This chapter puts forth a model of student-success-focused policy development at small colleges that elucidates the role of the institutional research (IR) professional, highlighting how the breadth of roles and responsibilities that IR professionals serve at these institutions intersect with traditional training and background.

This chapter is a case study of one institution's effort to institutionalize a process through which student development is promoted through active engagement with the community.

Even in a period of retrenchment or adjustment, the importance of ongoing faculty development for the faculty who remain at the institution must not be forgotten. The content and structure of faculty development programs can make a significant difference in five areas of education: quality, community, cooperation, institutional loyalty, and…

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

This concluding chapter reviews some of the methodological issues that analysts need to consider when evaluating the success of character-development programs.

The future of faculty development programs will benefit most from a systematic assessment of program goals, a factor often ignored or taken for granted while program process and product are evaluated. (MSE)

Faculty development programs have generally failed to become a permanent fixture in colleges' organizational structure, largely due to outdated personnel policies. A flow concept of planning, focusing not on individuals but on personnel slots determined by program design, allows for flexibility and reflects the realities of contemporary academic…

A discussion of the need for and possible approaches to evaluating student support services emphasizes the importance of using objectives, strategies, and traditional and nontraditional outcome variables for a thorough assessment. (MSE)

Additional readings concerning the two themes of (1) organizational effectiveness as a consequence of managerial action and (2) assessment of services seen as assessment of staff are presented. Sources on staff renewal as a form of staff evaluation are highlighted. (MSE)

A study of program review at 156 community colleges shows that it is widely used for accountability and program improvement; that substantial use is made of results; and that key leadership support, organizational communication, a clear understanding of purposes, and frequent action on program review recommendations at all organizational levels…

Issues in evaluating the quality and effectiveness of student services for a new population of students are examined, including: the place of student development; basic services; the relationship of services to institutional mission; faculty, curriculum, and academic environment; defining quality; student information systems; and the relationship…