SACSCOC Fifth Year Interim Report
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Assessment : 2013 - 2014 : Educational Programs :
Family And Consumer Sciences BS (Food Science And Nutrition)
Family And Consumer Sciences BS (Food Science And Nutrition)
3 Goals 3 Objectives 2 Indicators 2 Criteria 2 Findings 3 Actions
| GOAL: Knowledge And Skills |
| Objective |
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Food Science and Nutrition students will demonstrate knowledge and skills necessary to meet the standards of the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics, the accrediting arm of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formerly the American Dietetic Association). |
| Indicator |
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| The Exit Survey for food science and nutrition majors includes multiple-choice and short-answer sections that test retention of course material; it is graded on a pass/fail basis. (Each program area has questions that are specific to that program content.) To develop this instrument, faculty in the content area reviewed course and program objectives and chose questions from exams that reflected important concepts that students should retain. The test is used repetitively and the scoring is consistent. For security reasons, the test portion (multiple-choice, short-answer questions) is not attached. However, this document is available in the chair's office. |
| Criterion |
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| At least 80% of the students who complete the food science and nutrition program's Exit Survey will score a grade of Pass or High Pass on the content portion of the exam. |
| Finding |
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During the 2013-2014 academic year, the faculty in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences decided that administration of the Exit Survey was no longer an effective means of program assessment. For students in many of the programs within the department, the Exit Survey was administered in conjunction with the final for the FACS 4369 Internship course, but students in the Food Science and Nutrition program do not take this course (their internship, if applicable, is at the graduate level). Students in general (not just Food Science and Nutrition majors) appear to believe that the results of this Exit Survey can be used against them in some way; therefore, enticing them to set aside the time to complete this Exit Survey (it is in an exam format) has been neither effective nor successful. |
Actions for Objective:
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During the 2014-2015 academic year, Dr. Valencia Browning-Keen will work with Jeff Roberts to set up new assessment standards in keeping with the Response to the Site Visit Team document (the Site Visit occurred December 2-4, 2012). This response was submitted in March of 2013. Because the Food Science and Nutrition program is an accredited program, this approach is considered by all stakeholders to be considerably more appropriate as compared with administration of an end-of-program content assessment (the Exit Survey). |
| GOAL: Becoming Registered Dietitians |
| Objective |
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| Students will demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary for entry-level dietitians. |
| Indicator |
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| The information concerning passage of the credentialing exam can be verified by an annual report sent to program directors by American Council on Education of Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND), the accrediting arm of the AND (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, formerly the American Dietetic Association). |
| Criterion |
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| At least 80% of students will receive a passing score on the Registration Examination for Dietetics. |
| Finding |
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| Although the number of students who applied to Dietetic Internship programs for the group who would normally take the exam during 2013-2014 was small (successful program completion is required in order to take the Registration Examination in Dietetics), all of those who applied (3 students) were accepted. Of those who were accepted, one transferred programs (meaning a slow-down in the time frame for completion and eligibility to sit for the exam) and two others who successfully completed the program did indeed pass the exam on the first attempt. Therefore, of those who were eligible, 100% of students received a passing score and are now Registered Dietitians. Therefore this criterion was met. |
Actions for Objective:
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| More and more, the demand for Registered Dietitians outpaces the number of students who are eligible to sit for the Registration Examination in Dieteitcs. Students can be encouraged to apply for Dietetic Internship Programs, but not all of the ones who are eligible do so. Life happens. Student plan marriages, move to different parts of the country, receive other gainful employment, etc. Many do stay in touch and some come back after being out a couple of years and ask for help in applying for dietetic internship programs. The current plan of action includes Dr. Browning-Keen partnering with Allied Medical Health on an CHAAMP grant ($150,000) that is designed to mentor Hispanic and African-American undergraduate students through the undergraduate program in Food Science and Nutrition so that they are eligible to apply for Dietetic Internship programs, successful completion of which is required in order to sit for the Registration Examination in Dietetics. We are excited about what this grant can mean to this undergraduate program. |
| GOAL: Dietetic Internship Programs |
| Objective |
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| Well-qualified students will be recruited to enter a dietetic internship program. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
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With the implementation of the CHAAMP grant (cited in Action above), there will be more support for shepherding students, especially Hispanic and African-American students, through the application process. We are excited about the possibilities that will be open to these students as a result of this successful grant application. |
| Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
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We are planning to work with Jeffrey Roberts of the Assessment Office to align the Plan for Continuous Improvement with the information supplied to the accrediting body (ACEND) in the self-study document. We plan to continue to work with students so that their packets will help them to be admitted to Dietetic Internship Programs and also to prepare them so that they will have the background to pass the Registration Examination in Dietetics and become well-prepared professionals in this area. The Didactic Program in Dietetics at Sam Houston State University is an inclusive program whose mission is to provide quality, scholarship and community service opportunities to a diverse student body in order to complete the knowledge requirements set by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) so that graduates are competitive in the Dietetic Internship application process and eligible for a global marketplace meeting individual and family needs in the food or health care industry.
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| Update on Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
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During the 2013-2014 cycle, Dr. White (chair of the deparment) "dropped the ball," so to speak, with scheduling a time when she, Jeffrey Roberts, and Dr. Browning-Keen could work to align the Plan for Continuous Improvement with the information supplied to the accrediting body (ACEND) in the self-study document. Dr. Keen worked with several students who were successfully admitted to Dietetic Internship Programs and the passage rate was excellent for those qualified graduates who took the Registration Examination in Dietetics. In addition, Dr. Keen taught the Cultural Foods and Counseling course with the end goal of preparing graduates so that they are competitive within a global marketplace.
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| Plan for Continuous Improvement |
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From the 2013-2014 cycle, we can see that the program content is solid, based on the 100% pass rate on the Registration Examination in Dietetics (R.D. Exam) for those program graduates who successfully completed dietetic internship programs. We look forward to working with Hispanic and African-American students through the CHAAMP grant which is designed to provide the support necessary to complete the undergraduate program in a successful way so that students can be admitted to Dietetic Internship programs which, when successfully completed, will make them eligible to sit for the R.D. Exam. Of course, programs efforts will not be restricted to Hispanic and African-American students. Finally, Dr. Keen and Jeffrey Roberts will work to align the Plan for Continuous Improvement with the Program Objectives as set forth in the Response to the Site Team Visit document submitted in March of 2013.
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