Assessment at NPC

1. Defining Our Expected Student Learning Outcomes

   All classes at NPC have undergone a review of course, program, and college-level objectives through a faculty-driven process. The development of quality, measurable objectives allows NPC to establish effective standards for student learning outcomes, and provides a common target to measure teaching success in the classroom.
   
   

2. Curriculum Review

   The CAC oversees the origination of new programs and courses, the creation of effective objectives, and determining how curriculum changes might improve student success. This is a holistic, comprehensive approach that also considers the impact on student completion timelines, the needs of our transfer partners, and potential issues with financial aid requirements.
   
   

3. Implementing Assessment Plans

   The CAC directs faculty to assess student learning through a variety of assessment procedures. NPC focuses on four areas of assessment: General Education, Program, Co-Curricular, and Institutional surveys. Assessment is designed to ensure that NPC’s institutional General Education Objectives (GEOs) are being met throughout the curriculum; that college programs are satisfying the learning outcomes required by their accreditors, employers, and partner transfer schools; and that the entire college experience contributes to growth and success for our students.
   
   

4. Collecting Evidence

   NPC strives to collect quality data in four areas of student outcome assessment. For General Education, we utilize faculty-designed common assessments that provide excellent, comparable data for measuring GEO attainment in our foundational courses.

   For Program assessment, Deans and faculty have developed specific rubrics and reporting documents to collect student outcomes in the required skills and competencies necessary for successful program completion, as well as tracking student licensure and certification pass rates on industry-standard exams.

   Co-Curriculum assessment uses a common worksheet that simplifies data collection and ensures quality assessments are procured with every eligible campus event.

   Campus-wide, NPC administers institutional SSI and NSSE surveys, as well as a comprehensive Graduation Survey to exiting students.
   
   

5. Analyzing and Reporting Assessment Data

   Assessment data is collected via the college LMS and file sharing repositories accessed by the college’s Deans. Whenever possible, student learning outcomes are reported using uniform scoring rubrics and faculty worksheets. From this information, Chairs compile both quantitative and qualitative data for discussion with faculty, and from these discussions ultimately create assessment reports for the CAC.
   
   

6. Communication with Faculty

   One of the critical steps in the assessment process is engaging faculty in a thorough analysis of their assessment data. Can you identify the obstacles to student success in your class? Are the course assessments effective? Is there any professional development needed to improve your teaching of this objective? All assessment procedures are reviewed with faculty to ascertain the efficacy of this process.
   
   

7. Developing Improvement Strategies

   Upon faculty review, Deans will develop improvement strategies for the final report to the CAC. These strategy decisions will always include faculty input, specific rationales for any proposed changes, and the targeted goals new initiatives hope to achieve in subsequent annual reviews.
   
   

8. Allocating Resources to Enhance Student Success

   Deans are required to update the CAC on all assessment progress, highlight any concerns or improvements, and present future changes to assessment in their final report. A key element in this process will be to suggest any allocation (or re-allocation) of school funds to bolster professional development for faculty, improve necessary equipment or technology, and/or identify staffing needs to improve student success.

General Education courses are governed by the Arkansas Division of Higher Education (ADHE), and comprise the state-mandated 35-hour core curriculum all bachelor’s degree-seeking students must successfully complete for graduation in the state of Arkansas. The primary goal of General Education at National Park College (NPC) is to provide all students with a broad-based academic foundation regardless of degree path. General Education courses are an integral component of our Associate of Arts degree, specialized transfer degrees, and many program-specific degrees and certificates.

At NPC, General Education courses are designed to specifically strengthen and affirm the college’s four institutional General Education Objectives (GEOs):

• Communicate effectively using oral, written, and electronic methods
• Use critical and analytical thinking skills
• Demonstrate discipline-specific knowledge, skills, and competencies
• Exemplify professional demeanor, ethical behavior, and respect for diversity

Within this process, General Education at NPC strives to help students become lifelong learners with the foundational skills needed to develop their full potential as contributing members of society. By fostering improved communication skills, critical thinking, discrete knowledge, and the social skills necessary to operate within a global environment, our students become better citizens, employees, and neighbors.

NPC firmly believes in the value of liberal education, and the role it can play in transforming the lives of our students. NPC upholds the statement of the AAC&U regarding the enduring value of liberal education. To do this, NPC has developed a thorough process of General Education assessment to ensure the core curriculum delivers consistent academic rigor and effective support of the college GEOs.

Additionally, NPC engages in curriculum oversight for all General Education courses. Programs are regularly reviewed for both state and external agencies. The office of the Vice President of Academic Affairs regularly submits faculty qualifications to our accrediting body, the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), to ensure we maintain a knowledgeable and credentialed faculty. Our Curriculum and Assessment Committee reviews the pre-requisites, course objectives, and learning expectations for all credit-bearing classes on campus. This process extends to all course delivery modes on campus, including our night, online, and dual-credit high school courses.

Summary of General Education

NPC works diligently to maintain exceptional instruction in our General Education courses, and has implemented a rigorous plan of assessment to ensure we deliver quality instruction that mirrors our institutional values and goals. The college supports General Education with professional development opportunities, robust faculty evaluation, and financial support for General Education faculty and resources. These courses represent the lifeblood of our curriculum, and are the foundational pieces that provide opportunities of future success to our students.

As part of National Park College’s (NPC) mission, “Learning is our focus; student success is our goal,” Co-curricular assessments are used to collect information on student learning outcomes outside of the classroom environment. Co-curricular learning at NPC is defined as:

“Activities, programs, and experiences that complement traditional classroom learning. These activities may or may not tie directly to specific course curricula.”

Co-curricular programs, activities, and experiences are evaluated based on alignment of event objectives to the institutional GEOs. Faculty and staff that sponsor co-curricular activities are required to fill out a special form prior to any event. This form establishes the learning objectives for the event, which GEO(s) these objectives satisfy, and how the sponsor intends to effectively measure student outcomes. These forms are kept on file and made available to the appropriate Deans for review.

All co-curricular assessment data will be reviewed and analyzed like any other assessment data on campus. These reports will then be submitted to the Curriculum and Assessment Committee during the annual assessment reporting in September of each year.

The assessment of Co-curricular activities serves to affirm and support NPC’s accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), which emphasized the importance of co-curricular assessment in their revised accreditation criteria adopted in February of 2019.

A program at National Park College (NPC) is any certificate or degree path accredited by an external agency or governing body. To achieve these accreditations, NPC is required to assess student learning outcomes in many program courses it offers. These program courses develop the specific skills necessary for students to obtain certificates and degrees, pass licensure exams, and successfully move on to further educational or professional opportunities.

Our primary goal at NPC is provide students with the program-specific skills needed to obtain employment in their chosen program area. We expect our students to possess excellent communication skills, understand the ethical and professional requirements of their field, and to work effectively as team members within a diverse setting. Bettering the lives of our students and strengthening our community is instrumental to our mission as a college, and the successful completion of NPC programs is elemental to this process. 

Program Assessment Procedure

NPC follows the requirements established by our accrediting bodies to properly assess student outcomes. Assessment of NPC programs and their constituent courses is done in a variety of ways at NPC, and not all programs assess in the same manner. Some require assessment of student learning outcomes, while others measure certification and licensure examination success rates.

Every program course at NPC contains Curriculum and Assessment Committee-approved Course Level Objectives (CLOs) that are aligned to their specific Program Level Objectives (PLOs). These alignments ensure that every course contributes in teaching the skills needed to meet accreditation requirements.

At the end of every academic year, NPC programs will update their assessment pages. An annual assessment report will be compiled by the Deans and discussed with program faculty members. The assessment report, the minutes of faculty meetings, and the concerns/recommendations that derive from this process will then be submitted to the Curriculum and Assessment Committee for review.

See NPC's accreditations for more information.