Department Chairs and Assessment

As Chair of a department or program, you are tasked with responsibilities related to Assessment per the University Faculty Handbook (Section A1.5.4)

Course Evaluations

Course Evaluations are populated based on what appears in BisonHub.

1. The chair must submit all correct instructor enrollments on BisonHub prior to the Course Audit date. Beginning in Fall 2024, courses and instructor enrollments will be entered by the chair on CourseDog.

2.  If there are any last-minute changes to instructor enrollments, make those changes within Watermark Course Evaluations and Surveys using the Manage Courses feature.

3. If an instructor taught a course for which the course evaluation is assigned to a different instructor incorrectly, the chair is responsible for adding a clarifying memo to the course evaluation document to address the error.

Howard Annual Assessment Process (HAAP) plans

1. Even if there is an assessment-responsible person (Assessment Coordinator, assessment chair), the departmental chair is ultimately responsible for taking the lead on the annual assessment process.

2. The chair must submit the first part of the assessment plan (Outcomes & Measures) within Watermark Planning & Self Study by the first week of September. These Outcomes & Measures should be determined in conversation with departmental faculty.

3. The chair must submit the second part of the assessment plan (Results & Actions) by the last week of May. These Results & Actions should be collected in conversation with departmental faculty in addition to other data collection processes (surveys, institutional data, etc.)

4. If either of these timelines are not feasible due to the academic calendar of the program or department, a new timeline should be created in collaboration with the Assessment Team.

5. Should the department chair need any support with Assessment, including an introduction to the process, please contact the Assessment Team at your earliest convenience.

Watermark Access

1. Chair should have access as an administrator in both Watermark Course Evaluations & Surveys and Watermark Planning & Self Study.

2.  If you are a chair and do not have access to either of these platforms, please contact the Assessment Team.