Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment

GCC evaluates the effectiveness of our institution, especially student academic achievement, through assessment. We ask questions like "What should students think, know, and do upon completing a course or program?", "Are we meeting student expectation?", and "What can we do better?"

Assessment is the first step in the process of "plan - do - check - improve" which utilizes data as the basis for decision-making and continuous improvement. The "umbrella" for assessment at GCC is our institutional effectiveness (IE) plan.

Assessment Objectives for Academic Success

• Evaluate student preparedness for employment and work.

• Evaluate student preparedness for transfer to a four-year college or university.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of college-wide general education.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of academic programs, including transfer and developmental education.

• Track retention and degree and certificate trends.

• Measure student success in goal achievement.

• Improve instruction and curricular offerings through collaborating and sharing of assessment results.

Assessment Objectives for Student Services

To evaluate progress by students in:

• Student success, specifically the completion of educational goals, retention, and the transfer to further education and employment;

• Student development, specifically the improvement of skills for life-long learning and decision-making through student activities;

• Student-centered access to campus information and services, specifically convenient and efficient one-stop student services delivery and implementation of a new student information system.