Effective institutional assessment recognizes the importance of outcomes assessment as a means by which an institution seeks improvement. The determination of how well the College community accomplishes its goals and objectives and how effectively it re-evaluates its direction must center on the teaching and learning processes. Specifically, the College Strategic Plan incorporates the goals of developing effective ways of determining institutional effectiveness. Outcomes assessment should inform all of the College decision making processes from resource allocation to ongoing planning. In the same manner, activities undertaken by the College to develop faculty and staff in creating an optimal atmosphere for student learning should be assessed for effectiveness. Similarly, the College's assessment processes must be appropriately accountable to external forces including the broader public.

• Analyze the methodologies developed by the College for assessment to:
  • Determine whether it provides for effective systematic review and evaluation of the assessment process.
  • Determine whether its scope is sufficient to evaluate overall institutional effectiveness.
  • Determine whether it is sufficiently collaborative in engaging all appropriate members of the College community.
• Review and assess the data collected by the College related to student outcomes assessment to determine:
  • Whether the data collected is appropriate to assess student outcomes.
  • Whether the data collected is utilized effectively in decision making.
• Analyze the College's mechanisms for program and faculty evaluation to determine their effectiveness and use in College decision making and planning.
• Describe and evaluate the College's plan for faculty and staff development to determine its effectiveness and whether sufficient mechanisms for assessment of faculty and staff development are in place.
• Analyze whether the College's assessment process responds appropriately and is communicated to external constituencies.
• Determine whether all College constituencies are effectively involved in planning assessment processes:
  • Evaluate the extent to which members of the College community accept responsibility for institutional renewal and improvement based on data and outcomes assessment.
• Strategic Principle 4 calls for the development of an assessment model at the unit level. Describe the effectiveness of the implementation of this process.