The MSCHE Self-Study Process: Moving from Research to Writing

The MSCHE Self-Study Process:Moving from Researchto Writing MSCHE Annual Conference December 2009

Dr. Robert A. Schneider, Vice President MSCHE, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Dr. Melissa Vayda, Vice President and Chief Academic Officer, Central Pennsylvania College, Summerdale, Pennsylvanai

Phases in Writing A Self-Study Report 1. Planning and preparing From the Self-Study Institute (Fall 1) to the staff self study preparation visit and approval of the design (Spring 1 or Fall 2) • For a Spring 2010 team visit: From SSI in Fall 2007 to Spring or Fall 2008 • For a Spring 2011 team visit: From SSI in Fall 2008 to Spring or Fall 2009

Phases in Writing A Self-Study Report 2. Doing the research • For a Spring 2010 visit: Fall 2008 to Spring 2009 • For a Spring 2011 visit: Fall 2009 to Spring 2010

Phases in Writing A Self-Study Report 3. Writing the report for a spring team visit • For a Spring 2010 visit: From Spring to early Fall 2009 • For a Spring 2011 visit: From Spring to early Fall 2010

Phases in Writing A Self-Study Report 4. Reviewing and refining the report for a spring team visit • For a Spring 2010 visit: Fall 2009 • For a Spring 2011 visit: Fall 2010

Phases in Writing A Self-Study Report 5. Preparing for the team visit • For a Spring 2010 visit: Fall 2009 to Spring 2010 • For a Spring 2011 visit: Fall 2010 to Spring 2011

Moving from Research to Writing • For a Spring 2010 visit, this happened in Spring 2009 • For a Spring 2011 visit, this will start happening in early 2010 and will continue throughout the spring and summer

Resources • Characteristics of Excellence • 11th ed., 2002, with editorial changes 2005 • 12th ed., 2009 printing • Self-Study: Creating a Useful Process and Report(1st ed., 2006; 2nd ed., September 2007))

Steps in moving from research to writing 1. Working group reports 2. First draft of the self-study report 3. Review of the self-study report • By the working groups • By the campus community • By the team chair • By the governing board 4. Final version of the report

The writing will go easier if… • The working groups have been given: • Clear expectations for their reports • A template for their reports (in Self-Study) • An outline of the final report (in Self-Study) • There is scheduled reporting and feedback as the working groups do their research

The writing will go easier if from the start of the self-study… • The working groups know whether they might be asked by the Steering Committee to: 1) Do more research and/or 2) Rewrite their reports • The working groups know what will happen to their reports after they submit them

Institutions write self-study reports in very different ways • In some cases, working groups write chapters that are then edited to varying extents by one or more people • In others, working group reports provide information and analysis for the self-study report, which is written by one or more designated writers (the Steering Committee or others)

Things to keep in mind when writing any self-study report

An effective self-study report is designed and written so that it speaks to both the instituion’s unique reality and the institution’s compliance with the Standards, therefore…

…First the working groups and then the steering committee should review drafts to ensure that evidence and analysis are provided with regard to all of the Standards being addressed in the report.

Self-Study Checklist: Characteristics of Excellence

2. In the end, the self-study report should… • Be readable, concise, and coherent • Capture the unique reality of the institution • Be more analytical than descriptive • Provide evidence for its assertions

In the end, the self-study report should… • Provide each member of the visiting team with the information they need to confirm that the institution meets the Standards • Focus on the present and future more than the past • Provide recommendations for improvement

3. Evidence should be… • Included in the text of the report if: • It is absolutely vital to understanding the self-study • It is brief

Evidence should be… • Attached to the report as an appendix if: • It would help readers understand the self-study • All team members should see it before the visit • It is too long to include in the text but not too bulky to send to each team member

Evidence should be… • Made available in the resource room on campus if: • It provides support for the self-study but is not essential to understanding it • It is not likely to be of immediate interest to all team members • It is lengthy

4. In a self-study report, readers can be guided to material related to a Standard by… • Chapter and section headings • Marginal notes • A matrix

5. Review of the self-study reportis crucial • By the working groups • By the campus community • By the team chair • By the governing board

Review by the campus community… • Ensures that the report is, as far as possible, a consensus document • May be best achieved by approaching specific constituencies • May be best achieved by asking for feedback at several points during the self-study period

Review by the team chair… • Will probably lead to at least minor revisions—send a “final” version but expect to make revisions after the Chair’s preliminary visit to campus. • Ensures that the report is “user friendly” for the visiting team.

Review by the governing board… • Ensures that the institution’s policy body is aware of the content of the report • Prepares the board to meet with the team during the visit • Should result in endorsement of the report (a formal sign-off is not required)

In the end, a good self-study… • Provides the visiting team with the information and analysis it needs to: • Understand and appreciate the institution • Evaluate it in light of the Commission’s Standards

In the end, a good self-study… • Answers questions worth asking and provides recommendations worth following in a living document that will be helpful to the institution after the team leaves

The MSCHE Self-Study Process: Moving from Research to Writing