NOSS Commission for Professional Standards and Evaluation

What’s New

As NADE rebrands itself in its new identity as the National Organization for Student Success (NOSS) and as the current NOSS Commission for Professional Standards and Evaluation (formerly the NADE Accreditation Commission) edits and thoroughly updates the Guides for Self-Evaluation to reflect the current realities in the field, accreditation has been placed on hiatus and no applications are being accepted until further notice.  Additionally, the requirement for the “Five-Year Interim Report” has been suspended.  This does not reflect a devaluation of the process or the achievement of programs who have been accredited.  NOSS is proud of its NADE-accredited programs and congratulates them on achieving this level of distinction.  Programs known to be in the pipeline will have their applications honored.

• Using Academic Standards to Promote Student Success (PDF)
• Feedback for Selected Best Practices in Coursework Programs (PDF)
• Selected Best Practices for Tutoring Services & Course-Based Learning Assistance Programs (PDF)

 

Statement on Conducting a Self-Evaluation

The true value of conducting a programmatic self-evaluation lies in taking a deep, honest and insightful look at one’s program in each area of best practice and then to focus on specific areas of need.  In this way, a self-evaluation may serve as a basis for annual goals and short- and long-range planning.  Conducting a full self-evaluation and assessing strengths and areas where improvement is needed may take up to a year.  Doing this on a regular basis—consistently evaluating strengths, weaknesses and needs—helps programs advance from basic services to superior services.

Statement on Institutional Support and Access to Institutional Data:

The evaluation of a post-secondary academic program requires educators and administrators to make significant investments of time, effort, and resources to do well. Therefore, the NOSS  Commission for Professional Standards and Evaluation highly recommends that the lead person(s) for a component’s evaluation process have (a) adequate time to invest in the evaluation process; (b) dedicated clerical assistance; and (c) involvement of stakeholders.  Access to institutional research and/or experts for data collection and analysis could inform the self-evaluation and provide a clear basis for making data-driven decisions for improvement. In general, this process requires up to a year to complete.

Commission Mission Statement

Vision Statement:  Student Success: Our Commitment

Mission Statement:  The NOSS Commission for Standards and Evaluation exists to improve and enhance the success of students at all levels of academic preparation, as well as to facilitate the professional growth of post-secondary educators and administrators involved in student success programs by setting standards of best practice, emphasizing the use of theory to inform practice, promoting effective evaluation, and inspiring quality research in student success from undergraduate- through graduate-level student success.

Goals of the Commission:

• To promote systematic and consistent program evaluation
• To promote and provide access to professional standards of best practice
• To provide a process of self-evaluation to improve and enhance student success
• To guide new program development and provide a template for short and long range planning
• To promote essential and recommended elements of best practice for further program development
• To facilitate validation for programs that meet or exceed standards of best practice
• To contribute to the integration of theory with practice in the field
• To advance to the broader application of research to practice in the field
• To ensure NOSS’s voice in creating, using and promoting professional standards