Grant Summary
$25,000 over 12 months. The collaborative will explore and utilize methods for assessing institutional creativity, paying close attention to an institution's qualitative features that add value to a liberal education. While national rankings are based largely on quantitative information (SAT scores, selectivity, etc.), the collaborative argues that an institution's culture of creativity is just as important in maximizing desirable outcomes for students and faculty members. Characteristics of institutional creativity to evaluate are:
- A culture of collaboration among all constituencies;
- A culture of continuous reflection, improvement, and innovation;
- Strong institutional support for the first two characteristics.
In 2005-2006, teams from each campus will convene to exchange ideas and discuss potential best practices in this area that can be undertaken going forward. Nationally recognized experts in liberal education, assessment, and institutional creativity have agreed to help guide the discussion as the collaborative formulates a concrete plan of action for value added assessment that can be widely adopted.