Chairs are expected to file the reports required of departments and programs by the College. The most important of these are the annual report and the assessment reports, both for general education assessment and departmental assessment.
The annual report provides an opportunity for the chair to report on accomplishments of the department/program, its faculty, and its students; to request budget adjustments; to raise concerns about the curriculum, facilities, and staffing; to ensure that departmental understandings of scheduled chairing responsibilities, leaves, and reviews match those of the Provost’s Office; and to report contributions to other programs. To facilitate the use of these essential data, the annual report form is now online on the Forms for the Provost's Office page.
The academic administration uses the information provided in the annual report to consider staffing needs, to make College-level budget requests, to plan the schedules for reviews and leaves, and to be aware of pending changes in departmental curricular emphases. Annual reports also offer an excellent opportunity for chairs to reflect on the accomplishments and needs of their departments/programs at least once per year. Previous annual reports can provide new chairs with insight into evolving departmental issues, as seen by past chairs.
Departments and programs that offer majors should be preparing for the process of general education assessment which occurs at the department level at Kenyon. The following are the College's goals for general education:
1. Students learn to acquire knowledge and understanding of arts, humanities, natural sciences, and society.
2. Students learn to be prepared to use information technology and to make sense of the information they find.
3. Students learn to formulate ideas rigorously and to communicate them effectively, orally and in writing.
4. Students learn to assess arguments.
5. Students learn quantitative skills and to analyze data.
6. Students learn to work creatively.
7. Students learn to work collaboratively.
The department/program is required to meet annually to discuss the general education goals and outcomes and prepare a report. Some members of the department/program (rotating on an annual basis) prepare for the meeting by filling out a report from one of their classes that indicates which goals are addressed in their classes, and how well students have achieved the goal based on specific information about the results of a test or assignment that relates to the goal. For departments of ten or less members, half the members should assess a class and complete tables each year. For departments over ten, no more than five members should assess a class and prepare tables in a given year.
The GEAR report form can be found on the Forms for the Provost's Office page.
Department Outcomes Assessment Report (DOAR) can also be found on the Forms for the Provost's Office page. Departments and programs that offer majors are responsible for reporting on assessment outcomes related to the major. The department/program is required to meet annually to discuss progress on their departmental goals, assessed by examining results from the department's tool(s) used for assessment. (This meeting might be the same meeting held to discuss General Education Assessment.) Although there are a variety of types of tools departments use to assess their individual goals (e.g., standardized tests, portfolios, student survey responses), the most commonly used assessment tool is the Senior Capstone. The department chair fills out an assessment report that results from this meeting. This assessment report is included with the department's annual report due on June 1 each year.
The following forms and worksheets for departmental assessments and the annual report may be found on the Forms for the Provost's Office page.
Assessment and the Annual Report
Department/Program Annual Report Form
General Education Assessment Report - GEAR
General Education Assessment Tables Individual Faculty Worksheet