Sustaining Our Momentum: The College of Wooster’s Self-Study by The College of Wooster Community Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of Continuing Accreditation for the Higher Learning Commission Supervised by: Ellen Falduto, Gary Gillund, and Anne Nurse Spring 2013 The cover of this report mirrors the template for our students' Independent Study title pages. Independent Study at the College of Wooster is a year-long senior project that allows students to explore a topic in a deep way. We believe that our self-study process was not unlike an Independent Study, as we tried to demonstrate the type of critical thinking and evidence-based reasoning we ask from our students. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ……………………………………………………………………………………………... 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 6 CHAPTER ONE: AN INTRODUCTION TO THE COLLEGE OF WOOSTER …………………………………… 8 History of the College The College Today Independent Study The Self-Study Report CHAPTER TWO: SUSTAINING OUR MOMENTUM, TAKING STOCK OF OUR PROGRESS ………….12 The Last Six Years Our Strategic Initiative and Emphases Perspectives from the Campus CHAPTER THREE: RESPONSES TO CHALLENGES MADE BY THE COMMISSION IN 2002 ………. 33 CHAPTER FOUR: THE COLLEGE OF WOOSTER’S MISSION AND RELATED DOCUMENTS ……… 35 CRITERION 1: MISSION 1.A: The institution’s mission is broadly understood… 1.B: The mission is articulated publicly. 1.C: The institution understands the relationship between its mission and the diversity of society. 1.C.1: The institution addresses its role in a multicultural society. 1.C.2: The institution’s processes and activities reflect attention to… 1.D: The institution’s mission demonstrates commitment to the public good. 1.D.1: Actions and decisions reflect an understanding that in its educational role… 1.D.3: The institution engages with its identified external constituencies… 1.D.2: The institution’s educational responsibilities take primacy over other purposes… CHAPTER FIVE: A COMMUNITY OF INDEPENDENT MINDS, WORKING TOGETHER …………… 45 CRITERION 2: INTEGRITY: ETHICAL AND RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT 2.A: The institution operates with integrity… 2.B: The institution presents itself clearly and completely… 2.C (see Ch. 8) 2.D: The institution is committed to freedom of expression and the pursuit of truth… 2.E: The institution ensures that faculty, students, and staff acquire…knowledge responsibly. 2.E.1: The institution provides effective oversight… to ensure the integrity of research… 2.E.2: Students are offered guidance in the ethical use of information resources. 2.E.3: The institution has and enforces policies on academic honesty and integrity. Sustaining Our Momentum: The College of Wooster’s Self-Study Page 1 CHAPTER SIX: EDUCATION IN A LIBERAL ARTS SETTING ………………………………………………… 54 CRITERION 3: TEACHING AND LEARNING: QUALITY, RESOURCES, AND SUPPORT 3.A (see Chapter Seven) 3.B: The institution demonstrates that the exercise of intellectual inquiry… . 3.B.1: The general education program is appropriate… 3.B.2: … articulates the purposes, content, and intended learning outcomes … 4.B.1: … has clearly stated goals for student learning and processes for assessment… 3.B.3: Every degree program…collecting, analyzing, and communicating information… 3.B.4: The education offered …recognizes the human and cultural diversity of the world … 3.B.5: Faculty and students contribute to scholarship… and the discovery of knowledge… 3.C: The institution has the faculty and staff needed… 3.C.1: The institution has sufficient numbers and continuity of faculty members… 3.C.2: All instructors are appropriately credentialed… 3.C.3: Instructors are evaluated regularly… 3.C.4: The institution…supports their professional development. 3.C.5: Instructors are accessible for student inquiry. 3.C.6: Staff members…are appropriately qualified, trained, and supported…. 3.D: The institution provides support for student learning and effective teaching. 3.D.1: … student support services… 3.D.2: ... learning support and preparatory instruction… 3.D.3: … academic advising… 3.D.4: …the infrastructure and resources necessary… 3.D.5: … guidance in the effective use of research and information resources. 3.E: The institution fulfills the claims it makes for an enriched educational environment. 3.E.1: Co-curricular programs…contribute to the educational experience of its students. 3.E.2: The institution demonstrates…contributions to its students’ educational experience… CHAPTER SEVEN: EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT AT WOOSTER ……………………………………… 79 CRITERION 4: TEACHING AND LEARNING: EVALUATION AND IMPROVEMENT 4.A: The institution demonstrates responsibility for the quality of its educational programs. 4.A.2: The institution evaluates all the credit that it transcripts… 4.A.3: The institution has policies that assure the quality of the credit it accepts in transfer. 4.A.4: The institution maintains and exercises authority over…its programs. 4.A.5: The institution maintains specialized accreditation…as appropriate… 3.A: The institution’s degree programs are appropriate to higher education. 4.A.1: The institution maintains a practice of regular program reviews. 4.B: The institution demonstrates a commitment to…assessment of student learning. 4.B.1: (see Chapter 6) 4.B.2: The institution assesses achievement of the learning outcomes… 4.B.4: The institution’s processes and methodologies to assess…reflect good practice… 4.B.3: The institution uses the information… from assessment to improve student learning. 4.C: The institution demonstrates a commitment to educational improvement… 4.C.1: The institution has defined goals for student retention, persistence, and completion… 4.C.2: The institution collects and analyzes information on student retention, persistence, and completion of its programs. 4.C.3: The institution uses information…to make improvements as warranted by the data. 4.C.4: The institution’s processes and methodologies…reflect good practice. 4.A.6: The institution evaluates the success of its graduates… Sustaining Our Momentum: The College of Wooster’s Self-Study Page 2 CHAPTER EIGHT: ON PURPOSE - STRATEGIC PLANNING AT WOOSTER ……………………………… 94 CRITERION 5: GOVERNANCE, RESOURCES, PLANNING, AND INSTITUTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS 5.C: The institution engages in systematic and integrated planning. 5.C.2: The institution links its processes for assessment of student learning… 5.C.3: The planning process encompasses the institution as a whole… 5.C.4: The institution plans on the basis of a sound understanding of its current capacity. 5.C.5: Institutional planning anticipates emerging factors… 5.A.3: The goals incorporated into mission…are realistic… 5.D: The institution works systematically to improve its performance. 5.D.1: The institution develops and documents evidence of performance in its operations. 5.D.2: The institution learns from its operational experience… 5.B: The institution’s governance and administrative structures promote effective leadership… 5.B.1: The institution employs policies and procedures to engage its constituencies… 5.B.2: The governing board is knowledgeable about the institution… 5.B.3: The institution enables the involvement …through effective structures … 2.C: The governing board of the institution is sufficiently autonomous… 2.C.1: The governing board’s deliberations reflect priorities to preserve and enhance the institution. 2.C.2: The governing board reviews and considers the…interests of the institution’s internal and external constituencies… 2.C.3: The governing board preserves its independence from undue influence… 2.C.4: The governing board delegates day-to-day management of the institution to the administration and expects the faculty to oversee academic matters. 5.C.1: The institution allocates its resources in alignment with its mission and priorities. 1.A.3: The institution’s planning and budgeting priorities align with and support the mission. 5.A.5: The institution has a well-developed process in place for budgeting and for monitoring expense. 5.A.1: The institution has the fiscal and human resources and physical and technological infrastructure sufficient to support its operations wherever and however programs are delivered. 5.A.4: The institution’s staff in all areas are appropriately qualified and trained. 5.A.2 – not applicable CHAPTER NINE: SUSTAINING OUR MOMENTUM, CONTINUING OUR PROGRESS ……………….. 137 Conclusion and Next Steps ATTACHMENTS Attachment A: Self–Study Design (as Amended) and Acknowledgments ………………………………... 139 Attachment B: College of Wooster “Terms & Acronyms” ……………………………………………………..… 146 Attachment C: College of Wooster Pertinent Wiki and Webpage Links ………………………………….... 147 Sustaining Our Momentum: The College of Wooster’s Self-Study Page 3 TABLES AND FIGURES TABLES CHAPTER TWO: SUSTAINING OUR MOMENTUM, TAKING STOCK OF OUR PROGRESS Table 2.1 Selected Resource Metric Comparisons 2006-2012 Table 2.2 Faculty Satisfaction with the President’s Efforts at Communication CHAPTER FOUR: THE COLLEGE OF WOOSTER’S MISSION AND RELATED DOCUMENTS Table 4.1 Scores of first-time, degree seeking undergraduate students: Fall 2011 Table 4.2 Percentage of international and U.S. multi-ethnic undergraduate degree seeking students enrolled CHAPTER SIX: EDUCATION IN A LIBERAL ARTS SETTING Table 6.1 Satisfaction with the overall education received Table 6.2 Participation in faculty research or Independent Study Table 6.3 Learning to write effectively Table 6.4 Proportion of students who report completing foreign language coursework and the proportion who