2a, 4c, 5c).
1.2 By 2012, Day student enrollment will increase to 1,250 with
increased admission and retention standards (2d).
1.3 “Good fit” will be the focus of all venues with regard to recruitment
and retention (5c).
1.5 Business Development will be integrated as a fundamental
component of driving college growth (5a-5d).
Examples of 2010 Key Goals
4.1 Necessary property will be acquired (2b).
4.2 Alternative housing to accommodate Day students will be
purchased or built (2a, 2c).
4.3 Space planning and acquisition and/or construction will be
coordinated with and account for actual and planned staff and faculty
growth (2b, 3d).
5.1 The website will be improved (5b).
And so forth. There are a total of 27 Key Goals (8 are listed above).
• There are no significant disadvantages to using the criteria as
strategic planning guidelines. Initially, the learning curve was steep for
the original planning group but as it became clear that the Criteria,
Core Components and examples of evidence made the process
transparent, the group embraced the task.
• The advantages are numerous and have been noted earlier. The most
significant advantage was realized in 2012, when we wrote the selfstudy report for the decennial reaccreditation and simultaneously
updated our strategic plan.
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Columbia College began using HLC Criteria for strategic planning in 2005.
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The HLC template makes accomplishments and goals explicit and wellordered and makes the need to continuously update the plan obvious.
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It organically promotes an awareness of the Criteria and Core Components
among constituents who need to be aware.
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It has supported the planning and operational needs of a dynamic institution
in ways that previous strategic planning approaches could not.
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It gives strong direction to departmental planning.
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At the same time it uses elements of traditional strategic planning. It can
work for all types of institutions.
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Finally, it deeply, broadly and seamlessly prepared us for a successful
reaccreditation. reaccreditation.
• Dr. Terry B. Smith, Executive Vice President and
Dean for Academic Affairs
tsmith@ccis.edu
• Dr. Steve Wiegenstein, Associate Dean for
Academic Affairs and Dean for Graduate Studies
scwiegenstein@ccis.edu
• Misty Bush, Director of Compliance for Adult
Higher Education
mabush3@ccis.edu