Assessment

La Sierra University is committed to providing a high-quality education in a Seventh-day Adventist environment that embraces diversity and service. La Sierra University strives to encourage intellectual, moral, and spiritual development in all of its students. More specifically, La Sierra University graduates will be able to:

1. Demonstrate general and discipline-specific knowledge and skills
2. Acquire, critically evaluate, and synthesize information
3. Understand and appreciate differences (e.g., scientific vs. non-scientific evidence, different belief systems, various cultural perspectives, etc.)
4. Communicate effectively with others
5. Act in ethical and socially-responsible ways
6. Demonstrate knowledge about Seventh-day Adventist heritage, culture, and values
7. Reflect on their spiritual lives and development

Voted by Faculty Senate, March 06, 2015.

The process of assessment focuses La Sierra University on three things: 

• Clear articulation of student learning outcomes;
• Demonstration that students are achieving the learning outcomes we claim;
• Use of evidence to continually improve the quality of student learning.

Because it provides information that is crucial to our growth and improvement, assessment is never finished.  Instead, it is a cyclical process that enables us to know whether we, as a university family, are achieving the aims that we have set for ourselves.  Included in the cycle are the following steps:

• Collaborate on the university’s mission statement 
• Development of program mission statements and measurable SLOs, aligned with those of the university
• Alignment of course-level SLOs with program learning outcomes
• Development of a 5-year assessment plan during which all SLOs will be evaluated
• Development (or other acquisition) of tools for assessing each of the SLOs
• Completion of planned assessments each year, along with annual reporting
• Completion of program review (which draws heavily on annual reports) every 7 years

The process of assessment focuses La Sierra University on three things: 

• Clear articulation of goals and targeted outcomes;
• Demonstration that units are succeeding at providing services;
• Use of evidence to continually improve the quality of service and functions.

Because it provides information that is crucial to our growth and improvement, assessment is never finished.  Instead, it is a cyclical process that enables us to know whether we, as a university family, are achieving the aims that we have set for ourselves.  Included in the cycle are the following steps:

• Collaborate on the university’s mission statement 
• Development of unit's mission statement and goals, and measurable targeted outcomes
• Alignment of targeted outcomes with unit goals
• Development of an assessment plan during which all targeted outcomes are evaluated 
• Development (or other acquisition) of tools for assessing each of the targeted outcomes
• Completion of planned assessments each year, along with annual reporting