Strategic Planning, Assessment and Accountability: Their Impact on the Establishment of Centers of Excellence in Academic Departments. AIR 1998 Annual Forum Paper.

This paper reviews the literature on academic quality programs and examines issues faced at one institution in which two initiatives emphasizing student outcomes and faculty performance as indicators of quality are underway. In its review of the literature the paper focuses on concepts such as total quality management, peer or student evaluation of faculty, organizational change, and human and technological factors; and it defines the characteristics of quality academic programs as including a culture of shared purpose, an active learning environment, high expectations for students and faculty, continuous feedback for both students and faculty, adequate resources, and good administrative support. At the St. John's University (New York) Centers of Excellence, resource allocation is integrated with assessment of student outcomes and faculty performance. The university uses four categories of measurement to select academic departments as centers of excellence: input (ability to attract high-quality students, excellent facilities, favorable faculty/student ratio); process (programs demonstrating long-term interest and need, and outstanding curriculum); value-added features (evidence of student satisfaction); and output (productive faculty, graduate placement, and evidence of student satisfaction after graduation). Key to the success of the program is careful attention to the balance between the technical (data analysis), organizational (shared values), and personal frames. (Contains 30 references.) (CH)