Assessing Sustainability Learning Outcomes at Two Community Colleges

1. Assessing Sustainability Learning Outcomes at Two Community Colleges Jason Lijewski & J. Gabe Estill AASHE Conference 2012 October 16, 2012

2. About Our Institutions

3. Moraine Valley’s Sustainability Statement Moraine Valley Community College will carry out actions in all operations, academics, and our community that meet current needs while taking care to protect and enhance the social, environmental, and economic resources needed by future generations to enjoy a quality of life equal to or greater than the present.

4. Moraine Valley’s Center for Sustainability

5. General Education Assessment • The Driver: AQIP Action Project • Academic Quality Improvement Program through the Higher Learning Commission • Reaccreditation effort • The Task: Assess college’s 11 general education outcomes • Sustainability void in 2003 outcomes redraft

6. What Is Assessment? • Measuring, documenting, and improving student learning • How do we do perform assessment of student learning? • What questions can assessment help answer?

7. Project’s Origins and Rationale • Sustainability at the college • SMHEC Symposium on Sustainability 2011 • Opportunity through General Education Assessment Project

8. The Process • Team tasked with creating rubric for measuring student learning of sustainability • Two 90 minute sessions • Address first need: learning outcome • Needs to be measureable • Address second need: assignment criteria • - Inform instructors what will fit

9. Measurement Device • Sustainability Rubric • Courses • BIO 111 • EAS 120 • EAS 125 • NAT 111 • Sample (N = 312)

10. Spring 2012 Results • Strengths • Opportunities

11. What’s Next • Fall 2012 • Using the Results

12. Faculty Feedback • Survey on rubric’s functionality

13. What’s Next • Fall 2012 • Using the Results

14. Delta’s DNA • Delta’s Guiding Principal • Delta is committed to promoting learning actions and practices that incorporate social, environmental, and economic sustainability in our communities • Students are interested in helping the planet, but they don't necessarily know how to do it, It's not just, Go out there and plant a tree. There's more to it.

15. “Sustainability Related” Courses Academic Sustainability Team (AST) 40+ Course Sections each semester • Biology • Chemistry • Engineering • English • Environmental Science • Management / Marketing • Math • Political Science • Residential Construction • Social Science

16. Assessment 1.0 • Analysis • Which of the below statements best define sustainability: • 67% “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. • 4. The term social sustainability refers to: • 63% “The role of social justice and equity, encouraging involvement at the local level while considering the global population.” • 5. The term economic sustainability refers to: • 80% “How business can be structured to be sufficiently profitable without generating financial profit at the expense of the ecosystem, local or world communities • 6. The term environmental sustainability refers to: • 71% “Understanding the ecological processes and how our choices affect the environment.”

17. Assessment 1.0 • Analysis • 7. This class covered what sustainability content: • 60% “All of the above (social, economic, environmental) • 8. I have covered some of these concepts before in: • 45% “High school and college.” • 9. To what extent did the sustainability activities of this class help build your understanding of sustainability? • 36% “Moderately well” • 30% “Average” • 10. Would you consider taking another sustainability relates course: • 43% “Yes” • 14% “No” • 40% “Maybe”

18. Assessment 2.0 • Assessment Tool 2.0 • Began Winter 12 • Focus on assessment and growth

19. Assessment 2.0 • Academic Majors Communication Graphic Design Small Business Management Undeclared Broadcasting Medical Billing Finance Administrative Assistant Chemical Engineering Pharmacy Surgical Tech Marketing BIT Nursing Chemistry Criminal Justice Pre-Med Retail Management Cosmetology Management Chemical Tech Accounting Art Merchandise Management Business Management Sonography General Education Advertising Management

20. Assessment 2.0 Results • 89% of students stated “This Sustainability Related course added to my learning experience” • 85% view sustainability in the curriculum as “very important or important” • 87% of students agreed or strongly agreed “This class helped me build a more complete understanding of sustainability”

21. Assessment 2.0 • Sustainability • 36% “Meeting the needs of the present…” • 40% “A guiding principle that actions taken by individuals and business must consider consequences their actions have on people, planet, and profit.” • Learning • 60% stated “Sustainability” course should be “much higher or higher” • 65% “Very likely or somewhat likely” int taking additional “Sustainability” courses

22. What’s Next • Build the sample • Share data • Learn from other institutions

23. Thoughts • What have you done? • Results • Opportunities • Challenges

24. Thank You • Gabe Estill Moraine Valley Community College 708-974-5349 estillj@morainevalley.edu • Jason Lijewski Delta College 989-686-9288 jasonlijewski@delta.edu