This appendix

• provides technical definitions of quantitative measures cited in plan goals for undergraduates, graduate-level students, faculty, and staff
• presents listings of historical time series for each measure (Display 1), and plots of each time series (Display 2)
• describes more detailed measures to be monitored and reported annually. For example, for the basic measure bachelors degrees granted to residents of color (Goal 2A), the more detailed measures include degrees to residents and non-residents by racial/ethnic group and by gender, overall and within college and discipline
• provides benchmarks to be used in evaluating progress toward plan goals. These benchmarks may involve comparisons that are strictly internal (e.g., change over time at CU-Boulder), external (e.g., national or peer-institution trends), or a combination.

The campus will continue to refine and augment both measures and benchmarks.

Student measures

Bachelors degrees granted to residents of color (see Goal 2A)

Definition: The number of residents of color receiving bachelors degrees in the fiscal year (summer, fall, and spring combined)

• Placing this measure first acknowledges that the ultimate purpose of enrollment, and of University activities for students, is the degree
• This goal focuses on residents to acknowledge the University's special obligation to Coloradans. However, non-resident students of color also enrich the diversity of the campus, and their numbers will be monitored as well.
• The number of degrees increased steadily between reporting years 1990 and 1998. However, it will likely fall before increasing again due to low numbers of entering undergraduates of color in 1996 through 1998.

Monitor the basic measure plus

• Degrees to residents and non-residents by racial/ethnic group and by gender, overall and within college and discipline
• The relationship of current outcomes to CU-Boulder historical trends, to national or peer-institution trends, and to outcomes for whites
• Subsidiary measures 2A.1-2A.3. Increasing degrees will require increases in new students and in graduation rates. The challenge lies not just in increasing one or the other, but in increasing both together.

New students (see goal 2A.1): New degree-seeking resident freshmen and transfers (combined) of color, entering in a calendar year (spring, summer, and fall combined). Monitor the basic measure plus

• Numbers of applications and acceptances, admit rates, and yield rates, by residency, by racial/ethnic group and by gender, overall and within college
• The relationship of outcomes to CU-Boulder historical trends, to outcomes for whites, and to national or peer-institution trends where available
• Applications as a percentage of Colorado high school graduates
• Numbers of new students as a percentage of Colorado high school graduates (2A.1a; this measure is often called "share"). Numbers of high school graduates of color are expected to increase by over 20% between 1998 and 2003. We will monitor share over time for resident freshmen, transfers, and combined new undergraduates. We will also monitor CU-Boulder's share of subgroups of high school graduates, such as ACT/SAT test takers, or test-takers with specified score minimums.
• The academic preparation levels of applicants and entering students
• Counts and rates separately for freshmen vs. transfers, as well as combined.

The one-year retention rate (see goal 2A.2) is a more immediate proxy for graduation rate. It is the percentage of full-time fall resident freshmen of color enrolled in regular resident instruction (not continuing education alone) the fall after entry. Monitor the basic measure for residents and non-residents plus

• Cumulative GPA and academic status (clear, on probation, suspended) at the end of the first year
• Rates by racial/ethnic group and by gender, and by level of academic preparation, overall and within college
• Comparisons of current rates to CU-Boulder historical trends, to national or peer-institution trends, and to rates for whites
• Actual rates vs. rates predicted on the basis of entering students' academic preparation and other factors known to relate to retention rates

Graduation rate (see goal 2A.3): The percentage of full-time fall resident freshmen of color who have graduated from CU-Boulder by end of 6th summer after entry. This is a standard national measure of graduation rates. Monitor the basic measure for residents and non-residents plus

• Four and five-year rates, and combined graduation-continuation rates
• Rates by racial/ethnic group and by gender, and by level of academic preparation, overall and within college
• Comparisons of current rates to CU-Boulder historical trends, to national or peer-institution trends, and to rates for whites
• Rates for transfers, freshmen entering in terms other than fall, and part-time students
• Rates for students in particular programs, such as the Academic Access Institute and the women in engineering program
• Actual rates vs. rates predicted on the basis of entering students' academic preparation (measured by high school GPA and test scores) and other factors known to relate to graduation rates, such as college entered and financial need

Additional notes

• The 4-6 year time lag between entry and degrees means that several major determinants of the number of degrees through 2003 have already occurred.
• To be easy and verifiable, 'resident' means resident at graduation, not at entry. However, note that about 20% of resident degree recipients typically entered as non-residents who later established residency.
• Graduation and retention rates are by convention based on full-time fall freshmen only; transfers, part-time, and summer/spring freshmen are excluded from calculations. The excluded students represent about 40% of degree recipients each year.
• The one-year retention rate is a rough proxy only, with considerable variability which does not necessarily map to graduation rates.

Graduate-level degrees to students of color (see goal 2B)

Definition: The number of masters, law, and doctoral degrees awarded to students of color in the fiscal year (summer, fall, and spring combined)

• This measure has a national focus because we draw graduate-level students from a national pool. In addition, almost all graduate-level students entering as non-residents establish residency before graduation, so many residents receiving degrees entered as non-residents.

Monitor the basic measure plus

• Degrees by racial/ethnic group and by gender, overall and within college and discipline, and by level (masters, law, doctoral)
• Comparisons of current outcomes to CU-Boulder historical trends, to national or peer-institution trends, and to outcomes for whites
• A subsidiary measure, below, on new students

New students (see goal 2B.1): New degree-seeking masters, law, and doctoral students (combined) of color, entering in a calendar year (spring, summer, and fall combined). Monitor the basic measure plus

• Numbers of applications, admit rates, and yield rates, by racial/ethnic group and by gender, overall and within college or program, vs. historical trends, vs. whites, and vs. national or peer-institution trends if available. Caution: Data on applications and admits are not currently available for all campus programs.

We have not defined a graduation rate measure or goal for graduate-level students measure due to several issues:

• No CU-Boulder, state, or federal standard definitions are available
• Masters, law, and doctoral students have different intentions and take different amounts of time, so a combined rate is not appropriate
• For doctoral students entering fall 1988 and 1989, and for masters students entering falls 1988 through 1993, graduation rates for students of color are already at or above rates for whites. Rates for law and MBA students of color are only slightly under those for whites. Rates for students of color (preliminary calculations): Masters, 75%, law 84%, MBA 74%, doctoral 56%

Issues with graduate student measures

• Except for doctoral students, time lags between entry and degrees are shorter than for undergraduates, but still in the 2-3 year range.
• We need to develop standard measures of graduation rates

Faculty, staff, and administrator measures

Measures

• Number of tenured and tenure-track faculty of color (see goal 3A)
• Number of tenured and tenure-track female faculty (3B)
• Number of administrators of color (3C); defined as officers and professional-exempt staff
• Number of classified staff of color (3D) in all job titles combined, excluding non-managerial, non-supervisory positions in the custodian and food service worker series. These are excluded because at present a majority of employees in the custodial and food service classes are people of color.

All measures

• Count individuals with 50% or greater, non-terminated, Boulder campus appointments as of October 1, from payroll records
• Increased steadily between 1989 and 1998, with slower rates of growth in recent years

Monitor the basic measures plus

• Counts by racial/ethnic group and by gender, overall and within college and discipline
• Relationships of current outcomes to CU-Boulder historical trends, to national or peer-institution trends if available (for faculty and administrators), to state or Denver-area demographics (for staff), and to figures for whites
• New hires, promotions, retirements, and other voluntary and involuntary departures, plus reasons for leaving if possible
• Salaries, especially of new hires

Issues

• No standard definitions or official counting dates are available
• The move to the Peoplesoft human resources system in late 1999 may complicate over-time comparisons

Change in racial/ethnic codes

New federal rules on racial/ethnic reporting, effective with the 2000 census, will require a reassessment of measures focusing on people of color. Starting in 2001 or earlier, information on faculty, staff, administrators, and students will be collected using the new rules.

Reporting year

The historical time series shown in Display 1 are organized by "reporting year." Data for a given reporting year will be available in November of each year. Examples for reporting year 1998:

• Number of degrees the prior fiscal year -- awarded in summer and fall 1997 and spring 1998 (the standard reporting period for degrees)
• Number of students entering in the calendar year -- in spring, summer, and fall 1998
• The six year graduation rate of freshmen entering six years prior -- the percentage of fall 1992 freshmen who had graduated by the end of summer 1998 (the sixth summer)
• The one year retention rate of freshmen entering the prior year -- the percentage of fall 1997 freshmen enrolled in fall 1998 (at census)
• Faculty, staff, and administrators as of October 1 1998 (available early November)

The bottom portion of Display 1 shows student measures aligned by entry year rather than by reporting year. The data are the same as in the upper portion.