Comprehensive Standard 3.4.10
The institution places
primary responsibility for the content, quality, and effectiveness of the
curriculum with its faculty. (Responsibility for Curriculum)
aCompliance ___Partial Compliance ___Non-Compliance
Narrative:
Lawson State Community
College faculty has primary responsibility for the content, quality, and
effectiveness of the College’s curriculum.
This is demonstrated through policies, procedures and practices of the
College. Faculty has primary responsibility
for establishing and maintaining the content of the curriculum using Alabama
State Board of Education requirements as the foundation. The Student Catalog and Handbook lists the content of and describes each program (Degree Requirements) at Lawson State along with the required courses for certificates
or degrees (Dental Assisting). All programs of study
meet the requirements established by the Alabama State Board of Education (Policy 712.01). Courses are drawn from
the Alabama Community College System
(Course Directory).
(Policy 717.01)
CONTENT
The Academic Standards and Curriculum Committee (Academic Standards Committee) is responsible for reviewing the existing curricula and
instructional programs, recommending new courses, course changes, course
substitutions and course deletions. (Advisory Minutes 4-07) The committee is chaired
by faculty members and the membership is composed of faculty, academic
administrators and student services personnel.
Faculty at the College have primary responsibility for changes to
curriculum standards and are responsible for ensuring that necessary courses
are available for programs of study.
Additionally, faculty members work with program advisory committees. (Ford ASSET Advisory Committee
Minutes) These committees are made up of industry
professionals who provide guidance in program and curriculum development based
on the needs and trends in the workplace that have implications for the
curriculum. Changes are initiated by
the faculty members in concert with the department chairperson and/or division
dean. The proposal is reviewed and
approved by the Vice President for Instructional Services and is forwarded to
the Academic Standards and Curriculum Committee. Any action requiring presidential approval is
submitted to the President for final approval and if needed submission to the
Chancellor. (Policy 702.01)
Faculty members also establish and maintain course syllabi for
each course they teach. A syllabus
template is provided on the College’s intranet (Syllabus Template). The syllabus template
provides a common framework for faculty to outline content delivery for each
course, instructor expectations and learning outcomes.
QUALITY
The mission of the College states that the college “seeks to
provide accessible quality educational opportunities, promote economic growth
and enhance the quality of life for people in its service area.” Consequently, the college has great
confidence in its faculty ability to provide a quality education for
constituents. Curriculum quality is
measured in multiple ways. Among them
are:
- STUDENT EVALUATIONS (which are administered
for all faculty each semester). The
results are shared with faculty and departmental administrators. Students rate the quality of the course,
instructional methods, and materials used in the courses.
EDMASTERY
- STATE AND/OR NATIONAL ACCREDITATIONS OR APPROVALS BY
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS OR LICENSING BOARDS. (NATEF Accreditation). Several curriculum programs at the
College have accreditations or approvals by professional associations or
licensing boards. Faculty and
academic administrators work to ensure t hat these programs meet the
standards of quality established by the accrediting bodies.
- ANNUAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS (Faculty Evaluation)
are completed by each faculty member by the responsible academic
administrator. This evaluations
reviews where the faculty member is as far as class instruction and
effectiveness, student evaluation results, communication skills, personal
qualities related to job performance, professional development and
classroom safety
Quality in the classroom also plays a significant part in the evaluative
process. The College has a hiring
process that is designed to attract and select qualified full-time and when
needed part-time faculty members. (Graphic Design Job Description) The selection process includes faculty members, academic
administrators, and human resources personnel.
Candidates are required to present a teaching demonstration that is
evaluated by the selection committee.
The professional development of faculty is also important in ensuring a
quality curriculum. At Lawson,
professional development is provided continuously throughout the academic year
with workshops held on campus and faculty participating in off-campus
workshops, seminars, training symposia, and state, regional and national
conferences. (Professional Development)
EFFECTIVENESS
The effectiveness of the
curriculum is monitored by faculty. They
are responsible for designing and administering assessments in t heir courses
to measure and verify student achievement and competence at the established
level of proficiency. Student learning
outcomes are the foundation of individual courses and programs. Each is delineated on individual course
syllabi. The results of attainment of
student learning outcomes are one of the means by which the course is
evaluated. Additional measures of
curriculum effectiveness include graduate and employer satisfaction. (Graduate Employment Rate)
Faculty design and
implement assessment procedures in all courses to ensure that students attain
an appropriate level of competency to receive credit for the course. The requirements and means of evaluation are
described by the faculty in the course syllabus. (PE Syllabus) (Tennis Assessment Method) Faculty members also participate in program reviews (Cosmetology Program Review) as they are
scheduled. These reviews, on a
rotational schedule, measure effectiveness based on several factors including
curriculum, faculty, library resources, operating costs, expenditures, physical
facilities and space utilization, enrollment, graduate surveys, employment
data, graduate satisfaction, and performance of transfer students. Annually, approximately twenty percent of the
College’s programs undergo this in-depth review as required by the Alabama
State Board of Education (Policy 903.01). Additionally, the Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education
mandates the College Accountability and Performance Profile (CAPP). This
instrument measures accountability focusing on enrollment, academic transfer,
career/technical programs, health professions, developmental studies, learning
resources and technology, student services, financial and physical resources,
workforce development and adult education.
The results of the CAPP are posted on the College’s intranet and are
shared with faculty and staff annually.
Annually, unit level plans
are required of all academic, administrative, educational support services and
student services areas. Faculty members
meet regularly within departments and divisional areas to establish, review,
update, and measure goals and program and student learning outcomes. Budgets are also aligned and linked to these
goals and program and student learning outcomes. Results of these reviews are
used to make needed and recommended changes in the curriculum and other areas.
Documentation:
|
Documentation |
Location |
|
Program Content |
|
|
Degree Requirements |
|
|
LSCC Dental Assisting Program of Study |
|
|
Alabama State Board of Education Policy 712.01 Degrees and
Awards |
|
|
Alabama Community College Course Directory |
|
|
Alabama State Board of Education Policy 717.01 Course Directory Policy |
|
|
LSCC Academic Standards Curriculum Committee |
|
|
Academic Standards Curriculum Committee Minutes |
|
|
Ford ASSET Advisory Committee Minutes |
|
|
Alabama State Board of Education Policy 702.01 Requests For New
Instructional programs |
|
|
Syllabus Template |
|
|
Student Evaluations |
|
|
NATEF Accreditation Letter |
|
|
Faculty Evaluation |
|
|
Full-Time Faculty Job Description |
|
|
Professional Development Activities |
|
|
Graduate Employment Rate |
|
|
P.E. Syllabus |
|
|
Tennis Assessment Rubric |
|
|
Cosmetology Program Review |
|
|
Alabama State Board of Education Policy 903.01 Instructional Program Review |
|
|
CAPP |