NDNU Interim Report 2019 Notre Dame de Namur University Interim Report to WSCUC Name of Institution: Notre Dame de Namur University Person Submitting the Report: Gregory B. White, Vice President for Academic Affairs and ALO Report Submission Date: October 15, 2019 Table of Contents 1. Statement on Report Preparation 2 2. List of Topics Addressed in This Report 2 3. Institutional Context 3 I. Description of NDNU 3 II. History, Mission, and Institutional Values 3 4. Response to Issues Identified by the Commission 5 I. Enrollment and Financial Plans 5 a. How NDNU tracks, monitors, and measures its enrollment plan 5 b. Enrollment outcomes and impact on the enrollment plan 6 c. Other outcomes affecting finances 8 d. Impacts on the financial plan 8 II. Faculty and Staff Hiring Plan 15 a. Updated Faculty and Staff Hiring Plan 16 b. Faculty and Staff Diversity 18 III. Assessment Plan 20 a. Summary of Status of Assessment Plan 20 b. Simplifying Program Review 21 c. Online Programs 22 5. Identification of Other Changes and Issues Currently Facing the Institution 22 I. Leadership Transitions 22 II. Board Committee Restructuring 23 III. Academic Resiliency Plan 24 IV. Faculty Development Grievance Resolution 26 V. Campus Improvements 27 VI. AB1466 and PAGA 28 VII. Title V HSI “STARS” Grant 29 6. Concluding Statement 30 1 of 30 NDNU Interim Report 2019 Notre Dame de Namur University 1. Statement on Report Preparation Briefly describe in narrative form the process of report preparation, providing the names and titles of those involved. Because of the focused nature of an Interim Report, the widespread and comprehensive involvement of all institutional constituencies is not normally required. Faculty, administrative staff, and others should be involved as appropriate to the topics being addressed in the preparation of the report. Campus constituencies, such as faculty leadership and, where appropriate, the governing board, should review the report before it is submitted to WSCUC, and such reviews should be indicated in this statement. The primary author of this Interim Report was Dr. Greg White, Vice President for Academic Affairs and ALO. Input and assistance was provided by members of the President’s cabinet, the deans, and the directors of Marketing and Admissions. An early outline was reviewed by the Student Learning and Success Committee of the Board of Trustees. A near-final draft was reviewed by the president’s cabinet, deans, and the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees, with the final draft reviewed by the president and the CFO. Normally, NDNU would also involve faculty in the review of an Interim Report. However, given that this Interim Report was being coordinated with a communication from the Board that is not yet public, faculty review was not feasible. See the Concluding Statement for a reference to the Board communication. Most of the information in the report (e.g., enrollment and financial information) was shared separately with faculty via the Joint Labor Management Committee. 2. List of Topics Addressed in this Report Please list the topics identified in the action letter(s) and that are addressed in this report. The primary topics addressed in this Interim Report are the three recommendations cited in the Interim Report Action Summary initially received from WSCUC on February 22, 2019 and revised on August 8, 2019. In response to NDNU’s Interim Report of November 1, 2018, the Interim Report Committee requested NDNU to “report on the status of their Enrollment and financial plans, faculty and staff hiring plan, and assessment plan” in this follow-up Interim Report. These topics are addressed in section 4 on “Response to Issues Identified by the Commission”: I. Enrollment and Financial Plans II. Faculty and Staff Hiring Plan III. Assessment Plan 2 of 30 NDNU Interim Report 2019 Notre Dame de Namur University To provide context needed to understand our responses to the issues above, we address in Section 5 the following topics which represent significant changes: I. Leadership Transitions II. Board Committee Restructuring III. Academic Resiliency Plan IV. Faculty Development Grievance Resolution V. Campus Improvements VI. AB1466 and PAGA VII. Title V HSI “STARS” Grant 3. Institutional Context Very briefly describe the institution's background; mission; history, including the founding date and year first accredited; geographic locations; and other pertinent information so that the Interim Report Committee panel has the context to understand the issues discussed in the report. I. Description of NDNU NDNU is a fully accredited, private, non-profit, coeducational, Catholic university located in Belmont, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula in Silicon Valley. The university is both a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI). NDNU is the only four-year accredited university in San Mateo County. The university offers undergraduate and graduate, liberal arts and professional programs. Enrollment in fall 2019 is 1363 students with approximately sixty percent of students enrolled in undergraduate degree programs and forty percent enrolled in graduate degree and credential programs. Our students represent 31 states and 41 foreign countries. In addition to traditional on-campus programs, the university offers programs in different modalities and at multiple sites. (See 3-I-1 NDNU Fact Sheet Fall 2019.) II. History, Mission, and Institutional Values A brief history of the university places our current vision, challenges, and successes in context. NDNU is the third oldest institution of higher education in the State of California. It was founded as the Academy of Notre Dame by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur (SNDs) in San Jose in 1851. The institution changed its name to College of Notre Dame in 1868 when it was chartered 3 of 30 NDNU Interim Report 2019 Notre Dame de Namur University by the State of California. NDNU’s social justice mission was already evident in 1868 as College of Notre Dame became the first California institution chartered to grant the baccalaureate degree to women. The mission of the Sisters has always been to provide educational access to those on the margins of society – a legacy that continues today. The College was relocated to the current site in Belmont in 1923 when the SNDs purchased the Ralston Estate. The College began offering a full four-year baccalaureate program in the 1950s and received its first WASC accreditation in 1953. The university became fully coeducational in 1969, added graduate programs in 1972, added accelerated evening degree completion programs for working adults in 1988, and received approval from WASC to offer its first PhD program in 2013. NDNU has also pursued online and off-campus programs. The first online programs were offered starting in fall 2011 and spring 2012. More recently, the online MBA program was launched in fall 2015, the MA TESOL program in fall 2017, and the BS Criminal Justice program in fall 2019. NDNU began offering its undergraduate degree completion programs off- campus at Mission College (Santa Clara, CA) in spring 2009 and at Cañada College (Redwood City, CA) in fall 2009. The university began offering both an undergraduate degree completion program and the MBA program in Tracy, CA in fall 2015 and began education credential programs in Tracy in 2017. To acknowledge its comprehensive character, the institution changed its name to Notre Dame de Namur University in 2001. NDNU has been an Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution since the inception of that designation in 2007 and became a Hispanic Serving Institution in 2009. The university was awarded two federal HSI grants in October 2011 that ran through September 2016. NDNU was funded for new HSI Title V Part A grant that began in October 2018 focused on success of transfer students. Essential to our institutional context are the university’s Mission, Vision, and Core Values, as well as the Hallmarks of a Notre Dame de Namur Learning Community (“Hallmarks”). (See 3- II-1 NDNU Mission, Vision, and Core Values and 3-II-2 Hallmarks of a Notre Dame de Namur Learning Community.) Both the mission and vision statements draw attention to our quality academic programs and to our focus on preparing students to make positive change in our world 4 of 30 NDNU Interim Report 2019 Notre Dame de Namur University in ethically meaningful ways. This integration of academic excellence, access, and service has been central to the university since its founding. 4. Response to Issues Identified by the Commission This main section of the report should address the issues identified by the Commission in its action letter(s) as topics for the Interim Report. Each topic identified in the Commission’s action letter should be addressed. The team report (on which the action letter is based) may provide additional context and background for the institution’s understanding of issues. Provide a full description of each issue, the actions taken by the institution that address this issue, and an analysis of the effectiveness of these actions to date. Have the actions taken been successful in resolving the problem? What is the evidence supporting progress? What further problems or issues remain? How will these concerns be addressed, by whom, and under what timetable? How will the institution know when the issue has been fully addressed? Please include a timeline that outlines planned additional steps with milestones and expected outcomes. Responses should be no longer than five pages per issue I. Enrollment and Financial Plans Commission Issue: Report on increased and diversified revenues. Related expectation for this Report from the Interim Report Action Summary: • Report on the status of NDNU’s Enrollment and financial plans. Related recommendation from the Interim Report Action Summary: • NDNU should continue to monitor the progress of enrollment plan of 100 students in the fall and by the next WSCUC interaction a report on enrollment as well as increased and diversified revenues is recommended.