Unfulfilled Expectations: Faculty Participation and Voice in a University Program Evaluation

This qualitative case study investigated faculty perceptions of the purposes, costs, and benefits of program evaluation during a comprehensive review by the Office of Graduate Studies at a large Research I university. The assumptions held by the faculty at the beginning of the review process about the purposes of a program evaluation and their roles within it were challenged by the manner in which the evaluation was carried out. Analysis of interviews conducted over the course of the program evaluation focused on notions of participation and voice as seen through the lens of the faculty participants. Implications for enhancing stakeholder participation and voice are discussed.