A small college in the Midwestern United States has a prior learning assessment (PLA) program that has never been evaluated from the perspective of the faculty and staff. The problem is that campus leaders have a limited understanding of faculty and staff knowledge and their role in the PLA program. The study was approached from an appreciative…

This study examined if a faculty-run Reading and Writing Lab at a small, private university in the Midwest helped traditionally underserved college freshmen taking developmental English classes increase their levels of self-perceived comprehension and confidence. Students who typically need to take developmental English classes include English as…

The development of a Planning, Management, and Evaluation (PME) system at Voorhees College, is described. The project at the small, liberal arts college was supported by an Advanced Institutional Development Program (AIDP) grant. Primary objectives were to decrease the responsibility of the college's chief officer and to upgrade the academic…

Five strategies used by Rollins College to improve retention are discussed, including examining longitudinal trends, developing and testing hypotheses about the reasons for student dissatisfaction and departure, setting goals for retention improvement, designing and implementing strategies, and measuring progress and assessing programs. (MSE)

Reported are the impacts of a series of workshops for instructional improvement conducted by the Faculty Development Organization of Wittenberg University, a private, undergraduate institution of 2300 students. The impacts delineated are the results of an evaluation of these workshops. The impacts examined were extracted from the expected outcomes…

Faculty development programs in different types of colleges are considered, along with support of faculty development by private foundations, including the Bush Foundation's Faculty Development Program. The evolution of faculty development in institutions in the United States is traced, with emphasis on efforts in the last 15 years. A literature…

A study was undertaken to provide an opportunity for faculty from five small, independent colleges in Iowa to become familiar with current developments concerning general education programs to facilitate planning and evaluation of general education in the institutions. The participating colleges were Briar Cliff, Graceland, Marycrest, Simpson, and…