Curriculum Development and Assessment

Policy Statement

Durham Technical Community College ensures that all students develop the knowledge, skills, and networks needed to be successful in college, work, and life. To achieve the College’s vision of being the leader in our community’s educational, training, and economic development, decisions regarding curriculum development will be responsive to industry and community needs. Program offerings will provide pathways to living wages and economic mobility for all students.

Procedure

To ensure alignment with our strategic plan, Durham Technical Community College (Durham Tech) will:  

• Assess, retire, or reinvent current programs based on regional economic demands and maximizing return on investment for students (e.g., yield a living wage, appropriately resource viable programs, etc.);
   
• Assess effectiveness of current agreements (e.g., bilateral transfer agreements, high school articulation agreements), identify new opportunities based on the College’s guided career pathways, and integrate industry-supporting opportunities within the Durham, Chapel Hill/Carrboro, and Orange County school systems;
   
• Assess development of industry partnerships and advisory committees
    
• Support the evolving workforce by prioritizing accelerated and short-term training leading to relevant employment, credential attainment, and the development of life-long skills as well as developing new degrees to meet local workforce needs and education opportunities.
   

Processes

The framework that Durham Tech employs to ensure curriculum relevance and viability consists of the following: 

• Identification and Development - Identification of workforce needs and educational opportunities leads to the proposal of new programs.  These programs are developed in accordance with the NCCCS and institutional and relevant program accreditation guidelines and driven by input by faculty/directors (subject matter experts) in addition to feedback from industry professionals, advisory committees, external accreditors, and additional internal stakeholders, including the Center for Workforce Engagement (CWE).  The program is then presented to the College’s Program Management Committee that has broad representation across the College, the Chief Academic Officer, President’s Cabinet, and, if necessary, the Board of Trustees.
   
• Implementation - Based on recommendations from internal and external stakeholders in accordance with NCCCS and institutional and program accreditation guidelines.
   
• Evaluation- Program Assessment, Academic Program Review, Success Outcomes, On-going data review by directors/instructors
   
• Response - Create, Continue, Reinvent, or Retire
   

The specific processes used to support curriculum development, management, and assessment are as follows and require the consideration of both credit and continuing education programs:

• Program Assessment – A bi-annual snapshot of all programs based on key performance indicators including, but not limited to Credential Enrollment, Graduation/Completion Count, Time to Completion, Livable Wage, Labor Market Demand. If an assessment reveals that a program is not meeting key metrics, the Vice President, Chief Academic Officer may require the program to participate in an off-cycle Academic Program Review to determine viability.
   
• Academic Program Review (APR) – A systematic review of all academic programs. Each program director, along with department chairs (if applicable) and full-time faculty, participates in the review process a minimum of once every five (5) years. The APR process provides an in-depth review of a program and includes the following components:
  • An evaluation of performance outcomes (strengths and weaknesses)
  • An opportunity for faculty and the administration to consider the totality of a program;
  • A way to highlight and celebrate the strengths of a program;
  • A way to avoid complacency and inertia;
  • An opportunity to make a coherent case for budget items including, equipment, software, hardware, and supplies;
  • An opportunity to ensure that each academic program has sufficient faculty who reflect its needs.
  • An opportunity to develop an action plan/blueprint for enhancing and improving a program; and
  • A way to see how a program truly serves the needs of students and the broader community.
    
    The APR manual and other resources are available to employees
     
• Success outcomes—A Success Outcome is a goal, project, or objective developed to change or improve an academic or service area; these are created and assessed yearly.  For academic programs, Success Outcomes are not student learning outcomes measured inside the classroom.  Program directors work with full-time faculty on the creation, assessment, documentation, and necessary strategy adjustments of success outcomes in a variety of ways: working to collect and analyze data; working on requests for things such as new improvement or upgrades to teaching areas; working with faculty for redesign of curriculum or coursework; implementing department-wide initiatives to improve particular Success Outcome goals such as retention or completion.
   
• Course/Program Termination – Durham Tech will terminate a Credit or Continuing Education course or program of study when there has been no enrollment for two (2) consecutive years, or if the College has not offered the program or has not had enrollment in the program within two (2) years of the date the program was approved by the State Board of Community Colleges (SBCC). A course or program of study may be terminated for other reasons, including content-based changes, a curriculum redesign, or in response to industry needs. Refer to the Curriculum Course/Program Termination procedure for additional information.
   

Personnel

The Vice President, Chief Academic Officer (VP, CAO) serves as the executive leader for Academics and Guided Career Pathways. In this role, the VP, CAO guides faculty and staff in the continued development of new pedagogies as well as forward-looking programs and initiatives. The VP, CAO also directs and supports the ongoing evaluation of programs to determine the currency and effectiveness of academic offerings in achieving student success.

Curriculum Development, Assessment, and Compliance (CDAC) serves as the VP, CAO’s support team in providing oversight and management of the College’s programs, courses, and classes.

As a part of the College’s infrastructure, the Program Management Committee (PMC), chaired by the Assistant Vice President, Academics and Guided Career Pathways, provides recommendations related to new program/credential proposals, program revisions, and program retirements. The PMC also works to resolve program-related issues (e.g., placeholder program coding for special admissions processing, distance education, plans of study formatting, program mapping in Self-Service for student planning, etc.) and supports both CDAC and the VP, CAO. 

Definitions

Continuing Education – Courses that are short-term and generally do not apply towards a degree, diploma, or certificate. They are intended for students who want to gain general knowledge, learn a new skill, upgrade existing skills, enrich their understanding on a wide range of topics, or develop personal interests. Upon completion of the course or a series of courses, students can document their completion or competency, and certain courses fulfill educational requirements leading to licensure and/or certification granted by an independent agency or board.    

Course – Area of study pertaining to a specific subject, level, and rigor.

Credit – Courses that are credit-bearing and apply towards a degree, diploma, or certificate.

Credential – A qualification or achievement typically used to indicate that an individual is suitable or qualified in a particular skill, task, or body of knowledge. It details a qualification, competence, or authority issued to an individual by a third party with a relevant or de facto authority or assumed competence to do so. Examples of credentials include academic degrees, academic diplomas, academic certificates, industry certifications, identification documents, etc.

Curriculum – Content used to make up programs and the way they are administered. The curriculum is the component of a program that changes in response to internal and external recommendations (i.e., learning outcomes assessment results, faculty input, advisory committee, industry needs, etc.).

Programs – Coherent courses of study leading to a credential (degree, diploma, certificate, or other generally recognized credential).