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Office of Assessment

Contact Information

(209) 664-6746
elittlepage@csustan.edu

Mary Stuart Rogers, MSR 376

Division of Academic Affairs

At Stanislaus State, assessment is "defined as a continuous process used by the University (a) for evaluating the degree to which all University programs and services contribute to the fulfillment of the University's primary mission; and (b) for documenting and improving the University's effectiveness: (Assessment Plan, Stanislaus State, 1997).

The aggregation of six years of annual assessment reports contribute, during the seventh year, to the Commitment to Student Learning and Resources sections of the Academic Program Review Self Study. At the conclusion of the APR cycle and with the approval of the new program Implementation Plan, the APR cycle begins again as, each year, one or more of the assessment outcomes are reviewed and findings are included in the Annual Report; the seventh year provides a cumulative account compiled into the Academic Program Review Self Study. For specifics on the Academic Program Review process, see the Academic Program Review page.

Continuous Improvement, Seven Year Implementation Plan. Year 1-6: Annual Report, Year 7: Program Review

The approved Implementation Plan acts as a guide for the seven-year APR cycle. The Implementation Plan maps out the assessment activities that will occur during each of the subsequent six years, allowing for the fact that changes may be made along the way. These changes/revisions are documented in the annual assessment reports. 

For additional information, see "Design an Implementation Plan."

Program faculty submit an annual report on assessment findings and related program maintenance outcomes each fall. The Office of Institutional Research prepares data annually for each program, including the number of students, faculty, degrees granted, and instructional cost. Based on the timeline established in the Implementation Plan, faculty evaluate the extent to which program outcomes have been met. The six years of annual reports collectively become the basis for the Committment to Student Learning and Resources section of the Academic Program Review Self-Study report.

Annual Report Components

The Annual Report components will mirror those found in the Implementation Plan.

Report Components Guiding Criteria
Assessed Outcomes List the outcome(s) assessed over the past academic year (program learning outcomes and program maintenance outcomes).
Assessment Methods

Describe the assessment methods used.

  • Assessment methods are clearly explained and are appropriate for the learning outcome(s).

Best Practices:

  • Achievement targets are specific and measurable.
  • Benchmarking is employed periodically.
  • Reviewers are calibrated and faculty routinely find assessment data to have high inter-rater reliability.

 

Data Reviewed and Findings

Provide a description of data reviewed and a summary of the findings. Describe the process for evaluating/analyzing the findings.

  • Data sources are described and are appropriate for the outcome being assessed.
  • Findings are summarized in a concise, well-organized manner. Specific assessment data need NOT be disclosed, but conclusions should be.

Best Practices:

  • Provide evidence that targets were met, partially met, or not met.
  • Compare new findings to past assessment of the same learning outcome, as appropriate.
  • Exhibit good understanding of implications to the academic program.
Actions

Defines logical "next step" for the program in response to the findings.

  • Analysis identifies key areas that need to be monitored, remediated, or enhanced.
  • Actions are specific and directly related to the outcomes and the results of the assessment.
  • Persons or groups responsible for implementing the action plan are identified.
  • The number of actions is manageable.
  • Resource, if needed, are identified.
Return to the Implementation Plan/Closing the Loop
  • Program faculty identify improvements that should be made to the assessment process, if appropriate.
  • Evidence is provided that actions are being carried out and that they are resulting in improvement to student learning.
  • Learning outcomes are reassessed on a regular basis and the effect of previous action plans are evaluated.

Institutional Dashboards

Stanislaus State Institutional Dashboards provides program-level data. A permission request is required to access the dashboards. A security request can be completed via the OIT website. Once you have navigated to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Analytics website, select "Power BI Report Server." 

Access the Stanislaus State Institutional Dashboards

CSU Student Success Dashboards

The CSU Student Success Dashboard is an interactive data presentation tool that allows users to explore key student progress indicators across the CSU. The dashboard aims to promote data-driven campus conversations about what’s working well, and what needs to improve to increase student success. You can log-in using your Stanislaus State credentials. Please note that the dashboard works best with Firefox and Chrome browsers; it will not work on iPads.

The CSU Student Success Dashboard features:

  • Analysis of student success by discipline (analysis by major coming soon)
  • Predictive modeling designed to assist in determining which academic behaviors lead to successful and timely degree completion
  • Campus comparisons which can assist in establishing benchmarks and sharing exemplary practices
  • Retention and graduation rates of students participating in academic programs such as learning communities and first-year experiences

Access the CSU Dashboards

The Annual Report is submitted each fall via a Qualtrics link distributed to Program Directors and Department Chairs. Reports are shared with the Deans for college-level review and with the Faculty Fellow for Assessment for reporting in the aggregate. 

Annual Report Form Instrument (for reference).

The annual reports completed in Years 1-6 of the seven-year Academic Program Review cycle are submitted with the Academic Program Review in Year 7. 

Updated: October 26, 2023