Mission
The Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment's (IEA) primary mission is the collection of data (from both internal and external sources), and the timely analysis, distribution, and presentation of this information for use in planning, decision-making, assessment and policy formulation at the University.
The Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment is responsible for the following functions at the University of West Georgia:
I. Accreditation
The Office houses the SACSCOC Institutional Accreditation Liaison and provides leadership
and advice to the members of the campus community on the institutional accreditation
standards, as well as develops and maintains processes and support materials to assist
with ongoing compliance with the standards by using best practices. Also assists programs
with specialized accreditation.
II. Data Analysis and Decision Support
Provides data analysis and insight to support planning and decision making for executive
leadership, academic colleges and schools, and administrative units.
III. Institutional Reporting
Serves as the center for institutional reporting, both mandatory and non-mandatory,
and disseminates facts and figures to the university community. IEA is also responsible
for ensuring the accuracy of vital University statistics, and for reporting these
data to a broad spectrum of information consumers including regulatory entities, management,
faculty, private organizations, and the general public.
IV. Assessment
Ensures a culture of continuous improvement at the University by providing leadership
and expert assistance to educational programs, including general education, and both
academic and student services that support student learning and achievement through
the use of best practices in assessment of student learning outcomes. Provides support
for assessment activities to effect a culture of assessment and continuous improvement
across campus.
V. Program Review
The Office manages the program review process by supporting academic programs under
review and facilitating the use of relevant, required data and supporting materials
and information to facilitate an effective and thorough review process including the
identification of actions and decisions during the reviews.
VII. Integrated Planning
Assists leaders across campus with planning efforts to ensure that each unit or service
has well-articulated outcomes that are aligned to the UWG strategic plan and key performance
indicators.
VI. Data Governance
Collaborates with responsible units across campus regarding the quality and accuracy
of data in accordance with policies, state and federal reporting guidelines and national
best practice standards.
Goals
The Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment adopted the following five overarching goals as part of its strategic planning process (aligned to the 2014-2020 UWG Strategic Plan) to help carry out the departmental mission and to foster mechanisms to assess results and continuous improvement. Each goal advances one or more of the four University-wide strategic imperatives.
1. Foster a university-wide culture of assessment and continuous improvement.
2. Continuously improve data quality and information reporting.
3. Assure compliance with federal, state and local laws and regulations.
4. Promote professional development and training to improve service delivery.
5. Foster the improvement of UWG’s data informed planning processes in compliance with the Board of Regents' policies and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges' criteria.