12.11 Assessment Committee
12.11.1 Function
The Assessment Committee shall be responsible for guiding Mines in matters pertaining to assessment of the institutional-level and program-level student learning outcomes of its undergraduate programs. The Committee will facilitate systematic and documented academic assessment processes that include ongoing evaluation, reflection, and improvement as integral components. In fulfilling its role, the committee will:
- Regularly review and recommend updates to the institution-level learning outcomes to ensure program curricula reflect industry needs, accreditation standards, and competencies outlined by national professional organizations such as ABET, National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE), and other STEM-focused bodies.
- Provide accountability and support to undergraduate degree programs in implementing their assessment plans by reviewing an annual update submitted by each program.
- Review and discuss best practices on developing assessment plans, gathering assessment evidence, and identifying potential actions for continuous improvement.
- Review and provide feedback on institutional assessment work, such as policies relevant to assessment, and facilitate cross-departmental dialogue to address shared interdepartmental needs, approaches to collecting assessment data, and results from institution-level data collection.
12.11.2 Membership
The appointed membership shall consist of the academic faculty serving as assessment representatives from each undergraduate academic degree program on campus, the Office of Undergraduate Studies, and the Trefny Center. One of the academic faculty members must be a Faculty Senator and shall serve as a representative of the Faculty Senate.
12.11.3 Method of Operation
The representative from the Trefny Center shall be the chairperson of the Assessment Committee. The committee shall meet three times during both the fall and spring semesters. Upon the provision of appropriate notice to the membership, special meetings may be called at any time by the chairperson.
12.11.4 Method of Appointment
The academic faculty committee members will be designated by the program leads (Directors or Department Heads) and appointed to the Committee by the President. The Faculty Senate representative shall be appointed directly by the Faculty Senate, unless one of the assessment representatives already serves on the Senate, in which case this individual will serve as the Faculty Senate representative.
12.11.5 Terms of Appointment
The academic faculty committee members who do not represent the Faculty Senate shall serve while they act as assessment representatives for their department. As such, their terms of appointment may vary, based on department needs and structures, but are recommended to be at least two years.
The academic faculty member who represents the Faculty Senate, if not also a department assessment representative, shall serve for a renewable, one-year term.
All terms of appointment to the committee shall be calculated on an academic year basis, rather than a calendar year basis.