2024-2025 Awards for Student Learning Assessment Practices
The Assessment Subcommittee annually reviews nominees' annual program assessment reports and selects the Excellence in Assessment award recipients. An award in the same category for the second time is designated Continued Excellence, and third-year awards in the same category are designated Sustained Excellence.
Chemical Engineering (B.S.Ch.E.)
Stakeholder Involvement (Excellence). All program faculty members conduct Program Learning Outcome. Instructors compile assessment data using common rubrics for homework, exams, reports, and presentations. Each spring, the faculty meets to review assessment results, analyze findings, and develop improvement plans. These plans may include modifying or creating student learning activities, revising program requirements, or adjusting assessment methods.
Students review program educational objectives and student outcomes during group advisement sessions each fall and spring semester, where feedback is solicited and discussed. The department head also administers exit surveys to graduating students each semester to collect self-assessments, indirect measures of learning outcomes, and achievement data.
Each fall, the Chemical Engineering Department convenes an external Industrial Advisory Committee composed of practicing engineers from companies that employ chemical engineering graduates. The committee reviews program assessment reports, interviews a representative sample of students, attends student presentations, and provides recommendations for continuous improvement for student learning and curriculum development.
Dance Minor
Measurement (Excellence). Direct measures used in the program are valid and appropriately aligned with the Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs). The Dance minor utilizes a common rubric that is applied across multiple courses and at various points throughout the semester. Teaching faculty collaboratively review assessment results to discuss potential adjustments to teaching in order to improve student learning. Common language, informed by the rubrics, is consistently used as students are taught and assessed in their classes. Access to the assessment measures was equitable and did not disadvantage any students. The use of multiple direct measures across several courses provides the program with a sufficiently large and representative sample to draw meaningful conclusions about student learning.
Social Work (M.S.W.)
Measurement (Excellence). Direct measures used in the program are valid and appropriately aligned with the Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs). The Master of Social Work (MSW) program assessed two PLOs, and results for each have remained consistent over time. Faculty members teaching the courses that deliver these measures coordinate closely on course content and assessment design. The program’s curriculum is intentionally scaffolded to ensure students are well-prepared to engage with the assessments tied to the PLOs. Instructional language is clear and familiar to students, and multiple options are provided to accommodate individual learning needs. The program’s assessment design includes multiple submission points throughout the assignment, allowing for ongoing feedback and continuous data collection. This process provides sufficient evidence to draw meaningful conclusions about student learning and performance.
Theatre Common
Measurement (Excellence). Direct measures used in the program are valid and appropriately aligned with the Program Learning Outcome (PLO). The Theatre core employs a common rubric that is applied multiple times throughout courses, encompassing low, medium, and high stakes assessments. The rubric was developed collaboratively across the department through faculty discussions. Students completing the assessment measures are provided with a variety of choices in topics and formats. The use of multiple direct measures across several courses provides the program with a sufficiently large and representative sample to draw meaningful conclusions about student learning.
