Search
Southern Home PageAbout Southern Connecticut State UniversityAcademicsAdmissionsStudent LifeResearchAthleticsHuman Resources at Southern
Southern Connecticut State University LibraryMySCSUSouthern DirectoryCalendar of EventsTechnologyContact Us
Department Banner

Program Review and Assessment Committee Minutes

October 11, 2001

Members Present: C. Coron (Chair), Bob Gelbach, A. Kumar, H. Podnar, R. Page, W. Shyam

The meeting began with a discussion about a forthcoming meeting with Dick Gerber. The issue remains: How to find common ground with the Assessment Office?

The following points were made in the discussion:

  • The basic issue has been implementation of agreements between departments and the administration
  • Now that UCF has validated the Plan document originated from PRAC, there should be some discussion about involving a PRAC representative as a witness to the final meetings held in the assessment cycle
  • What is more important - to inspect the end product (agreements with departments) OR to facilitate the process by which they are arrived?
  • Web approach to training departments and faculty going through assessment
  • To find a happy medium between the original PRAC document on Assessment and the Assessment Office alternative

Gelbach brought up the issue that much of the University's future financial decisions will be guided by the Strategic Plan document - departments going through assessment must be familiar with that document. Some of the questions being posed to departments are:

  • How does your success compare with your professed goals?
  • How does your program compare with other institutions of similar nature?
  • Can we afford the program?

Coron cautioned against applying the language of business-ethics to academic programs. The UCF must at the same time prepare departments so that they can pitch themselves to the administration for resources needed for growth. Gelbach also brought up the issue of how during times of failing resources and budgetary cutbacks, assessment can be seen as a threat; for that reason, there must be accountability on both sides.

End result of the discussions was a recommendation to survey departments and assess their experience of assessment. Departments that have recently gone through assessment should be surveyed to find out where the common issues are so PRAC can devise strategies to deal with them in cooperation with the Assessment office.

Coron announced that Mike Shea will be a guest speaker at the next PRAC meeting to explain how the SCore assessment corresponds with the PRAC document.

A website for PRAC is under development and Page/Podnar agreed to collaborate on that project.

Meeting adjourned at 12:30 p.m.

Recorder: Aashish Kumar