Driven by need to comply with multiple accreditors’ standards, schools often proliferate complicated inefficient assessment processes by addressing each accreditor’s requirements separately rather than developing a focused efficient measurement process that centers on core program learning objectives. This challenge arises because responsibility for disciplinary and institutional accreditations resides at different levels in the organization. It also occurs because schools focus more on compliance with standards than on AOL as a continuous improvement process. An improvement- focused assessment process allows schools to simply capture the results of the assessment process in documentation tailored for various accreditors. In this session, participants will explore how to develop and implement a single, efficient assessment process to satisfy the requirements of multiple accreditors. Participants will utilize a typology that captures key AOL process dimensions to identify commonality across their accreditors and determine how to efficiently design an AOL process to addresses those common dimensions. Participants will also identify requirements unique to specific accreditors and determine how to best address these in their assessment process. Lastly, participants will consider the utility of shared measures (e.g., rubrics) across multiple programs at the same level (e.g., undergraduate programs) as a means to gain efficiency in the AOL process.
