Middle States 101 : Understanding the New Paradigm of Reaccreditation

1. Middle States 101: Understanding the New Paradigm of Reaccreditation by LaMont Rouse

2. Participants will: • Learn the purpose of the decennial review. • Describe the process of the self-study and time line • Know the common terms and unique language promoted by Middle States. Goals of the Workshop

3. The Middle States Commission on Higher Education accredits degree-granting colleges and universities in the Middle States region, which includes Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and several locations internationally. The Commission is a voluntary, non-governmental, membership association that defines, maintains, and promotes educational excellence across institutions with diverse missions, student populations, and resources. It examines each institution as a whole, rather than specific programs within institutions. What is Middle States?

4. Cedar Crest & Middle States Cedar Crest College has been a continuous member of Middle States since 1944.

5. Decennial Review • Decennial Review • Comprehensive Self Study of the entire institution based on the Characteristics of Excellence. • The final report will be approximately 100 pages • Contains 8 Chapters • Make suggestions and recommendation • Supporting Materials will be at least 3,000 to 5,000 pages • There will be no fewer than 200 separate and unique supporting documents

6. Decennial Review Purpose 1) Strengthen Cedar Crest through the next decade; 2) Demonstrate Compliance with the 14 Standards; 3) Demonstrate to our Constituents that our institution has value.

7. Decennial Review Time Line • Spring 2012 • Working groups are formed; • Self-Study Design Document is created • MSCHE Liaison visits Cedar Crest • Fall 2012 • Working Group Training; • Working Group meetings; • A progress report is written on December 1st; • Spring 2013 • MSCHE selects the team; • Working groups submit a draft chapter (March 15th); • Chapters are edited and synthesized into a document

8. Decennial Review Time Line • Fall 2013 • Campus reviews the draft; • Evaluation chair reviews the self-study report; • The Board reviews the draft; • CCC sends a draft copy to the team chair; • CCC prepares the final version of the self-study report. • Spring 2014 • Team Visit; • Team Report; • Institutional Response. • Summer/Fall 2014 • Middle States meets and acts on the findings.

9. Decennial Review Report • Working Groups Chapter • 20 to 25 pages; • Respond to the research questions; • Responses based on the standards;

10. Decennial Review Report • The Chapter’s Elements • An overview of the group’s charge and questions; • An executive summary highlighting the key topics and themes; • An analytical discussion including strengths and weaknesses; • An explanation of the findings and conclusions as aligned to MSCHE’s standards; • A list of suggestions and recommendations; • An inventory of all data sources used in the development of the chapter.

11. Middle States will send a visiting team to interview us on our report and our progress. They will judge our effectiveness on… How well are we meeting our mission? How are we responding to past suggestions and recommendations that they’ve made? (Interest in Standards 3 & 7) Based on the Characteristics of Excellence. Based on our ability to document our success, particularly of student learning. Decennial Review/The Visiting Team

12. Decennial Review/Post-Visit 1) Make suggestions; 2) Make recommendations; 3) Vote to affirm our accreditation; 4) There may be a follow-up report called a Progress Report or a Monitoring Report

13. Review Summation To produce a report that will affirm Cedar Crest College; It will be reviewed by a team of visitors; They will make suggestions and recommendations.

14. The Era of Accountability • Are students learning? • Learning objectives of the program. • Learning objectives of the LAC. • Learning objectives of General Education • How do you know? Prove it! Note: MSCHE is interested in aggregated learning; You can’t rely on grades as the sole basis for judgment.

15. The Era of Accountability • Do you have plans to sustain the institution? • Strategic Plan(s). • Financial Forecasts based on real assumptions; • Enrollment Management Plan; • Facility Master Plan; MSCHE : Who owns each plan? How are they being updated?

16. The Era of Accountability • Are all major programs (academic and non-academic being assessed on a regular basis? • What is the process? • What are the results? • How do you use the results?

17. The Era of Accountability • Data Driven Decision-Making • Do you use data to make decisions? • Do you use data to improve the institution (close the loop)? • How does data link to budgeting?

18. The Era of Accountability • Communications: • How do we communicate results? • How do we improve transparency? • How do we serve our constituents?

19. The Era of Accountability • How do we communicate our results to our constituents? • Students • Prospective Students • Alumnae • Federal and State Government • Employees (Faculty, Staff and Administration) • Greater Lehigh Community

20. Summation Summation: Demonstrate the use of data and results; Link results of reports to future action(s) and budgeting; Communicate results to constituents; Promote transparency.

21. The Language of Middle States MSCHE has its own unique language and they could sell it with Berlitz tapes.

22. The Language of Middle States Assessment is an ongoing and continuous cycle of self-improvement. Assessment results are measurable. The results are used for action.

23. The Language of Middle States Close the Loop: Results are used for improvement; results are used to allocate resources. I like to call it meaningful modifications….

24. Direct Evidence of Student Learning The Language of Middle States • · Scores and pass rates on appropriate licensure/ certification exams (e.g., Praxis, NLN) or other published tests (e.g., Major Field Tests) that assess key learning outcomes • · “Capstone” experiences such as research projects, presentations, theses, dissertations, oral defenses, exhibitions, or performances, scored using a rubric • · Other written work, performances, or presentations, scored • using a rubric • · Portfolios of student work • Score gains between entry and exit on published or local • tests or writing samples • · Employer ratings of employee skills

25. Indirect Evidence of Student Learning The Language of Middle States • Course grades • · Assignment grades, if not accompanied by a rubric or scoring guide • · For four-year programs, admission rates into graduate programs and graduation rates from those programs • · Quality/reputation of graduate and four-year programs into which alumni are accepted • · Placement rates of graduates into appropriate career positions and starting salaries • · Alumni perceptions of their career responsibilities and satisfaction • · Student ratings of their knowledge and skills and reflections on what they have learned in the course or program

26. The Language of Middle States “Deciding where we want to go. Making sure we get there!” Linda Suskie • Institutional Effectiveness: How does the college meet its mission and other plans? How does the college use data to improve its operations?

27. Suskie: The Teaching-Learning-Assessment Cycle 2. Learning Opportunities 1. Learning Goals 3. Assessment 4. Using Results

28. Suskie: The Planning Assessment Cycle 2. Programs & Services 1. Goals 3. Assessment 4. Using Results

29. Shared Governance looks at whether there is a process by which constituents participate in the decision-making of the institution. How broad is it? What are the steps? The Language of Middle States

30. Communication and Transparency is about how to do we inform our constituents about our plans and results in an ongoing basis. The Language of Middle States

31. The Language of Middle States • Summation: • Assessment and institutional effectiveness are the core terms of measurement; • Learning must be proven through direct evidence. Indirect evidence is helpful but only complementary; • Data must be used to “close the loop” • A culture of shared governance, communication and transparency will be examined.

32. Characteristics of Excellence & Cedar Crest

33. Characteristics of Excellence & Cedar Crest • Cedar Crest: • Has an active mission; • Has a culture of assessment; • Has an active strategic plan; • Has a body of evidence to document learning at the program level.

34. Characteristics of Excellence & Cedar Crest • Cedar Crest: • Has a very positive reputation: • U.S. News & World Report (Top Regional Liberal Arts College, Top Women’s College) • Forbes Top 10; • Multiple Discipline-Related Accreditations

35. Characteristics of Excellence & Cedar Crest The Future: There is work ahead, but it will be productive. There will be additional work, but it will be valuable. This process is about making Cedar Crest a model of excellence.

36. The End