Collegiate Review | Policy Manual

28.2 Collegiate Review

(Amended 2/07; 4/6/21)

Purpose. Systematic collegiate review should assist the faculty, dean, and University administration in 1) evaluating how effectively the college is achieving its educational goals; 2) identifying the college's strengths and weaknesses; and 3) developing strategic plans and priorities for future directions of the college. Pertinent information collected for the purpose of answering specific questions about the college's various components and activities will provide a firm foundation for evaluating the college.

Review, particularly of a small college, need not be long and complex. It should concentrate on essentials. A collegiate review has two parts: 1) a self-study of the college and its programs by the collegiate faculty and administration; and 2) a peer review by University faculty members from outside the college in collaboration with one to two reviewers external to the University.
Timing. Reviews of colleges shall take place at least once every seven years and ordinarily not more frequently than once every five years. Where possible within these time constraints, reviews should be coordinated with external accreditation evaluations. Reviews may also be scheduled within these parameters to coordinate with other specific circumstances, e.g., a pending change in collegiate leadership or an impending significant change in resource needs. It is anticipated that the process of review will take a full year.
Responsibility.. In order to assure that the review can benefit from evaluation and planning, the timing of the review process will be decided through consultation between the Provost and the dean of the college. Collegiate reviews are initiated by the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, and that office organizes and directs the process and formulates the final conclusions. The Office of the Vice President for Research and the Dean of the Graduate College also will be involved in those matters germane to their areas of responsibility, e.g., scholarly and creative activities, graduate studies, and developing programs.
Scope. The Executive Vice President and Provost will determine the scope of the evaluation.
1. In General. The collegiate review should represent a comprehensive evaluation of all aspects of the college's function, with recognition of the mutual dependency of programs and activities. An able student body, a faculty engaged in effective teaching and scholarship, effective performance of staff members, effective collegiate administration, and adequate facilities all contribute to the success of a college and must be reviewed as a whole.
  
  Although all collegiate reviews are to be comprehensive, the focus will vary from college to college. It is not intended that collegiate reviews duplicate the specific evaluations of programs provided through departmental or program reviews (see II-28.3(1) below). In departmentalized colleges, the results of departmental or program reviews during the preceding seven-year cycle will serve as one source for review of the college. In such cases, the collegiate review will focus primarily on evaluations of college-wide programs, policies, organization, funding, etc. In non-departmentalized colleges, in which departmental/program reviews have not been conducted (with the possible exception of some graduate programs), the collegiate review will involve a more in-depth evaluation of each specific program in the college.
2. Areas to Be Considered:
  1. Collegiate Mission and Goals: The overall mission and goals of the college and their contribution to the University mission.
  2. Strategic Plan. The suitability of the collegiate strategic plan and progress toward achieving plan goals.
  3. Students. Historical and prospective student enrollment over a seven-year period, admissions policies and procedures, quality, advising, governance, placement services, student perceptions of the college, its program, faculty, and administration.
  4. Educational Programs. Instructional programs of the college in regard to:
    1. the learning objectives of the program;
    2. curriculum content in relation to the learning objectives of the program;
    3. student achievement of learning objectives of the program;
    4. program changes since last review and success of changes in relation to program learning objectives;
    5. recommendations for program changes based on recent assessments and other pertinent data;
    6. the relation of the program to the goals of the college;
    7. the continuing need for the program;
    8. the overall quality of the program; and
    9. the interaction of faculty and students with other parts of the University (e.g.,development of and participation in interdisciplinary programs).
  5. Scholarly and Creative Activities. The scope and excellence of scholarly and creative activities and their contribution to instruction. "Scholarly and creative activities" are meant to include "research" whether or not it is in the laboratory.
  6. Service. Programs or individual efforts that provide services to the college, University, state, nation, or others; the contribution of service activities to instructional, scholarly, and creative activities.
  7. Faculty. Assessment of faculty teaching effectiveness, scholarly and creative contributions, and service.
  8. Facilities and Support Services. The adequacy of space and support facilities such as library, research space, staff assistance, instructional aids, and equipment and supplies.
  9. Collegiate operations.
    1. organizational structure of the college, including committees, communication among faculty, staff, students, and dean; adequacy of the structure for discharging regular collegiate responsibilities.
    2. role of faculty, staff, students, and administration in collegiate affairs and the nature of their interaction.
    3. relationship of the college to the University community, the alumni, peer institutions, and other affiliations.
    4. effectiveness of collegiate strategic planning and plan implementation processes.
  10. Financial Resources. The financial structure of the college should be reviewed on a program-by-program basis with regard to source and amount of support and in terms of educational, scholarly, and creative activity and service objectives.
Self-Study Committee. The Executive Vice President and Provost shall initiate the collegiate self-study by requesting the college to organize a representative self-study committee. The self-study committee shall be organized in accordance with procedures adopted by the collegiate faculty at least one year prior to the year in which the self-study is to occur. Procedures adopted by the collegiate faculty shall be approved by the Executive Vice President and Provost. These procedures shall set forth the size and qualifications for membership on the self-study committee and shall include the method by which members of the self-study committee shall be selected. They shall also provide for what role, if any, the dean of the college shall play in the selection of the self-study committee.

The self-study committee is charged with developing the collegiate self-study with the cooperation of the dean, collegiate faculty, staff, and other members of the University community, as the committee determines. The self-study committee has the responsibility for organizing and conducting the self-study in relation to the review topics listed in this policy. The self-study committee will conduct the review to ensure broad consultation with the faculty, students, staff, and administration of the college and, if deemed appropriate by the self-study committee, with external constituents of the college.

Copies of the self-study report shall be forwarded to the dean and faculty of the college for their review and comment. Thereafter, and following such other endorsements as may be required by collegiate rule, final copies, revised if appropriate, shall be forwarded to the dean of the college and to the Executive Vice President and Provost of the University. The final self-study shall be made available to the public.
Self-Study.
1. General. The college should reexamine its goals and reflect on how various activities contribute to the achievement of those goals and identify priorities and directions for the future. The self-study should address the major areas described in II-28.2.d(2) above.
2. Data. Much of the data needed for the self-study can be obtained from the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, the collegiate administration, and often from recent accreditation materials.
Self-Study Reports. The committee will prepare a report that includes information and data on which the self-study was based, and the conclusions reached about the strengths, weaknesses, and future directions of the college. Particular attention should be given to ways in which improvements in programs and functions can be achieved within currently available or, if indicated, reduced collegiate resources. Sources of flexibility for resource reallocation should be identified in the self-study.
Review Procedures.
1. Based on the collegiate self-study, the Executive Vice President and Provost will develop a charge for the review in consultation with the dean and the self-study committee.
2. Peer review of the college will be accomplished by a review committee composed of University faculty and staff from outside the college in collaboration with one to two reviewers external to the University appointed by the Executive Vice President and Provost in consultation with the dean of the college. The reviewers external to the institution should be at appropriate rank and/or position to participate in the review.
  1. The review committee will meet with the Executive Vice President and Provost to be given the charge for the review, plan the specific steps to be taken, and establish a tentative timetable for the review.
  2. The review committee shall consider the self-study and related documents and interview faculty, staff, students, and administration of the college under review. It will ascertain the relationships of the college to other academic units in the University, evaluate its programs, and come to some conclusions about appropriateness of goals and the degree to which these have been attained. It will help identify strengths and weaknesses of the college and will make recommendations concerning possible improvements and future directions in the college.
  3. The review committee will prepare a report on its findings and conclusions and will submit a preliminary draft of the report to the Executive Vice President and Provost to ensure that the charge has been addressed. The review report shall not contain confidential personnel information concerning the collegiate dean or other personnel. The Executive Vice President and Provost will submit the review committee’s draft report to the collegiate dean and self-study committee so that errors of fact and problems with wording may be identified and corrected. The college will submit the corrected draft review report to the Executive Vice President and Provost, who will finalize the report in consultation with the review committee as needed.
3. Consideration and Implementation of the Review Report. The Executive Vice President and Provost will submit the final review report along with recommendations to the college based on the review. Copies of the review report will be made available to students, staff, and faculty in the college and, upon request, to others. In general, the following steps will occur:
  1. The dean and self-study committee shall consult with college faculty and may respond in writing to the review findings and recommendations. Such responses, if any, will become part of the total review report.
  2. The Executive Vice President and Provost will submit a final closing letter summarizing the review and the steps to be taken by the college and the Provost to address the recommendations in the review. These steps and recommendations will be submitted to the President.
  3. When the college's strategic plan is next updated, the internal recommendations resulting from the review should be incorporated into the college's strategic plan.
Procedural Variation. The Executive Vice President and Provost will consider and may approve departures from these procedures in the case of specific reviews, where the Executive Vice President and Provost and the college agree that variations from these procedures are appropriate and would be consistent with the purposes of collegiate review.