2012 quality checkup final report 1524 aqqc 20121004 higher learning commission’s academic quality...

October 5, 2012 Dr. Raymond Nadolny President Williston State College 1410 University Ave. Williston, ND 58801 Dear President Nadolny: Attached is the report of the team that conducted Williston State College’s Quality Checkup site visit. In addition to communicating the team’s evaluation of your compliance with the Commission’s Criteria for Accreditation and the Commission’s Federal Compliance Program, the report captures the team’s assessment of your use of the feedback from your last Systems Appraisal and your overall commitment to continuous improvement. I Hope you will read and study the report carefully, because the team invested heavily in preparing for and conducting this visit, and its perceptions and advice are valuable to your institution. Please consider distributing it widely throughout your institution, since its positive feedback can be helpful in strengthening and broadening involvement in your quality improvement efforts. A copy of the report will be read and analyzed by the AQIP Panel that reviews institutions for Reaffirmation of Accreditation at the time your review is scheduled. Prior to that review, we will send you a listing of the materials the Panel will consider, and give you an opportunity to update or supplement them if you so desire. To comply with federal requirements, we need you, as CEO of your institution, to formally acknowledge receipt of this report within the next two weeks, and to provide us with any comments you wish to make about it. Your response will become a part of the institution’s permanent record. Sincerely, Stephen D. Spangehl Vice President for Accreditation Relations

QUALITY CHECKUP REPORT

Williston State College

Williston, North Dakota September 17-18, 2012

Quality Checkup Team Members:

Iva G. Bergeron, M.Ed. Assistant to the President for

Planning and Institutional Improvement

HLC Accreditation Liaison Lincoln Land Community College

Springfield, Illinois

Philip E. Pena, MBA Vice President of Finance and

Administration East Central College

Union, Missouri

Higher Learning Commission 230 South LaSalle Street, Suite 7-500

Chicago, Illinois 6064 800-621-7440 • www.ncahlc.org

Williston State College September 17-18, 2012

Quality Checkup Visit Report. Last revised 5/12. 2

Background on Quality Checkups conducted by the Academic Quality Improvement Program

The Higher Learning Commission’s Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP) conducts Quality

Checkup site visits to each institution during the fifth or sixth year in every seven-year cycle of AQIP

participation. These visits are conducted by trained, experienced AQIP Reviewers to determine whether

the institution continues to meet The Higher Learning Commission’s Criteria for Accreditation, and

whether it is using quality management principles and building a culture of continuous improvement as

participation in the Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP) requires. The goals of an AQIP

Quality Checkup are to:

1. Affirm the accuracy of the organization’s online Systems Portfolio and verify information

included in the portfolio that the last Systems Appraisal has identified as needing clarification or

verification (System Portfolio Clarification and Verification), including review of distance

delivery and distributed education if the institution is so engaged.

2. Review with organizational leaders actions taken to capitalize on the strategic issues and

opportunities for improvement identified by the last Systems Appraisal (Systems Appraisal

Follow Up);

3. Alert the organization to areas that need its attention prior to Reaffirmation of Accreditation, and

reassure it concerning areas that have been covered adequately (Accreditation Issues Follow Up);

4. Verify federal compliance issues such as default rates, complaints, USDE interactions and

program reviews, etc. (Federal Compliance Review); and

5. Assure continuing organizational quality improvement commitment through presentations,

meetings, or sessions that clarify AQIP and Commission accreditation work (Organizational

Quality Commitment).

The AQIP peer reviewer(s) trained for this role prepare for the visit by reviewing relevant organizational

and AQIP file materials, particularly the organization’s last Systems Appraisal Feedback Report and the

Commission’s internal Organizational Profile, which summarizes information reported by the institution

in its Annual Institutional Data Update. The report provided to AQIP by the institution is also shared with

the evaluator(s). Copies of the Quality Checkup report are provided to the institution’s CEO and AQIP

liaison. The Commission retains a copy in the institution’s permanent file, and will be part of the

materials reviewed by the AQIP Review Panel during Reaffirmation of Accreditation.


3 Quality Checkup Visit Report. Last revised 5/12.

Clarification and verification of contents of the institution’s Systems Portfolio

In the team’s judgment, Williston State College presented satisfactory evidence that it met this goal of the

Quality Checkup. The institution’s approach to the issue, documentation, and performance were

acceptable and comply with the Commission’s standards and AQIP’s expectations. The team clarified and

verified the contents of the Systems Portfolio by meeting with appropriate institutional representatives as

it related to all nine categories. Williston State College has institutionalized the nine categories by

creating a structure within its institutional effectiveness model that includes teams concentrated on each

of the category titles. Verification documentation was outlined by each category leader with the team

members.

Review of the organization’s quality assurance and oversight of its distance education

activities.

In the team’s judgment, Williston State College has presented satisfactory evidence that its distance

education activities are acceptable and comply with the Commission’s standards and expectations.

Assurance and oversight was established by meeting with the Provost/Vice President of Instruction and

Student Services and the Director for Distance Education. The College utilizes an e-Learning Handbook

and other resources to provide direction for its faculty and staff regarding distance learning activities. In

addition, WSC utilizes an adaptation from Quality Matters rubrics to review course content online and

analyzes the results to craft appropriate improvements if necessary.

Review of the organization’s quality assurance and oversight of distributed education

(multiple campuses, additional locations, off-campus course sites)

In the team’s judgment, Williston State College has presented satisfactory evidence that its distributed

education activities (operation of multiple campuses, additional locations, and off-campus course sites)

are acceptable and comply with Commission’s standards and expectations. The Provost/Vice President of

Instruction and Student Services is responsible for the oversight and assurance of quality at its distributed

education sites. One of the team members visited the Petroleum Safety and Technology Center. Both

team members toured the main campus site.

Review of specific accreditation issues identified by the institution’s last Systems Appraisal

Williston State College’s last Systems Appraisal identified no accreditation issues. The team also

confirms that there are no accreditation issues.



Review of the institution’s approach to capitalizing on recommendations identified by its last Systems Appraisal in the Strategic Issues Analysis.

Williston State College’s approach to the review of its strengths and opportunities is institutionalized by

the work of its nine category teams. Many of the opportunities identified as part of the Systems Portfolio

Appraisal team have been identified, discussed and clarified by the College. There were four strategic

issues identified by the Systems Portfolio Appraisal team:

• With new leadership at the time of the appraisal, the College had an opportunity to assess the

effectiveness of communication between and among internal stakeholders and develop a process

to ensure that the work being done through its teams was aligned with the overall planning

processes of the College.

• The data collection at WSC was internal and state driven; the College had an opportunity to

determine how it selects and prioritizes its measures of performance. The College needed to

identify its direct measures of performance and clarify how it uses its data for decision making

and to benchmark that data from outside the state to improve its culture of quality improvement.

• Williston State College was to review its processes for building external collaborative

relationships and identify measures to assess the effectiveness of those relationships.

• The College’s planning process needed to be integrated, comprehensive and systematic. In

addition, the College needed to address short term and long term strategies as part of its planning

process.

Williston State College is working diligently to address many of these strategies and opportunities

annually through its planning and budgeting process as well as through the action projects required of the

AQIP process. The President adopted the AQIP process and nine categories as his leadership structure

and adopted a planning and budgeting process within the nine categories, in order that planning and

budgeting is integrated, comprehensive, and systematic. Through identified action projects required of

the AQIP process, Williston State College is institutionalizing many of its communication resources, data

collection and benchmarking processes and crafting a process for measuring the effectiveness of its

collaborative relationships.

Review of organizational commitment to continuing systematic quality improvement

In the team’s judgment, Williston State College presented satisfactory evidence that it met this goal of the

Quality Checkup. The institution’s approach to the issue, documentation, and performance were

acceptable and comply with Commission and AQIP’s expectations. Williston State College continues to



share a clear focus through its mission and goals, has effective leadership, requires high standards for all

its students, is collaborative, aligns its curriculum with its instruction and assessment activities, monitors

its teaching and learning, provides professional development activities throughout the college, establishes

support services for the entire learning environment and illustrates extraordinary levels of college and

community involvement. Evidence that Williston State College is committed to continuous quality

improvement can be found in its discussions with its faculty, staff and leadership. The College is

structured around the principles of high performance institutions and the nine categories of AQIP.

Williston State College has no choice but to be committed to improvement because change in the

community in which they serve is a constant, and improvement opportunities exist daily.

Other AQIP issues

Williston State College is working under extreme circumstances within the community of Williston,

North Dakota. The College is part of a rapidly growing oil production community with little or no regard

to the current infrastructure of the small city. While the College leadership explained in the Systems

Portfolio the oil expansion and economic conditions in the community, the Quality Checkup team

members attest to the extreme difficulty of work and life in Williston. Because of the oil field inflation,

the cost-of-living, available affordable housing, stress on college salaries, and the availability of basic

resources, it appears the College has had significant outside-of-their influence challenges while the state

funding formula looks to have remained at the pre-oilfield rate. The College Leadership, faculty, staff

and students deserve to be commended on their resiliency and determination in times of massive growth,

constant change and extremely difficult “quality of life” concerns.



Appendix A Worksheet for the Evaluation Team on Federal Compliance Requirements

. Instructions: The team reviews each item identified in the Federal Compliance Guide and documents its findings in the appropriate spaces below. Generally, if the team finds in the course of this review that there are substantive issues related to the institution’s ability to fulfill the Criteria for Accreditation, such issues should be raised in appropriate sections of this AQIP Quality Checkup Report. This Worksheet must be completed for all Quality Checkup visits after January 1, 2012. Institutional Materials Related to Federal Compliance Reviewed by the Team: The Quality Checkup team reviewed the following documents and materials:

• Catalog • Website • Credit hour worksheet and class schedule • Random sampling of master and course syllabi • Systems-wide FY 2011 audit and the transmittal letter for WSC • E Learning Handbook • Impact Brochure • Emergency Preparedness Plan • Student cost of attendance documentation (website, student schedule, etc.) • Student Complaints’ log (hard and electronic copies) in academic services,

student services, and administrative services • NDUS Transfer Guides • Several academic programs’ brochures and information pages both online and

hard copy Evaluation of Federal Compliance Program Components 1. Credits, Program Length, and Tuition: The institution has documented that it has credit hour assignments and degree program lengths within the range of good practice in higher education and that tuition is consistent across degree programs (or that there is a rational basis for any program-specific tuition). New for 2012: The Commission has a new policy on the Credit Hour. Complete the Worksheet in Appendix A and then complete the following responses. Attach the Worksheet to this form. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: _X_ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up.



_____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: The credit hour worksheet for Williston State College is in Appendix A of this document. Williston State College defines the credit hour with the federal credit hour definition and utilizes the Carnegie unit definition for its program lengths and contact hour guidelines. Williston State College is governed by the North Dakota Board of Higher Education which oversees these definitions and tuition costs/increases. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.

2. Student Complaints: The institution has documented a process in place for addressing student complaints and appears to be systematically processing such complaints as evidenced by the data on student complaints for the three years prior to the visit. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: _X_ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: The Quality Checkup team reviewed both the process and the sampling of students complaints regarding academic, student service and administrative services and found evidence for three years that all complaints are addressed and improvements are made if warranted. The North Dakota Board of Higher Education monitors the North Dakota institutions for processing complaints systematically. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.



3. Transfer Policies: The institution has demonstrated it is appropriately disclosing its transfer policies to students and to the public. Policies contain information about the criteria the institution uses to make transfer decisions. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: _X__ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: Williston State College falls under the governance of the North Dakota Board of Higher Education where the state agency dictates all transfer agreements and polices regarding transfer. Williston State College is part of the General Education Requirements Transfer Agreement (GERTA) document that can be found in the College catalog, the online catalog and within the advisors and faculty handbooks. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.

4. Verification of Student Identity: The institution has demonstrated that it verifies the identity of students who participate in courses or programs provided to the student through distance or correspondence education and have appropriate protocols to disclose additional fees related to verification to students and to protect their privacy. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: __X_ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up.



_____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: Williston State College demonstrated through evidence provided that students who use distance learning education resources undergo appropriate procedures to disclose the students’ identity and to protect their privacy. The eLearning Handbook addresses all the “nuts and bolts” related to student and faculty concerns for distance education. An entire section addresses students’ responsibilities that include but are not limited to student identity authentication through student id’s and the student’s ability to utilize computer and technology prior to enrolling into a distance education class. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.

5. Title IV Program and Related Responsibilities: The institution has presented evidence on the required components of the Title IV Program.

! General Program Requirements: The institution has provided the Commission with information about the fulfillment of its Title IV program responsibilities, particularly findings from any review activities by the Department of Education. It has, as necessary, addressed any issues the Department raised regarding the institution’s fulfillment of its responsibilities in this area. WSC has had no findings regarding its Title IV program responsibilities. Evidence was reviewed in the financial aid audit to ensure no findings were listed.

! Financial Responsibility Requirements: The institution has provided the Commission

with information about the Department’s review of composite ratios and financial audits. It has, as necessary, addressed any issues the Department raised regarding the institution’s fulfillment of its responsibilities in this area. (Note that the team should also be commenting under Criterion Two if an institution has significant issues with financial responsibility as demonstrated through ratios that are below acceptable levels or other financial responsibility findings by its auditor.) WSC provided its audit, financial statements, transmittal letter and its campus ratios as evidence that it is a financially stable institution. With the expansion and growth in the economic community which WSC serves, additional resources to keep up with that growth will be necessary.

! Default Rates. The institution has provided the Commission with information about

three years of default rates. It has a responsible program to work with students to minimize default rates. It has, as necessary, addressed any issues the Department raised regarding the institution’s fulfillment of its responsibilities in this area.



WSC listed its default rates, and it appears that its default rate is lower than its peers as evidenced by the National Student Loan Data system.

! Campus Crime Information, Athletic Participation and Financial Aid, and Related Disclosures: The institution has provided the Commission with information about its disclosures. It has demonstrated, and the team has reviewed, the institution’s policies and practices for ensuring compliance with these regulations. WSC discloses all appropriate information in its Student Code of Conduct. Meeting with students and addressing the Code of Conduct was evidence that most students knew what that Code of Conduct was and knew where to find it if needed. On the website, WSC documents its security and fire reports and other safety and security documentation, as well as Equity and Athletics data.

! Student Right to Know. The institution has provided the Commission with information

about its disclosures. It has demonstrated, and the team has reviewed, the institution’s policies and practices for ensuring compliance with these regulations. The disclosures are accurate and provide appropriate information to students. (Note that the team should also be commenting under Criterion One if the team determines that disclosures are not accurate or appropriate.) WSC’s Student Right to know information is located in the Student Code of Conduct and is distributed to students at orientation and is available in the Bookstore. Financial Aid disclosures are on the website, in the student handbook and on the website. Academic disclosures such as academic program requirements, gainful employment programs, graduation rates, and academic pathways are all on the website and in the college catalog. WSC lists its HLC accreditation in its Catalog and on its website. The college has one certified program, the Diesel Technology program. It is certified by the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) and is listed in the catalog and on the website. Disability Facilities disclosures are listed in the strategic planning documentation as evidence of needing to be addressed on an annual basis and the college has a Disability Support Services page on its website.

! Satisfactory Academic Progress and Attendance. The institution has provided the Commission with information about policies and practices for ensuring compliance with these regulations. The institution has demonstrated that the policies and practices meet state or federal requirements and that the institution is appropriately applying these policies and practices to students. Attendance policies are listed on page 11 of the Catalog and in the faculty handbook for faculty instructions on how to implement attendance polices. Student Academic progress and expectations are listed in the catalog and on the website. In addition discussing with students their academic success and opportunities, the team found that the majority of the students were able to identify how they were progressing in their classes.



! Contractual Relationships: The institution has presented a list of its contractual relationships related to its academic program and evidence of its compliance with Commission policies requiring notification or approval for contractual relationships (The institution should review the Contractual Change Application on the Commission’s Web site for more information. If the team learns that the institution has a contractual relationship that may require Commission approval and has not completed the appropriate Commission Contractual Change Application the team must require that the institution complete and file the form as soon as possible.) WSC reports zero contractual relationships.

! Consortial Relationships: The institution has presented a list of its consortial

relationships related to its academic program and evidence of its compliance with Commission policies requiring notification or approval for consortial relationships (The institution should review the Consortial Change Application on the Commission’s Web site for more information. If the team learns that the institution has such a consortial relationship that may require Commission approval and has not completed the appropriate Commission Consortial Change Application the team must require that the institution complete and file the form as soon as possible.) WSC reports one active consortia relationship with the North Dakota Nursing Program for its certificate and associate degree nursing program.

CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: _X_ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: See each bullet area above for comments. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.

6. Institutional Disclosures and Advertising and Recruitment Materials: The institution has documented that it provides accurate, timely and appropriately detailed information to current



and prospective students and the public about its accreditation status with the Commission and other agencies as well as about its programs, locations and policies. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: __X__ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: WSC provides program information on the following documents: catalog, fact sheets, and viewbook on its website and in its teasers for advertising, recruiting and public marketing purposes. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.

7. Relationship with Other Accrediting Agencies and with State Regulatory Boards: The institution has documented that it discloses accurately to the public and the Commission its relationship with any other specialized, professional or institutional accreditor and with all governing or coordinating bodies in states in which the institution may have a presence. Note that if the team is recommending initial or continued status, and the institution is currently under sanction or show-cause with, or has received an adverse action from, any other federally recognized specialized or institutional accreditor in the past five years, the team must explain the action in the body of the Assurance Section of the Team Report and provide its rationale for recommending Commission status in light of this action. In addition, the team must contact the staff liaison immediately if it learns that the institution is at risk of losing its degree authorization or lacks such authorization in any state in which the institution meets state presence requirements. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: __X__ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements.



_____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: WSC identified two programs which have relationships with accreditation agencies and/or with state regulatory boards: the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) and the North Dakota Nursing Program. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.

8. Public Notification of an Evaluation Visit and Third Party Comment: The institution has made an appropriate and timely effort to solicit third party comments. The team has evaluated any comments received and completed any necessary follow-up on issues raised in these comments. Note that if the team has determined that any issues raised by third-party comment relate to the team’s review of the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation, it must discuss this information and its analysis in the body of the Assurance Section of the Team Report. CHECK THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE THAT REFLECTS THE TEAM’S CONCLUSIONS: __X__ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution to meet the Commission’s requirements but recommends follow-up. _____ The team has reviewed this component of federal compliance and has found the institution not to meet the Commission’s requirements and recommends follow-up. _____ The team also has comments that relate to the institution’s compliance with the Criteria for Accreditation. See Criterion (insert appropriate reference).

Comments: WSC received no comments from third party constituencies concerning the evaluation visit. The College publicized the evaluation visit in its local paper and where necessary on its website to encourage comment. Additional Monitoring, if any: None.



Appendix B Credits and Program Length

Instructions: The team reviews the “Protocol for Peer Reviewers Reviewing Credit Hours Under the Commission’s New Policies” before completing this Worksheet. This Worksheet must be completed for all Quality Checkup visits after January 1, 2012. A: Answer the Following Questions

Institutional Policies on Credit Hours " Does the institution’s policy for awarding credit address all the delivery formats employed by the

institution? (Note that for this question and the questions that follow an institution may have a single comprehensive policy or multiple policies.)

X Yes No

Comments:

WSC awards credit for course work for all delivery formats. Evidence was obtained by reviewing the master syllabi for credit courses. The policy and procedures are outlined in the faculty handbook which identifies both the federal definition of a credit hour and refers to the Carnegie unit as its foundation for awarding credit.

" Does that policy relate the amount of instructional or contact time provided and homework

typically expected of a student to the credit hours awarded for the classes offered in the delivery formats offered by the institution?

X Yes No

Comments:

WSC outlines the amount of instruction through contact time and generally refers to 50 minutes of contact time equaling 1 credit hour. An example would be a class that meets 3 times a week for 50 minutes each, will equate to 3 credit hours for 45 contact hours. In addition, as the College begins to offer a variety of instructional opportunities, this model that utilizes the federal definition will be used to determine class time and contact time.

" For institutions with non-traditional courses in alternative formats or with less instructional and homework time than would be typically expected, does that policy equate credit hours with intended learning outcomes and student achievement that could be reasonably achieved by a student in the timeframe and utilizing the activities allotted for the course?

X Yes No

Comments:



WSC does not offer non-traditional courses in alternative formats at this time; however, the policy for awarding credit for course work is in the process of being revised in order to adjust all teaching and instructional opportunities utilizing the federal credit hour definition, specifically for any alternative formats other than distance education.

" Is the policy reasonable within the federal definition as well as within the range of good practice in

higher education? (Note that the Commission will expect that credit hour policies at public institutions that meet state regulatory requirements or are dictated by the state will likely meet federal definitions as well.)

X Yes No

Comments: WSC’s policies and procedures are reasonable and are within the range of good practice in higher education because the College utilizes the Carnegie unit definition as its foundation for awarding credit and has incorporated the federal definition of the credit hour in its practice of awarding credit.

Application of Policies " Are the course descriptions and syllabi in the sample academic programs reviewed by the team

appropriate and reflective of the institution’s policy on the award of credit? (Note that the Commission will expect that credit hour policies at public institutions that meet state regulatory requirements or are dictated by the state will likely meet federal definitions as well.)

X Yes No

Comments:

The sampling of master and course syllabi that were reviewed were both appropriate and reflective of the institution’s practice of awarding credit based on its procedures identified in its faculty handbook.

" Are the learning outcomes in the sample reviewed by the team appropriate to the courses and

programs reviewed and in keeping with the institution’s policy on the award of credit?

X Yes No

Comments:

WSC has been a member of the Assessment Academy and has adopted student learning outcomes for all courses at the College. The sampling of master and course syllabi that the team reviewed was appropriate to the programs’ awarding of credit hours and was in alignment with the practiced procedures outlined in the faculty handbook. In addition, the Catalog rendition of the program curriculum was in alignment with the program brochures and the course syllabi reviewed.



" If the institution offers any alternative delivery or compressed format courses or programs, were the course descriptions and syllabi for those courses appropriate and reflective of the institution’s policy on the award of academic credit?

X Yes No

Comments:

WSC does not offer any alternative delivery courses or programs other than distance education. The sampling of course descriptions and syllabi the team reviewed were appropriate for distance delivery because the syllabi were the same as those in traditional face-to-face courses.

" If the institution offers alternative delivery or compressed format courses or programs, are the

learning outcomes reviewed by the team appropriate to the courses and programs reviewed and in keeping with the institution’s policy on the award of credit? Are the learning outcomes reasonably capable of being fulfilled by students in the time allocated to justify the allocation of credit?

X Yes No

Comments:

For those courses and programs reviewed in distance education, the student learning outcomes were the same because all syllabi are the same for all courses independent of the delivery modality. The team reviewed and determined that the awarding of credit and the student learning outcomes were capable of being fulfilled by students in those classes.

" Is the institution’s actual assignment of credit to courses and programs across the institution

reflective of its policy on the award of credit and reasonable and appropriate within commonly accepted practice in higher education?

X Yes No

Comments:

WSC’s actual assignment of credit to courses and programs is systematic and comprehensive across the College. As the College matures through both AQIP and course offerings, the revamped policy will be more comprehensive and address any new course offerings and credit assignments with the federal credit hour definition.

B: Identify the Sample Courses and Programs Reviewed by the Team. For the programs the team sampled, the team should review syllabi and intended learning outcomes for several of the courses in the program, identify the contact hours for each course, and expectations for homework or work outside of instructional time. The following course syllabi were reviewed: English 110 College Compostion-45 contact hours, 3 credit hours Nursing 224 Professional Role Development-30 contact hours, 2 credit hours



Economics 201 Principles of Microeconomics-45 contact hours, 3 credit hours All course student learning outcomes were measurable and it appeared that the outcomes were being measured through the homework and assessment activities.

The following programs were reviewed: Associate of Science (AS)-62 credit hours, with 42 credit hours in General Education. Associate of Applied Science (AAS)-64 credit hours, with 12 hours of General Education

Both programs identify the courses that are required and those that are part of an elective process in the AS degree program. Each degree program outlines the outcomes of the program.

C: Recommend Commission Follow-up, If Appropriate

Is any Commission follow-up required related to the institution’s credit hour policies and practices? Yes X No

Rationale:

Identify the type of Commission monitoring required and the due date: None.

D: Identify and Explain Any Findings of Systematic Non-Compliance in One or More Educational

Programs with Commission Policies Regarding the Credit Hour

NONE

2012 quality checkup final report 1524 aqqc 20121004 higher learning commission’s academic quality...

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