Inaugural Celebration of Assessment Excellence at WSU
The Office of Assessment of Teaching and Learning (ATL), along with Provost Daniel J. Bernardo and Vice Provosts Erica W. Austin and Mary F. Wack, are delighted to recognize undergraduate programs, departments and schools where program-level assessment is well-established, thanks in large part to the efforts of faculty assessment coordinators, chairs and directors. In November 2017, ATL and the WSU Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education hosted a Celebration of Assessment Excellence, honoring sixteen undergraduate programs on the Pullman Campus with exemplary assessment practices.
Dan Bernardo, Provost and Executive Vice President, thanked faculty for their efforts in using program assessment to continually update and improve curriculum for successful student learning and remarked: “Assessment is essential to offering effective curricula for our majors — helping to meet the current and future needs of WSU students and faculty, disciplines and professions. In this way, assessment of student learning supports the university’s educational mission.”
Undergraduate programs were recognized for their mature assessment systems, where meaningful measures of learning are regularly collected and faculty are involved in interpreting and using the results to refine curriculum and instruction, and for implementing strong assessment practices that engage faculty in assessing student learning and using assessment results to inform decision-making.
Exemplary Assessment Systems – The following undergraduate programs were recognized for their Exemplary Assessment Systems:
- Apparel, Merchandising, Design & Textiles
- Bioengineering
- Civil Engineering
- Computer Science
- Economic Sciences
- Human Development
- Molecular Biosciences
- Neuroscience
- Teacher Education
- UCORE Partnership: Roots of Contemporary Issues & WSU Libraries-Instruction
High-Quality Assessment Practices – The following undergraduate programs were recognized for their High-Quality Assessment Practices:
- Agricultural & Food Systems / Integrated Plant Sciences
- Chemistry
- History
- Landscape Architecture
- Psychology
With appreciation to the dedicated faculty and leaders celebrated, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Mary Wack noted: “WSU faculty and programs are finding more value in assessment as a tool for improvement, helping us see student strengths – areas where the pieces of our curricula are working effectively – and areas where we can make adjustments to better advance student learning over four years.”
Concluding the program, Kimberly Green, ATL Director, mentioned that “Assessment is a tool to strengthen curricula and help provide the transformative undergraduate experience our Strategic Plan calls for. WSU strives to offer that to all of our students — including our first generation students, non-traditional students, veterans, and our increasingly diverse student population. In this way, meaningful assessment also supports our landgrant mission.”
For more information about the Inaugural Celebration of Assessment Excellence at WSU and the programs recognized, see the Celebration of Assessment Excellence webpage and the event program.
ATL celebrates faculty and leadership who have helped cultivate exemplary undergraduate assessment practices at WSU. ATL offers consultation and services to help undergraduate programs and faculty conduct meaningful and sustainable learning outcomes assessment activities. Let us help you focus your efforts and showcase your work to improve student learning. Together, we support transformative education and promote student success.