Bryon Clark (Chair), Gleny Beach, Betty Clay, Jim Cunningham, Jane Elder, Steven Emge, Dick Hackett, Gene Hetsel, Linda Kallam, Brad Ludrick, Shannon McCraw, Steve McKim, John Mischo, Charles Price, John Topuz, Chip Weiner (ex-officio), Cherry Wilmoth.
Sharon Morrison, Patty Pool.
The meeting was called to order at 3:05 p.m. by the Chair. The minutes from the last meeting (21 Sept. 2004) were distributed. Gleny Beach moved to accept the minutes as written. Linda Kallam seconded. The minutes were approved by a unanimous voice vote.
The Chair opened the floor to discussion of the draft of the assessment document. He stressed this is a working document only and subject to change at this point. He encouraged each department to propose outcomes and the means of assessing those outcomes. If a department is already doing something to assess a general education requirement, it may well be used. Chip Weiner pointed out the urgency of having this assessment process up and running in time for the June 2007 Monitoring Report for the North Central Association.
Various committee members proposed changes in the wording of the working document. Those changes were so noted by the chair; the chair will send an amended copy to committee members as soon as possible.
Steven Emge raised the question of whether the computer proficiency requirement should or will become a general education requirement. Currently a student has three options as mandated by the board of regents: 1.) take a high school computer class and have the requirement at the college level waived, 2.) take a computer proficiency exam, or 3.) successfully complete CIS 1003 or BIM 1553. The Chair pointed out that we are mandated to at least adhere to the regents’ requirements but may set higher standards if we so choose. After some discussion the committee agreed that they wished to do away with the high school waiver option, retain the computer proficiency exam but revise the current exam, and require that the CIS or BIM class be taken within the first 36-45 college hours (i.e. in the first three semesters). Adding the computer requirement to General Education will potentially increase the mandated number of hours in the gen ed component to 44 from the current 41. The Chair pointed out that the regents prescribe 30 hours in the gen ed program and require a minimum of 40 hours (10 hours of electives) and that our gen ed program has fewer hours than that of many other schools. The Chair requested that at our next meeting the committee submit names of individuals who have interest and expertise as possible members of the computer proficiency exam revision committee.
The Chair noted that once he has made the recommended corrections to the assessment document, he will call a meeting of the Academic Council. After they have received the document, the Chair instructed the committee to take the amended draft to their departmental faculty for input and exact wording of outcomes, benchmarks, and assessment techniques.
The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, 16 Nov. 2004, at 3:30 at a place yet to be determined. The committee is asked to bring all information from their departments pertinent to the assessment document.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:45 p.m.