PBA Home > Institutional Research & Analysis > Performance Measures > QIS > 1998 > Overview

CCHE Quality Indicator System (QIS)
CU-Boulder Fall 1998 Submission

Overview of CU-Boulder Performance on State-Requested and Local Quality Indicators

The University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder) strives to lead in the discovery, communication, and use of knowledge through instruction, research, and service to the public.

CU-Boulder is the flagship institution of both the University of Colorado and public higher education in Colorado. Our excellence is affirmed by national attention.

• CU-Boulder is, by invitation, one of only 33 public members of the American Association of Universities (AAU) and the only one in the Rocky Mountain region.
• CU-Boulder is ranked in the 1998 Fiske Guide to Colleges among the best of the nation's universities for undergraduates and one of 21 "best buys" among public universities.
• U.S. News & World Report ranked CU-Boulder among the nation's Top 25 Public National Universities in its 1998 Best Colleges issue.
• In a 1997 study entitled "The Rise of American Research Universities: Elites and Challengers in the Postwar Era," CU-Boulder ranked 10th among public research universities and third among rising research universities in the public sector.

Our 1998 submission for the quality indicator system of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (CCHE) also affirms our excellence. Here we summarize information submitted to CCHE on both nine state-requested quality indicators and nine additional CU-Boulder local indicators.

As noted throughout our indicator system submission, CU-Boulder strives to improve, not maintain, our programs and efficiency. To maintain and increase our level of excellence, over the next seven years CU-Boulder will focus campus efforts and resources in four areas:

• undergraduate education
• technological transformation
• diversity
• research and graduate education.

These efforts will be coordinated through campus strategic planning, the CU-system-wide Total Learning Environment initiative, and a budgeting initiative, the Integrated Resource Management Strategy.

We have organized this review of our 1998 performance not by summarizing each of the eighteen indicators, but by grouping our responses into the five state of Colorado goal areas listed in Colorado House Bill 96-1219, the "Higher Education Quality Assurance Act," plus one additional area relevant to any research university. The six goal areas are

1. High quality, efficient undergraduate education
2. Appropriate links to elementary and secondary education
3. Workforce preparation and training
4. Use of technology to lower costs and improve quality of education
5. Operational productivity and contributions to the state
6. Research, creative work, and graduate education (area added by CU-Boulder).

In our review we have indicated, and linked to, relevant locations within our indicator system submission.

State goal 1. High quality, efficient undergraduate education

• CU-Boulder's six-year graduation-continuation rate is the highest in the state, a testament to both quality and efficiency. -- State indicator 2
• CU-Boulder graduates go on to further study, use their educations to get and keep jobs, pass professional exams at high rates, and overwhelmingly say that their studies met their educational goals. -- State indicator 1, state indicator 3
• Regular assessment of student completion rates, learning, satisfaction, and success after graduation enables continuous improvement of both the quality and the efficiency of undergraduate programs. So too does innovative use of information technology. -- State indicator 8, state indicator 7
• Comprehensive academic advising services help students integrate coursework, research, and extra-curricular activities with their future plans and interests. We have continuously improved our advising systems over the last 10 years, building on student suggestions and assessment of outcomes and taking advantage of new technologies for degree audits and interactive web applications. These efforts have led to increases in student satisfaction, which we hope will accelerate with changes implemented summer 1998. -- State indicator 4
• CU-Boulder demands high quality, effective teaching and allocates substantial resources to the ongoing improvement of teaching. We examine student ratings of instruction every term and use the results for salary, promotion, and tenure decisions. While we are pleased with students' satisfaction with instruction, we regard improvement of teaching as a continuing commitment. -- CU-Boulder indicator 3
• CU-Boulder regards a diverse student body as a vital element of academic excellence. Improving the diversity of students, faculty, and staff, on many dimensions, is one of four campus focus areas for the next seven years. This will directly benefit undergraduate education. -- CU-Boulder indicator 9
• CU-Boulder boasts a magnificent campus plus specialized facilities for learning, a cosmopolitan campus community, and almost limitless opportunities for students to get involved in campus life and to participate in programs outside their own discipline. Expansion of these opportunities is one goal of our undergraduate focus area; another is improvement of the ways in which we help students take advantage of these opportunities. -- CU-Boulder indicator 5
• CU-Boulder's programs for students with special needs, our use of technology, and our curriculum and faculty equip our undergraduates well. Continuing enhancement of student learning and improving services for students are key components of the campus strategic plan and one of four campus focus areas for the next seven years. -- CU-Boulder indicator 1

State goal 2. Appropriate links to elementary and secondary education

• CU-Boulder is proud of the many ways in which we contribute to the education of Colorado's children. We link K-12 to higher education through programs to encourage college preparation commensurate with our expectations, innovative programs in all schools and colleges for continuing and teacher education, and a myriad of outreach programs to enrich K-12 education. -- State indicator 9A
• CU-Boulder's School of Education has restructured and reallocated resources in recent years to achieve a dramatic increase in the integration of the teacher preparation curriculum and experiences in a variety of K-12 schools. With faculty spending an average of over 200 hours in K-12 settings per year, our emphasis in the future is on fine-tuning existing programs. -- State indicator 9B
• The School of Education's masters and doctoral programs in social and multicultural bilingual foundations are unique in Colorado. These programs, along with the BUENO Center, contribute to diversity both at CU-Boulder and throughout the state educational system.

State goal 3. Workforce preparation and training

• CU-Boulder prepares students not just for an immediate job, but for life-long learning and citizenship.
• CU-Boulder graduates at both bachelors and post-bachelors levels go on to further study, use their educations to get and keep jobs, pass professional exams at high rates, and overwhelmingly say that their studies met their educational goals. -- State indicator 1, state indicator 3
• CU-Boulder uses feedback from employers to modify curricula, teaching, and advising. We design curricula around the skills students need, using internships, service learning, and hands-on experience in practical situations. Our ongoing assessments of student learning and satisfaction also help shape the curriculum. -- State indicator 5, CU-Boulder indicator 1, state indicator 8.
• CU-Boulder regards a diverse student body as a vital element in preparing students for the world of work. Improving the diversity of students, faculty, and staff, on many dimensions, is one of four campus focus areas for the next seven years. -- CU-Boulder indicator 9

State goal 4. Use of technology to lower costs and improve quality of education

• CU-Boulder incorporates information technology in teaching, learning, and research with excellent facilities, training, and practices. -- State indicator 7
• To move campus technology use to the next level, we are developing an Information Technology (IT) Strategic Plan. The plan, plus our Alliance for Technology, Learning, and Society (ATLAS), will position CU-Boulder to take full advantage of current and future technologies in improving curriculum and student learning. Technological transformation is one of four focus areas for the campus over the next seven years.
• Technology plays a role in increasing diversity. Part of the draft IT plan (section 9e) concerns access for students, faculty, and staff with disabilities. And a comprehensive diversity web site connects students and others with policies, organizations, and others with similar interests.

State goal 5. Operational productivity and contributions to the state

• CU-Boulder's six-year graduation-continuation rate is the highest in the state, a testament to both quality and efficiency. -- State indicator 2
• Regular assessment of student completion rates, learning, satisfaction, and success after graduation enables continuous improvement of both the quality and the efficiency of programs. So too does innovative use of information technology. -- State indicator 8, state indicator 7
• CU-Boulder's expenditures for direct instruction and administrative support are in appropriate balance. -- State indicator 6
• CU-Boulder makes enormous direct and indirect contributions to Colorado economic development by attracting more than $325 million per year from outside Colorado, by faculty inventions and patents, by the impacts of campus, student, and visitor spending on the state, and by partnerships with businesses, industry, and other organizations across the state. -- CU-Boulder indicator 7
• CU-Boulder's administrative cost containment and streamlining programs maintain efficiency in our business practices. We hope that new methods of allocating resources to units will enhance efficiency even more. -- CU-Boulder indicator 8
• Equally important, several programs for students ensure that students use their time well, in efficient academic careers. These programs have paid off with relatively high graduation rates, relatively short average time to degree, and increasing student satisfaction. Continuing improvement of student efficiency programs and services for students is a part of our focus on undergraduate education. -- CU-Boulder indicator 8
• For CU-Boulder's contributions to state elementary and secondary education, see the section of state goal 2, above.
• CU-Boulder also makes significant contributions to the state's well-being through course offerings, campus activities that attract community members, outreach activities touching all ages and all corners of the state, and student involvement in the community through volunteer and service-learning activities. Plans to increase service learning opportunities, coupled with outreach initiatives through ATLAS, the Alliance for Technology, Learning, and Society, mean that the already significant benefits of these activities to Colorado citizens will increase in coming years.

CU-Boulder goal 6. Research, creative work, and graduate education

• Research and creative work are part of CU-Boulder's mission. We are proud of our illustrious faculty, the confidence shown in our research by ever-increasing external funding, and our contributions to the betterment of society and the advancement of knowledge. -- CU-Boulder indicator 4
• We are also proud of the many ways in which the research activities of CU-Boulder faculty contribute to teaching and to student educational experiences. We hope to continue to integrate teaching and research more closely through our undergraduate education focus area. -- CU-Boulder indicator 4
• CU-Boulder's award-winning and unique graduate programs make us the premier graduate institute in the state of Colorado. This is evidenced both by national recognition and by high student satisfaction. -- CU-Boulder indicator 2
• The diversity of CU-Boulder's faculty, staff, and students directly contributes to the quality of our research, creative work, and graduate education. In turn, our faculty contributes to the advancement of knowledge with studies of diverse populations. -- CU-Boulder indicator 9
• The expansion and improvement of research and graduate education is one of four campus focus areas for the next seven years.

QIS 1998 main page

Last revision 07/12/02