This executive summary provides an overview of the 2000 DSU Assessment Plan.  Over the last ten years, DSU's assessment efforts have resulted in a mature and comprehensive program that includes both graduate and undergraduate assessment plans for all degree programs. 

History of Assessment at DSU: DSU has a long history of program and student assessment at the undergraduate level. Surveys to assess student and alumni satisfaction were first used during the 1970s and placement testing of incoming students began in the early 1980s. The late 1980s marked the beginning of a new assessment era, with the creation of the university-wide Assessment Coordinating Committee. In Fall 1993, the vice president for academic affairs asked the faculty-based Assessment Coordinating Committee to develop a formal assessment plan for the institution. The faculty committee was responsible for designing the institution's three-tiered framework for assessment and took specific responsibility for the general education assessment. The planning process continued over the next two years, with the draft document submitted to the faculty for discussion and revision prior to its formal adoption in January 1995. In February 1995, DSU submitted its plan to NCA.  

The assessment plan submitted to NCA for approval in 1995 specified a three-tiered assessment process for the institution:

• Entry-level assessment to ensure appropriate course placement for all freshmen and transfer students.
• General education / proficiency assessment to ensure that basic knowledge and skills were being provided to students and that goals set for the system-wide general education core curriculum were being met.
• Major-field assessment to ensure that graduates were proficient in their academic discipline.