The prevalence and emergence of college promise programs presents interesting and important methodological challenges. Based on their immediate access to de-identified data of applicants and enrollees, institutional researchers are in a privileged position to rigorously assess the effect of these programs in a myriad of outcomes. This study is a…

Faculty and staff at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) have developed several tools to assess campus civic engagement initiatives. This chapter describes the IUPUI Faculty Survey and the Civic-Minded Graduate Scale, and reports on findings from campus-based assessment and research.

The community college environment is complex and dynamic, requiring constant monitoring. To ensure that workforce education, a core component of community colleges' missions, remains aligned with colleges' environments, responsive to employers' needs, suited to students' interests and abilities, and current in content and technology, it is…

The purpose of this research is to discuss development of the Logistical Tracking System (LTS)1 and evaluate the changes in processes and procedures at the University of Texas-Dallas (UT-Dallas) that were due to implementation of a new type of technology. The chapter elaborates on the positive and negative aspects of designing and constructing a…

A taxonomy of developmental planning considerations and corresponding areas in which institutional researchers and developmental professionals can collaborate to assess and improve fund-raising activities is presented. (MSE)

The contemporary context and some recent trends affecting college program reviews or evaluations, current options in purposes and practices, and impacts on programs and institutions are discussed. It is recommended that the process be viewed as a contribution to the general knowledge base for campus constituencies rather than as "right answers"…

Evaluation of the impact of prospective students' contacts with the institution is an objective of the admissions research agenda at Tufts University (Massachusetts). An annual survey gathers information on individuals who make inquiries but do not submit an application and on the parents of matriculating students. (MSE)

Review of literature concerning the use of program review in higher education lists sources discussing the review process, focusing on the links between program review and other institutional processes, and addressing application of program review principles and practices to different higher education settings. Critical factors for successful use…

Presents the steps necessary for successful innovation, with emphasis on financing, selling the change to faculty, and evaluating the results. (Editor)

A case history is presented that recounts the evolutionary development of a unified evaluation, budgeting, and planning system at Michigan State University. It is a system that is strongly based on the collection and analysis of department, college, and institutional data. (Author/MLW)

This chapter offers techniques that can help institutional researchers play a more active role in the process of creating and modifying instructional programs to meet workforce needs. (Contains 1 table.)

Integrated planning promotes collaborative thinking and furnishes mechanisms for linking strategic plans with operational plans. (Contains 1 figure.)

Institutional change, it is suggested, can be managed through task forces that focus on a broad spectrum of institutional problems and issues including internal and external communication, institutional planning, program review and evaluation, administrative development and performance review, and faculty development. (Author/MLW)

The article proposes that the key to tracking and evaluating the academic progress of college students, particularly at complex institutions, is development of a longitudinal tracking system with flexibility to support a diverse community of users and applications. Considerations for efficient maintenance and effective use of such a system are…

A former chancellor outlines how he successfully transformed the culture of his campus to enhance retention and student success.