No Hassle Non-Credit Reporting
Process Management Fall 2005
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Team Members
Tom Fallon Sponsor Dean Institutional Research Theresa Mullin Leader Programmer/Analyst MIS (Management Information Services) Myrna Espaillat Team Member Administrative Assistant, Sr. Vice President Enrollment Management Student Services Rob Parker Team Member Coordinator of Sport and Leisure Studies and the Wellness and Fitness Center College Life and Healthy Living Vanessa Pepin Team Scribe Program Services Coordinator Corporate and Community Education Services MJ Pernaa Team Scribe Director of Career Counseling Career Planning and Advising Center Josefina Taveras Team Member Training Coordinator Corporate and Community Education Center
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Project Background
Two years ago the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education (BHE) added an annual file component to its yearly data collection procedures. The annual file includes data on all credit as well as non-credit activity occurring throughout the previous fiscal year. Credit and most noncredit activity is already entered into Banner. However, there is a significant amount of non-credit activity which is not. The two major reasons are: – Student information is unavailable (ex. Life Long Learning workshops) – The activity is not a “course” per se (ex. student orientations, faculty on-site training) The process is further complicated by the vague definition of non-credit activity which is provided by the BHE, which allows for liberal interpretation and leads to confusion among staff members providing the information.
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Project Statement
To improve the data collection process for all non-credit educational activity which does not currently adhere to the standard registration process. Measurements: – A clear operational definition of qualifying activity – Efficiency of data collection – Improved reporting capability
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Non Credit Report Current Process
Banner
Academic Affairs (PACE, Adult Basic Education) (Not Currently Reporting)
Corporate & Community Education Services
(Contract Courses, Life Long Learning)
Institutional Research Provides Units with spreadsheet to enter NonCredit Activities
MIS Submits Files to BHE
MIS Combines Banner & Spreadsheets & Creates Course, Student & Enrollment Files
Spreadsheet
Institutional Research Review & Spreadsheet Clean-Up
Non Credit Activities Reports Inst. Research
Enrollment Management & Student Services
Admissions
Athletics Career Planning Center
Student Activities & Orientation
Learning Accommodations Financial Aid Wellness & Fitness Center
Student Social Services Sr. Vice President
(workflow)
Grant Programs (SABES, NETAC & HUD)
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Current Spreadsheet Non Credit Report
Current Process
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BHE Definition of Non-Credit Activity
“Personal growth/enrichment/recreational/leisure not-for-credit courses address the personal and leisure interests of students. A not-for-credit Workforce Development/Job Skills Training course is a college sponsored job and occupational skills related training activity under the leadership of a qualified instructor for which the college maintains a record of participation.”
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Proposed NECC Operational Definition of
Non-Credit Activity
Learning opportunities such as courses, training sessions, instruction, workshops, and seminars taught by NECC staff and instructors.
Learning opportunities: – Are taught by a qualified instructor – Use original material
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Non-credit Activity Examples
Includes:
• Workshops presented by staff (i.e. Student Leadership Development Workshops, Career Planning Workshops - which are not part of a credit course) Seminars facilitated by staff Staff and faculty trainings presented by other faculty and staff Athletic team coaching (including team practices) Student Activities and Orientation group presentations One-to-one career advising and counseling, job search preparation, fitness consultations, etc.
Does not include:
• Workshops and seminars attended by NECC staff (i.e. professional development activities)
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Meetings attended by faculty and staff
Academic advising
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Athletic team games Classroom presentations by staff for credit classes Tutoring for credit courses Workshops & seminars required for academic credit (i.e. Cooperative Education Workshops)
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Continuing Education Services courses (noncredit only)
Life Long Learning presentations and courses
Improvement Theory
Based on our analysis, we recommend: • An implementation team be formed to ensure that the Project is implemented in a timely manner. The team should be convened by Tom Fallon, Dean of Institutional Research and consist of representatives from the following areas: • Institutional Research • Enrollment Management and Student Services • Management Information Services • Corporate and Community Education Services • MIS develops a form and underlying table structure that will allow users to input non-credit activity that does not follow the standard course registration process
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Users are trained in the new process through classroom-based training sessions to be conducted by MIS in conjunction with a member of the Implementation Team
End users enter non-standard non-credit activity using new protocol, in real time MIS creates a script to pull non-standard non-credit activity from the underlying table structure and merge with the data coming from Banner to send a complete data submission to the BHE
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Implementation Plan Implementation Plan
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Non-Standard Non-Credit Course Activity Form
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Impact on Operations
Impact on Responsibilities:
• The task of merging the spreadsheets and submitting them at various intervals will cease to exist. All the data will go into one central table, where the data may be extracted for reporting at will.
Benefits:
• • Ease of reporting (no merging of spreadsheets) Real time data entry
Costs: Estimated Requirements for Implementation/Maintenance
• • Implementation: MIS to create the form and underlying table structure Training: Time spent training/learning the new process
However, the number of hours saved by no longer having to consolidate Excel spreadsheets at several intervals prior to data submission will offset the time spent on implementation and training.
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Evaluate the Results
• The creation of a clear operational definition of qualifying activity is its own measurement • As part of the Post Implementation Review, Process Management team members will informally survey staff using the form to determine whether or not success has been achieved in the areas of data collection and reporting efficiency
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Steering Committee Approval Checklist
Team Name: Date: Sponsor: No Hassle Non-Credit Reporting December 15, 2005, 1:00pm Tom Fallon
Items for Approval: • Proposed clarified definition of what qualifies as non-credit activity reportable to the BHE. • Creation of an NECC form and underlying table structure within the Banner environment to serve as a central data repository for non-credit activity that does not follow standard registration procedures. • Appointment of an implementation team to ensure the Project’s timely completion.
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THANK YOU!
We extend a heartfelt thank you to each of the following people: – – – – – Tom Fallon, our sponsor Stan Jensen, our guide Steering Committee, our support Bonnie Doherty, our PowerPoint resource Non-Credit Activity Process Management team, who gave their time, energy and effort to make this presentation happen
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