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Oral Roberts University Winner of 2007 CHEA Award For Institutional Progress in Student Learning Outcomes
The university has received the 2007 "Award for Institutional Progress in Student Learning Outcomes" from the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
Student Learning Outcomes, by CHEA's definition, are "the knowledge, skills and abilities that a student has attained at the end (or as a result) of his or her engagement in a particular set of higher education experiences."
This is the second year that CHEA, a private, nonprofit organization that grants recognition to the nation's primary accrediting bodies, has offered this award. Of the 31 institutions that applied for the 2007 award, ORU and four other schools—Bowling Green State University, Mesa Community College, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, and University of Saint Mary—were deemed the best.
Judging was based on four criteria related to student learning outcomes: articulation and evidence of outcomes; success with regard to outcomes; information to the public about outcomes; and using outcomes for improvement.
"Given the current debate regarding the role of student learning outcomes in accreditation, Oral Roberts University serves as a solid example of the enormous progress that institutions are making through the implementation of comprehensive, thoughtful and effective initiatives," said Judith Eaton, president of CHEA, in a press release announcing the Washington-based organization's award to ORU. "We are delighted to recognize this distinguished institution with this award."
CHEA, created in 1996, is an organization of nearly 3,000 degree-granting colleges and universities.
Dr. Ralph Fagin, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at ORU, credits the use of ePortfolio—and the hard work of the faculty and administrative staff to implement this cutting-edge assessment system—for this award. Introduced at ORU in 2002 and now used across the entire university, ePortfolio is an electronic tool that helps students evaluate their progress and see how their coursework is preparing them for real-world situations. It also helps faculty determine whether or not students are achieving ORU's "learning outcomes" of becoming spiritually alive, intellectually alert, physically disciplined, socially adept, and professionally competent—in other words, "whole people," which is what ORU's mission to provide a "whole-person education" is all about.
The beauty of ePortfolio, Fagin says, is that it helps students "connect the dots" or "see the big picture," that a college education is more than completing courses and focusing on one course of study. It's also about "developing transferable skills, integrating principles with coursework, and building character.
"Our learning outcomes are the same attributes valued by employers," Fagin noted. "An ORU education must make students effective in a challenging world." With a tougher-than-ever job market and the lifespan of many occupations getting shorter and shorter, Fagin said, "knowledge alone will not help college graduates find a job or keep them employed. Being successful is just as dependent on what you can do and who you are as a person. Our goal is to grow students in their knowing, doing, and being so that they can be effective in their going."
Another factor that has helped ORU become a model in the student assessment process, Fagin believes, is the university's relative youth; ORU opened in 1965. "Our age works in our favor," he said. "Our methods are not set in stone. We're young enough, and agile enough, to make the changes that a system like ePortfolio demands. As our president, Richard Roberts, likes to say, 'We're married to principles, not methods.'"
Fagin says ePortfolio has helped ORU identify "gaps in the curriculum" and target areas that need improvement. It has also encouraged faculty from widely divergent departments "to work together to deliver a cohesive curriculum," Fagin said. Most important of all, he added, by emphasizing "the end result," ePortfolio and ORU's award-winning focus on student assessment have made it easier to determine what an ORU student should look like at the end of four years—and how to make sure he or she arrives at that point.
The CHEA award "is a confirmation that we're on the right track," Fagin said. "It enhances our reputation and raises the value of an ORU degree...and encourages us not to waffle when we encounter difficulties on the cutting edge.
"It makes ORU a model."
The award will be presented at CHEA's annual conference, Jan. 29-31 in Washington, D.C.
