OCTC QEP Executive Summary

Printable version of the QEP Executive Summary (92kb)

The formation of our QEP Executive Summary comes after a year and a half of literature review, brown bag discussions, further committee work, and solicitation of input from the broader community about the future direction of our institution.

Quality Enhancement Plan Development
Executive Summary
February 2005

The concept of quality enhancement is at the heart of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) Commission on Colleges’ philosophy of accreditation. Each institution applying for accreditation or renewal of accreditation is required to develop a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). Engaging the wider academic community and targeting one or more issues that contribute to institutional improvement, the QEP is to be a carefully designed and focused course of action that addresses a well-defined topic or issue(s) related to enhancing student learning.

With our reaffirmation of accreditation site visit scheduled in fall 2005, we first engaged faculty and staff in conversations about the key issues that we as a college would be facing in the coming years. Three articles about the goals and the future of postsecondary education became the starting points for “Brown Bag” discussions in spring 2004 (see sidebar). In an analysis of the comments from the meetings, the following broad categories of comments and ideas emerged from the data: 1) Learning and Learning Climate, 2) Access and Services Provided to Students, and 3) Connectivity. While these categories were influenced by the articles discussed, the themes of student responsibility, clear expectations, and the need for “connected” learning and student experiences were evident.

To refine these categories and themes into a focused topic, the QEP Team (a subcommittee of the Institutional Effectiveness Committee) identified the following questions for consideration by faculty, staff and students: How can we... 1) assure students “start right”? 2) create the conditions for learning? 3) ensure all students experience connection and direction? 4) prepare students for a life of learning? These questions were posted in all buildings during November 2004, and open feedback sessions were held on all three campuses (see sidebar). Again, the comments and ideas were analyzed and grouped, as summarized in these general categories:

Are students welcome here?
First impressions
Setting expectations
Support for learners, support for learning
Building Community
Encouraging further education and a life of learning

After noting these categories and reviewing the comments in detail, it became clear that the general themes of connection and direction would encompass nearly all the QEP ideas: 1) helping students connect to the college, community, and world, 2) helping them connect what they learned in one class to another class, to the workplace, and to their lives, and 3) providing them direction by making our expectations—as well as those of employers, other educational institutions, and society as a whole—clear. These three words, connection and direction, capture the thoughts of the many who have invested their time in considering our college’s future, and set the direction for the further development and refinement of our plan to enhance student learning at OCTC.

OWENSBORO COMMUNITY AND TECHNICAL COLLEGE
Categorization of Feedback on the QEP Questions
Fall 2004

How can we...
assure students "start right"?
create the conditions for learning?
ensure all students experience connection and direction?
prepare students for a life of learning?

Are students welcome here?
Availability of services/programs (Direction)
Access to information (Direction)
Communication (Connection)
Customer service (Connection)
Gathering feedback and ideas (Connection)

First impressions
Advising (Connection & Direction)
Communication with applicants (Connection & Direction)
Placement testing (Direction)
Student tours and ambassadors (Connection)

Setting expectations
GE 100 (Connection & Direction)
Initial expectations (Direction)
Rigor (Direction)
Soft skills (Direction)
Earlier registration (Direction)
Seamlessness (Connection & Direction)
Prerequisites (Direction)

Support for learners, support for learning
Resources for learning (Connection)
Mentoring (Connection & Direction)
Study groups (Connection)
Counseling/support groups (Connection & Direction)
Instructional methods (Connection)
Information literacy (Direction)
Tracking student success (Direction)
Part time faculty (Connection and Direction)

Building Community
Student activities (Connection)
Shared experiences (Connection)

Encouraging further education and a life of learning
Life long learning (Direction)
Connecting students to further education opportunities (Connection & Direction)
Alumni (Connection)
Connecting students to employers (Connection & Direction)