At Heartland Community College assessment of student learning is woven into the fabric of the institutional life. Evidence of the sustained reach of assessment into the everyday workings of the College's Instructional Services unit include:

* the Course Development Checklist,
* the Master Syllabi Guidelines,
* the Student Syllabi Guidelines,
* the Faculty Teaching Portfolio for promotion,
* the Fall and Spring Workshops,
* the Assessment Quarterly
* the Examples of the Classroom Assessment
* the Annual Assessment Report, and
* the General Education / student learning outcomes sections in the College Catalogue and Student Handbook.

The work on assessment of student learning outcomes began with the first faculty who were hired in 1991. The establishment of assessment took place in the fiscal years between 1992 and 1994. The original work formed a strong foundation to build the current system upon. However, as this system was refined and brought to its current form, some parts were dropped or modified; and still other new parts were added. In 1997, the organizational structure of Learning Outcomes Departments (LODs) was dropped in favor of a more tightly focused working group, called the Assessment Committee. A more detailed review of the evolution of assessment is given below by fiscal year.

In Fiscal Year 1995, the Learning Outcomes Departments continued their work on assessment; however, LOD chairs and faculty felt that to be successful they needed to have more expertise and continued assistance. Thus, a faculty position in Educational Measurement and Assessment was created. This role was filled by Padriac Shinville.  Since this was a support position, it was housed in the Academic Support Center.

In Fiscal Year 1996, through a comprehensive faculty review process, student Learning Outcomes for General Education were coded in all general education syllabi; a matrix of general education outcomes by transfer courses was constructed using the state articulation model.

In Fiscal Year 1997, the primary emphasis was given to integrating assessment with faculty development. The best examples were the Communication LOD brown bag colloquium lunches in Spring 1997. A Philosophy faculty member presented his use of the cumulative paper, and a Chemistry faculty member presented his integration of business letter writing into his lab course. The Cultural Diversity & Global Awareness LOD used self-nominations and student surveys to select the Diversity Faculty Members of the Year for both full-time and adjunct groups. The primary selection criterion was how the faculty member incorporated Cultural Diversity & Global Awareness learning outcomes into their courses. The LOD Chairs also set goals for the FY 1998 year.

In Fiscal Year 1998, the primary goal was to have each faculty member report on one course embedded assessment practice and results. The activities were dedicated to the core task of student learning outcomes assessment; that is, communicating pedagogical best practices and linking measurement strategies to specific course learning outcomes. The colloquium idea was expanded into the Fall Faculty Development Series which offered fourteen sessions on assessment and related teaching topics.

The LOD Chairs' retreat in fall replaced the LOD structure with the Assessment Committee. The new committee is responsible for all course-embedded assessment not just general education outcomes. Divisional meetings were held in Spring 1998 to train all full-time faculty and respective divisional Deans in the use of the newly created assessment form. Completed assessment forms were received from 39 full-time faculty in Spring 1998. In addition, the Problem Solving Learning Outcomes were revised and leveled in FY 1998. The changes were shared with all faculty and approved by the Curriculum and Academic Standards committee. A fourth area of general education outcomes, critical thinking, was discussed as a "need" for the future. The HCC assessment initiative was presented to the national AACC convention in April. Finally, FY 1998 goals were reviewed and FY 1999 goals were established by the Assessment Committee.

In Fiscal Year 1999, the primary emphasis was to evaluate student mastery of course outcomes and consider curricular revisions where appropriate. The Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes annual report was presented to CAS in August and was subsequently disseminated to faculty. In addition, an Assessment Luncheon was held on October 16 to share best measurement practices in Chemistry, English 101, English 102 and General Studies 100. Five Assessment Committee members presented "Assessing Student Learning in the Classroom" at the Illinois Community College System Teaching/Learning Excellence Conference. This presentation as in preparation for HCC hosting a regional drive-in conference on assessment, April 9, 1999.

In Fiscal Year 2000 and 2001, the College was in a transition from temporary rented facilities to a new campus.  Due to the large investment in time from this endeavor, the Assessment Committee did not meet formally during this time period.  Was Assessment still being done during these two years?  Absolutely.  Assessment practices continued in both individual classrooms as well as in many programs like Writing and Nursing. 

In Fiscal Year 2002, the Assessment Committee was reformed with representation from each of the College's seven divisions as well as several administrators.  The first task was to create a Mission statement that would define the committee's function and role at the College.  A best practices workshop featuring assessment practices by our own faculty was held in the Spring term with plans to make this an annual event.  Also, a faculty newsletter, the Assessment Quarterly, was produced.  This twice-a-semester newsletter offers faculty and others a chance to share assessment and best practices with each other as well as other various assessment news.  

In Fiscal Year 2003, the Committee began reviewing learning outcomes for new courses.  This role, as outlined in the New Course Development Checklist, had been performed on an interim basis by our former Educational Measurement and Assessment faculty member who had since been promoted into an administration position.  One larger task undertaken this year was to establish some new General Education Learning Outcome statements that reflect the Critical Thinking process (as mentioned in FY 1998).  A small team of faculty was chosen by the Committee to work on these and are scheduled to present their results to the faculty at the Spring best practices workshop.