This book demonstrates how a participatory approach to assessment and accreditation in their new forms creates a synergy for learner-centered education. It is a guide to approaching the accreditation process from a campus-wide perspective of ownership--illustrated by rich descriptions of how faculty, students, and administrators at California State University Monterey Bay engaged with and successfully focused their accreditation processes on the improvement of their practices. The approach that the authors describe was driven by a commitment to go beyond satisfying the accreditation expectations so as to promote ongoing and long-term improvement of student learning. It also reflects the shift of responsibility for assessment within institutions from a designated office to individual faculty and staff, entire departments, and the campus as a whole.The authors document strategies that are practical―ready to use or adapt―that are appropriate for all campuses. They also provide guidelines for the documentation process that accreditation demands. They demonstrate how they reduced traditional resistance to assessment by emphasizing its use for the improvement of student learning, helping faculty with their own teaching, and creating frameworks for continuing improvements that are valued by faculty.The authors emphasize the need for every institution to take into account its unique mission, vision, and core values; and to recognize the importance of individual departmental cultures. Although their accreditation "triggered" CSUMB’s engagement with assessment, the authors discuss other opportunities for jump-starting the process.
Amy Driscoll retired from California State University, Monterey Bay as the founding Director of Teaching, Learning, and Assessment and from Portland State University as Director of Community/University Partnerships. For the last 11 years, she has coordinated and taught in the Assessment Leadership Academy, a year-long program for faculty and administrators, and consulted nationally and internationally. She co-authored Developing Outcomes-based Assessment for Learner-centered Education: A Faculty Introduction with Swarup Wood in 2007. Diane Cordero De Noriega is Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and currently Interim President, at California State University, Monterey Bay. Judith A. Ramaley is President of Winona State University. Prior to coming to Minnesota, Dr. Ramaley held a presidential professorship in biomedical sciences at the University of Maine and was a Fellow of the Margaret Chase Smith Center for Public Policy. She also completed a residency as a Visiting Senior Scientist at the National Academy of Sciences.From 2001 to 2004, Dr. Ramaley was Assistant Director, Education and Human Resources Directorate (EHR) at the National Science Foundation (NSF). Prior to joining NSF, Dr. Ramaley was president and professor of biology at the University of Vermont. Dr. Ramaley has a special interest in higher education reform and has played a significant role in designing regional alliances to promote educational cooperation. She has contributed to national discussions about the changing nature of work and the workforce. She plays a national role in the exploration of civic responsibility and the role of higher education in promoting good citizenship. She also has published extensively on educational reform; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education; and the leadership of organizational change.
