Criteria for Institutional Effectiveness

from SACS Commission on Colleges (1998), Criteria for Accreditation,
Section III: Institutional Effectiveness

The following items, drawn from the SACS manual, establish minimum standards for institutional effectiveness expected by visiting reaffirmation team members.   Savannah State University has documented its complianced with these criteria in Section III of its self-study.

3.1.1:    Planning and Evaluation for [teaching, research, and public service] must be systematic, broad based, interrelated and appropriate to the institution.

3.1.2:    The institution must define its expected educational results and describe its methods for analyzing the results.

3.1.3.1:  The institution must establish a clearly defined purpose appropriate to collegiate education.

3.1.3.2:  The institution must formulate educational goals consistent with the institution's purpose.

3.1.3.3   The institution must develop and implement procedures to evaluate the extent to which these educational goals are being achieved.

3.1.3.4   The institution must use the results of these evaluations to improve educational programs, services and operations.

3.1.4:     The institution must develop guidelines and procedures to evaluate educational effectiveness, including the quality of student learning and of research and service.

3.1.5:     This evaluation must encompass educational goals at all academic levels and research and service functions of the institution.

3.1.6:     The institution must evaluate its success with respect to student achievement in relation to purpose, including, as appropriate, consideration of course completion, state licensing examinations, and job placement rates.

3.2.1:     The institution must demonstrate planning and evaluation in its administrative and educational support services.

3.2.2.1:  The institution must establish a clearly defined purpose which supports the institution's purpose and goals.

3.2.2.2:  The institution must formulate goals which support the purpose of each unit.

3.2.2.3:  The institution must develop and implement procedures to evaluate the extent to which these goals are being achieved in each unit.

3.2.2.4:  The institution must use the results of the evaluations to improve administrative and educational support services.

3.3.1:     Institutional Research must be an integral part of the institution's planning and evaluation process.

3.3.2:     [Institutional Research] must be effective in collecting and analyzing data and disseminating results.

3.3.3:     An institution must regularly evaluate the effectiveness of its institutional research process and use its findings for the improvement of its process.

3.3.4:     Institutions must assign administrative responsibility for conducting institutional research, allocate adequate resources, and allow access to relevant information.

Last Update: 10/22/03