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Florida Association of Community Colleges Institutional Effectiveness, Planning, & Professional Development Commission 2009 Joint Annual Spring Conference. Using Technology to Efficiently and Effectively Gather Information from Recent Alumni and Employers. April 2009.
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Florida Association of Community Colleges Institutional Effectiveness, Planning, & Professional Development Commission 2009 Joint Annual Spring Conference Using Technology to Efficiently and Effectively Gather Information from Recent Alumni and Employers April 2009
Alumni and Employer Surveys Presenters • Nicole Carr, Assessment Coordinator for Academic Programs • Maggie Tymms, Assessment Coordinator for Academic Programs • Dr. James Coraggio, Director of Institutional Research and Effectiveness Florida Association of Community Colleges
SPC Background • SPC, established in 1927, is the oldest 2-year college in Florida • First Community College in Florida to offer 4 year degrees (2002) • 9 Campuses throughout the county • 2007-08 FTE: 16,086 (LD), 1,415 (UD) • Opening Fall 2008 credited enrollment: 27,076 • Annual 2007-08 headcount: 62,200 Florida Association of Community Colleges
Institutional Effectiveness “Closing the Loop” “Institutional Effectiveness is the integrated, systematic, explicit, and documented processes of measuringperformanceagainst the SPC mission for purposes of continuousimprovement of academic programs, administrative services, and educational services offered by the college.” Florida Association of Community Colleges
Performance Improvement • From Compliance to Performance Improvement Florida Association of Community Colleges
Agenda • Student Assessment Points • Purpose of Follow-up Surveys • Alumni/Employer Survey Process • Dissemination of Survey Results and Reports Florida Association of Community Colleges
Student Assessment Points Students surveyed multiple times Florida Association of Community Colleges
Purpose of Follow-up Surveys Recent Alumni Survey was designed to: • Gain insight into alumni’s perceptions of the quality of general education and career preparation • Determine the current activities of former students such as employment information and educational status Florida Association of Community Colleges
Purpose of Follow-up Surveys Employer Survey was designed to: • Gain insight into an employer’s perceptions of hired SPC graduates in the areas of key general education competencies and foundational skills • Provide the employee’s major job responsibilities and wage information, as well as employer’s willingness to hire another SPC graduate • Identify employer’s willingness to support various college activities Florida Association of Community Colleges
Purpose of Follow-up Surveys State Requirements • Survey data are also collected for state required annual Placement & Follow-up Report (FETPIP: Florida Education Training Placement Information Program) and supplemental information to meet workforce criteria Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni/Employer Survey Process Previous model • Labor intensive • Manually tabulated paper surveys • Telephone interviews conducted using overtime hours Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni/Employer Survey Process Issues with previous model • Costly survey process • Declining college budget • Increasing demand for accountability • Outdated contact information • Students over-surveyed • Declining response rates • Conducted in isolation Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni/Employer Survey Process Goals of new survey process • Improve data collection process • Enhance quality of survey forms • Employ Industry Best Practices • Include discipline specific information • Increase response rates Florida Association of Community Colleges
A. Improve Data Collection Process Data Collection Process • Eliminated telephone calls • Automated the process (email merge) • Employ online survey submission (ZoomerangTM) • Obtain accurate email addresses • Use multiple points of contact Florida Association of Community Colleges
A. Improve Data Collection Process Survey Schedule • Recent Alumni Survey • Graduates surveyed six months after the end of session (Three times per year) • Employer Survey • Employer of graduates surveyed at the end of academic year (Once per year) Florida Association of Community Colleges
A. Improve Data Collection Process First email Second email Third email 2 weeks 2 weeks 2 weeks Recent Alumni Survey Multiple Points of Contact 2 weeks First mailing Second mailing Florida Association of Community Colleges
B. Enhance Quality Of Survey Forms Improved Survey Forms • Better “look and feel” of survey format • Developed scannable paper forms • Use online branching models to reduce survey length • Design items to gather only pertinent data Florida Association of Community Colleges
C. Employ Industry Best Practices Don Dillman’s Five Elements • Respondent- friendly questionnaire • Up to five contacts with the respondent • Inclusion of stamped envelope • Personalized correspondence • A token financial incentive that is sent with the survey request Florida Association of Community Colleges
Online Survey: Email and Form Florida Association of Community Colleges
Paper Survey: Letter and Form Florida Association of Community Colleges
C. Include Program Specific Information Program specific information • Meet with Deans/Program Directors • Discuss requirements for program accreditation and timelines • Include their necessary program specific items Florida Association of Community Colleges
D. Increase Response Rates Create awareness and convey importance • Involve program faculty in the process • Request faculty assistance to inform students • Include a flyer with graduation materials • Coordinate with programs that hand-carry surveys to local employers Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates • Summer 07 Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates • Fall 07 Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates • Spring 08 Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates *Summer 2008 in progress Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates Source of Responses 2007-08 Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates Overall Response Rate *Summer 2008 in progress Florida Association of Community Colleges
Alumni Survey Response Rates Florida Association of Community Colleges
Response Rates - Employer Recent Alumni Surveys Sent Is a 44% Employer Response Rate Good? COE Responses Without Permission Employer Surveys Sent Other Responses With Permission Responses Florida Association of Community Colleges
Disseminating Information • College wide access to reports • http://www.spcollege.edu/Central/Surveys/SurveyList.htm • Program Specific Reports • Published on the Educational Outcomes website • http://it.spcollege.edu/edoutcomes Florida Association of Community Colleges
Disseminating Information Florida Association of Community Colleges
Disseminating Information Florida Association of Community Colleges
Disseminating Information Florida Association of Community Colleges
Program Specific Reports Florida Association of Community Colleges
Lessons Learned • Do not expect that students will remember their ID#s • Administer the survey soon after the end of the session (six months) • Use multiple points of contact (two weeks) • Find the most recent contact information • Partner with programs to acquire up-to-date information Florida Association of Community Colleges
Lessons Learned • Make students aware of the importance of the survey process (survey announcements) • Provide contact updates to college data systems (PeopleSoft, Alumni Foundation) • Monitor results and make changes as necessary • More accurate data (quicker turn around of results) with automated processes Florida Association of Community Colleges
Future Direction • Ultimate goal is to provide Provosts (Deans) and Program Directors ‘timely’, ‘relevant’ ‘accurate’, and ‘interpretable’ information regarding their programs and their performance outcomes • Multi-measure ‘Dashboard’ style reports (Business Intelligence/Performance Measurement) Florida Association of Community Colleges
Questions/Next Steps Florida Association of Community Colleges
Florida Association of Community Colleges Institutional Effectiveness, Planning, & Professional Development Commission 2009 Joint Annual Spring Conference Using Technology to Efficiently and Effectively Gather Information from Recent Alumni and Employers April 2009