Findings from 1997 NCA Site Visit

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Findings from 1997 NCA Site Visit

• Strengths
• Strong university-community linkages
• Attractive physical plant
• Cooperative Education
• NIAR
• Friendly, courteous and helpful staff
• The Metropolitan Advantage

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Findings from 1997 NCA Site Visit

• Institutional Concerns
• Unclear mission and lack of action-oriented
  planning that linked resources and operational
  priorities
• Lack of use and follow-through on assessment
• Absence of measurable and assessable goals for
  general education

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Approved Goals for WSU Self-Study 2005-2007

• Produce a self-study report that results in full
  reaccreditation from HLC
• Instill a culture of assessment and institutional
  improvement across all university operations
• Instill a commitment to enhancing organizational
  diversity

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Approved Goals for WSU Self-Study 2005-2007

• Develop a process for (1) aligning Board of
  Regents performance agreements and HLC criteria
  with WSUs Accountability Planning Matrix and (2)
  assessing the quality of the decisions that have
  been guided by the planning initiatives

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Approved Goals for WSU Self-Study 2005-2007

• Provide an opportunity for reflective and
  analytic discussion of substantive institutional
  issues, e.g.
• General education
• Assessment of student learning
• Information resources
• Succession planning
• Space requirements

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Approved Goals for WSU Self-Study 2005-2007

• Effectively use the new Enterprise Resource Plan
  to facilitate improvement of institutional
  functions and operations to more efficiently and
  effectively support WSUs mission and goals
• Increase effective interaction among university
  divisions
• Increase the sense of community at WSU

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1. Mission and Integrity

• The organization operates with integrity to
  ensure the fulfillment of its mission through
  structures and processes that involve the board,
  administration, faculty, staff, and students.

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2. Preparing for the Future

• The organizations allocation of resources and
  its processes for evaluation and planning
  demonstrate its capacity to fulfill its mission,
  improve the quality of its education, and respond
  to future challenges and opportunities.

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3. Student Learning and Effective Teaching

• The organization provides evidence of student
  learning and teaching effectiveness that
  demonstrates it is fulfilling its educational
  mission.

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4. Acquisition, Discovery, and Application of
Knowledge

• The organization promotes a life of learning for
  its faculty, administration, staff, and students
  by fostering and supporting inquiry, creativity,
  practice, and social responsibility in ways
  consistent with its mission.

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5. Engagement and Service

• As called for by its mission, the organization
  identifies its constituencies and serves them in
  ways both value.

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Self-study Process 2004-2007

• Appoint Coordinator 2004
• Prepare and submit self-study plan
• Appoint Steering Committee January 2005
• Appoint Working Groups Spring 2005
• Review Criteria
• Collect Evidence

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Self-study Process

• Set up Blackboard Site
• Briefing meetings
• Constituent Senates
• Division and college executive committees
• Student leaders
• Unclassified Professional Roundtable Discussions
  Fall 2004
• National Advisory Committee Focus Groups Spring
  2006

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Self-study Process

• Assessment Symposia 2005-2006
• Hutchinson Progress Report January 2006
• Surveys Spring 2006
• Student Learning
• Criterion
• Student
• Faculty/Staff

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Self-study Process

• Draft Report
• Rough draft September 1
• Second draft October 6
• Final draft December 2006
• Share Findings
• Town hall meetings
• Assessment symposium
• Brownbag discussions

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Self-study Process

• Distribute drafts for review
• College and divisional readers
• Web posting for campus reaction
• Produce report January, 2007
• Mail report February 1, 2007
• Site visit March 26-28, 2007
• Follow up

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Survey Results Student Learning

• 53 of 75 surveys returned 71 response rate
• Academic, student and institutional support units
  have a clear sense of how their missions relate
  to WSUs mission and how they contribute to
  student learning.

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Survey Results Student Learning

• The support units regularly assess their
  activities although they dont directly assess
  their contribution to student learning.
• The vast majority use the Accountability Planning
  Matrix for planning.

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Survey Results Criterion Survey

• 49 of 50 surveys completed 98 response rate
• Deans and chairs report that they know WSU and
  their unit missions and believe that they
  appropriately articulate WSUs activities.
• A bare majority believe that WSUs planning and
  budget flow from the mission.

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Survey Results Criterion Survey

• Most units participate in environmental scanning,
  i.e. they consider external social and economic
  trends in decision making.
• Academic programs are dynamic. Curricula and
  programs change on a regular basis to respond to
  changing environment, professional practice,
  advancement in knowledge and interdisciplinary
  opportunities.

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Survey Results Criterion Survey

• Deans and chairs are very positive about their
  academic programs, reporting that they prepare
  students to live and work in a world
  characterized by information technology,
  globalization, and diversity.
• Less than half provide study abroad or global
  learning experiences.

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Survey Results Criterion Survey

• There were some minor concerns about General
  Education.
• 78 of those with an opinion (65 of total) agree
  or strongly agree that general education meets
  the needs of their undergraduate programs while
  just under 80 (63 of total) agree or strongly
  agree that general education learning outcomes
  align with the needs of their academic programs.

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Survey Results Criterion Survey

• Commitment to research and professional community
  service is clear and well documented.
• The vast majority of academic units have clearly
  identified constituencies with whom they actively
  pursue partnerships.
• There is a commitment to assessment and trust
  that it can improve and strengthen academic
  programs.

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Survey Results Student Survey

• The survey was distributed with SPTEs. 643
  responses were received.
• The survey confirms that students do not make
  great use of most available learning resources
  and support services.
• Students do read the Sunflower, frequent the RSC,
  and use the library and computer labs on a
  regular basis. They also take advantage of
  advising services.

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Survey Results Student Survey

• Students report strong satisfaction with their
  education. They believe that they are being
  challenged to work hard (91.1), and that they
  are being prepared to live and work in a diverse
  (87.7), global (79.9) and technologically-depend
  ent (85.4) world.
• Very few report knowledge of a foreign language
  or participation in an international experience.

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Survey Results Faculty/Staff

• 301 surveys were completed for a response rate of
  17.4 percent. These include
• 111 Classified Staff
• 82 Unclassified Professionals
• 89 Faculty
• 19 Administrators

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Survey Results Faculty/Staff

• Strengths
• Community ties and support
• Cooperative Education/ internships/experiential
  learning
• Faculty/staff
• Strong academic programs
• Growing research funding

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Survey Results Faculty/Staff

• Challenges
• Low faculty/staff salaries
• Enrollment/competition
• Changing technology/distance education
• Low graduate student stipends
• Insufficient student engagement/level of academic
  challenge

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Survey Results Faculty/Staff

• Other strengths
• The quality of the faculty and staff
• The campus environment and public art
• Community ties
• Academic programs
• Basketball/athletics

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Survey Results Faculty/Staff

• Other challenges
• Resources, resources, resources
• Enrollment/competition
• Keeping up with technology/distance education
• Internal communication
• Effective marketing/public relations
• Too many administrators

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Survey Results Faculty/Staff

• What one thing would make WSU a better
  university?
• Become more student-focused/friendly
• Improve the sense of community
• Promote diversity/respect
• Develop on-line programs
• Improve marketing

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Focus Group Findings

• Unclassified Professionals
• Pride in a diverse student body and an atmosphere
  that encourages learning for everyone
• WSU is particularly good at nurturing ties with
  the community, e.g. NIAR, Coop Ed, maintaining an
  attractive physical environment and supporting
  nontraditional students.

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Focus Group Findings

• Unclassified Professionals
• The biggest problems facing WSU are related to
  resource restrictions and a lack of a consumer
  service attitude toward students and guests.

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Focus Group Findings

• To improve WSU should
• develop more distance education options
• stabilize enrollment
• increase diversity of staff and emphasize a
  global focus
• reallocate resources to successful programs
• effectively implement the ERP
• engage more people in discussions of the future
• foster a greater sense of community

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Focus Group Findings

• NAC
• To respond to growing competition WSU should
• Enhance the West Campus
• Improve the convenience of its enrollment and
  other services
• Be more flexible and innovative in scheduling and
  offering.

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Focus Group Findings

• Offer more on-line instruction, but not full
  degrees
• Improve its marketing
• Develop an accelerated degree-completion option
• Be more responsive to local employers and the
  schedules of their workers

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Focus Group Findings

• WSU should be preparing students to thrive in a
  complex world by
• Emphasizing critical thinking and communication
  skills
• Expanding global content including languages
• Increasing study abroad opportunities

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Focus Group Findings

• WSU should be prepared to respond to the
  following trends
• Local ethnic diversity
• Globalization
• Resource limitations
• Technological change

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Other Issues

• Finances
• Kansas provides a larger share of university
  operating revenue than many states.
• Between FY1997 and FY2005
• GU revenue increased 34.4
• State General fund appropriation increased 21.4
• Tuition increased 63.6

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Other Issues

• Finances
• General Use funds are declining as a share of
  total operating revenue, from 66 in FY1997 to
  59 in FY2005
• The difference is being made up by research
  funding and private gifts and contracts.

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Other Issues

• The demand for accountability will continue to
  grow.
• HLC
• KBOR
• Legislature
• Federal government Spelling Commission

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Other Issues

• Student demographics
• Students are younger
• Average age of undergraduates had dropped from 27
  to 25 over the past 9 years.
• Students are taking more hours
• The average undergraduate credit hour load grew
  from 9.88 in fall 1996 to 11.07 in fall 2005.
• The proportion of ethnic minorities has increased
• From 14.6 in fall 1996 to 17.5 in fall 2005

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Other Issues

• ERP implementation is time-intensive
• Recruiting a diverse faculty pool is a challenge.
• The number of tenure-eligible faculty has
  remained steady
• 445 in FY1999
• 451 in FY2006
• Faculty is aging
• 42 percent are over age 55
• Median age is 52.3

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What next?

• What three topics do you want to talk about this
  fall?