Assessment Subcommittee of the IPPC

Operating Code

Function:

The Assessment Subcommittee (AS) will advise the President, the Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and other members of the IPPC on assessment of institutional goals as appropriate to each area of the College as they bear on student learning and development and on the fulfillment of standards for accreditation. In fulfilling this function, the AS will work to ensure that assessment plans are in place, are executed, and are consequential in all areas of the College. Collaborating closely with the Office of Institutional Research, the Office of Alumni Affairs and College Events, and other offices, the AS will act as a resource to both the IPPC and other bodies in the College engaged in strategic planning and data-informed decision-making.

Membership:

• Faculty Assessment Coordinator, Co-Chair
• A Cabinet liaison, Co-Chair, serving also as liaison to IPPC
• Director of Institutional Research
• Associate Director of Institutional Research for Assessment
• Associate Dean of the Faculty for Academic Policy and Advising
• An Associate Dean of Student Affairs
• Chief Diversity Officer or appropriate designee
• Executive Director of the Career Development Center
• Executive Director of Alumni Affairs and College Events
• Director of Summer Academic Programs and Residencies
• A faculty member of CEPP, serving as liaison, appointed by CEPP for a one-year term
• One additional faculty member, preferably from a disciplinary area not represented by the Faculty Assessment Coordinator or the CEPP member, to be appointed by the President in consultation with the Faculty Executive Committee and the Co-Chairs, through a willingness-to-serve process administered by the FEC, serving staggered three-year terms
• Two students, one of whom is the SGA VP for Academic Affairs and one appointed for a one-year term through an SGA willingness-to-serve process

Operating Procedures:

In consultation with the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the IPPC, and other important bodies at the college, the AS will establish an annual agenda with goals for completion. At the end of each school year, a tentative plan will be made for the next year. The plan will be reexamined and refined at the beginning of the next year; at the conclusion of the year, the Chair will report on each agenda item. AS members will make ongoing efforts to define an annual agenda that is informed by broad consultation.

With some consultation, the Chair will offer a specific agenda for each meeting. As appropriate, agenda items may come from committee members, academic departments and programs, the offices of the Dean of Studies, Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Dean of The Faculty, the Dean of Student Affairs, Admissions and Student Aid Committee, Curriculum Committee, the MALS Committee, Student Government Association, Alumni Affairs, or other relevant parties. Subgroups may establish their own agendas in consultation with the AS Chair; they will provide minutes to the Chair after each meeting, and the Chair will enfold their activities into the AS annual report to the VPAA and the IPPC.

New members of the AS will be expected to familiarize themselves with the ongoing research on assessment practices, the requirements for assessment in the Middle States accreditation process, and the recent history of assessment at Skidmore. The Chair will provide support for this development for committee members as the budget allows.

AS members will, as part of their service on the committee, read assessment reports as needed from multiple departments, programs and areas of the college. The Chair will maintain a long-term archive, which will be handed off to each new Chair. Important documents will be stored in the electronic AS archive linked to the Assessment website. The AS shall convey its minutes to the Co-Chairs of the IPPC and also to CEPP, as the committee of the faculty that is most directly concerned with assessment of student learning. The minutes shall also be posted on the Assessment website, password-protected and available to members of the college community.

Meetings: The AS meets as a whole once a semester, or additionally as needed. Subgroups of the AS may meet more frequently to accomplish specific goals. When possible, decisions are reached by consensus. A committee member can request a formal vote of the committee. Discussions may be confidential. All decisions related to assessment will be documented and available through publicly archived minutes. Members of the AS, with the exception of the Chair, will take turns keeping minutes. Electronic copies of minutes will generally be made available to the committee before the next meeting. At the meeting after a given set of minutes are taken, they will be reviewed, amended if necessary and approved by the committee.

Consultation: The AS will utilize as many resources and avenues (e.g., surveys, email correspondence, individual interaction, special meetings, special faculty meetings, faculty meetings, Student Government Association meetings) as necessary to ensure extensive consultation takes place during all major assessment initiatives. Whenever proper procedures or practices concerning faculty governance are in question, the AS will consult with the Committee on Faculty Governance for guidance.