Missouri State University was named as one of just seven members of the 2019 class of “Excellence in Assessment” (EIA) designees, a national program aimed at recognizing colleges and universities conducting comprehensive assessment of student learning outcomes as a means to drive internal improvement and advance student success. The Excellence in Assessment designation is the first national designation of its kind, spotlighting institutions that successfully integrate assessment practices across the institution, providing evidence of student learning and using assessment results to guide institutional decision-making and improve student performance.
“The EIA designees have a demonstrated commitment to measuring the impact of their student success efforts and are working to improve that impact through evidence-based methods,” said Peter McPherson, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) president. “Their work is rightly being nationally recognized with a designation that not only profiles their work, but provides a platform from which other institutions can learn and better track their own progress to drive improvement.”
Why Missouri State was recognized
Missouri State’s thoughtful assessment process centers on a commitment to relationship-building and trust. Part of this is the effective use of college-wide meetings and workshops to communicate assessment results.
A particular standout is the workshop series planned to execute strategies needed to provide useful assessment results, make meaning of such results, and brainstorm ways to effectively communicate information back to key stakeholders. The review of over 10,000 student artifacts in MSU assessment history is not only impressive, it also allows Missouri State to tell an intricate, contextual story of student experience and learning.
About the award
The designation was created to acknowledge on a national level the important work colleges and universities are doing through comprehensive assessment activities and to highlight those practices so other institutions can draw upon them to inform their own efforts. As part of the application process, colleges and universities were asked not just to detail the specific assessment activities they’ve undertaken, but also the reason why such efforts are a priority for them. The designees needed to demonstrate how aligned processes, building from classroom-based assessment, foster a coherent, collaborative approach to assessing student learning.
“The Excellence in Assessment Designation is the first national, jointly sponsored designation to recognize institutions moving assessment of student learning from a compliance exercise to one of meaningful engagement. It highlights the use of evidence of student learning across the entirety of the university setting, involving a variety of stakeholders including students, employers, and student affairs staff.” said Dr. Natasha Jankowski, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) director.
“Congratulations to each of the designees. By integrating assessment into the fabric of their institutions, they have demonstrated an on-going commitment to fostering student success both inside and outside of the classroom,” said Lynn Pasquerella, American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AACU) president.
The EIA Designations are directly linked to NILOA’s Transparency Framework. The application process for the designation includes a rigorous and systematic self-study. Accredited, degree-granting institutions working to implement and sustain comprehensive use of assessment of student learning outcomes are eligible to receive the designations. The application period for the 2020 class of designees will open in December 2019. More information on the designation can be found on the EIA Designation web page.