2009 Performance Accountability Report Vol. 2 - Maryland Higher ...

ANNE ARUNDEL COMMUNITY COLLEGE
MISSION
With learning as its central mission, Anne Arundel Community College responds to the needs of
a diverse community by offering high quality, affordable, and accessible learning opportunities
and is accountable to its stakeholders.
INSTITUTIONAL ASSESSMENT
State Plan Goal 1. Quality and Effectiveness: “Maintain and strengthen a preeminent
statewide array of postsecondary education institutions recognized nationally for academic
excellence and effectiveness in fulfilling the educational needs of students, the State, and the
nation.”
Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) has a comprehensive data-driven cycle of planning
and assessment to evaluate its effectiveness in meeting its mission and goals. Having secured
professional accreditations for the maximum duration for our programs in Emergency Medical
Technician, Hotel/Restaurant Culinary Arts Operation, Human Services, Medical Assisting,
Nursing, Pharmacy Technician, Physical Therapy Assistant, Physician Assistant, and Radiologic
Technician and program approvals for Architectural Technology from the American Institute of
Architects and for Paralegal Studies from the American Bar Association, the college holds
regional accreditation as reaffirmed by the Commission on Higher Education in 2005. The
college monitors and continuously assesses progress in achieving the goals and objectives of its
strategic plan through a well-defined system that includes the 32 indicators reported below and
an additional 45 internal measures. The Institutional Assessment Team, a college-wide active
body made up of faculty, staff, and administrators, prepares the Annual Institutional Assessment
Report, a scorecard used throughout the institution to identify strengths and weaknesses. The
Strategic Planning Council, comprising administrators, deans, directors, and governance and
divisional representatives, uses the report to guide actions to improve future performance. The
college’s Board of Trustees plays an active role in the assessment process through its review and
approval of the indicator benchmarks established by the college and its review and approval of
the annual MHEC Performance Accountability Report. During the past year, the Board of
Trustees has worked on developing a set of dashboard indicators designed to monitor the overall
health of the college.
Anne Arundel Community College measures its success in terms of its students’ successes. In
the last four years, AACC has alternated between the administration of the Noel Levitz student
satisfaction inventory and the Community College Survey of Student Engagement that focuses
on students’ engagement in the learning process. Both instruments are nationally normed, so the
college receives national comparative data with which to gauge its performance against similar
institutions. Results of both surveys are shared with the college leadership and the college
community in order to identify strategies to enhance effectiveness. The results regularly show
that AACC students’ satisfaction is high (90%+), exceeding that of national counterparts. In
triennial surveys, AACC’s graduates consistently report the same high levels of satisfaction with
19