Program Review at the State Level
Program review is an integral part of the Florida College System. Florida Statutes require the review of every major program in the State College System “every five years or whenever effectiveness or efficiency of a program is jeopardized.” Statutes also require the Division of Colleges to “conduct periodic reviews of existing programs.” Rule 6A-10.039(1), Florida Administrative Code, requires the Division of Colleges to annually submit to the Department of Education “a five-year review plan or annual update of the current five-year plan.”
The state program review plan consists of three levels.
- Level I includes the annual production of a data display for each certificate and degree program. The data displays are used by each college and the Division of Colleges to review programs to determine which programs and elements within the programs need additional review. The data display for the Associate in Arts degree program shows the performance of students in the State University System (SUS) upper division programs and compares SUS native students with transfer students from Florida colleges and with other transfer students. The performance measures are grade point averages, suspensions, graduations, average course loads, and credits earned for a degree.
- Level II is the review of certificate and degree programs by the individual colleges, either independently or in cooperation with independent and outside groups. It is this level of program review that the College designs to meet its needs for program review and assessment.
- Level III program review is the college system-wide review of selected programs by the Division of Colleges to address any concerns regarding these programs. The programs and issues for such reviews are determined by the Department of Education based on Level I and Level II information, Department of Education priorities, legislative and other interested parties or emerging issues.
Additionally, as of May 2020, a statewide program audit is being conducted by a multi-phase and systemic review of all programs. The College is participating in that audit and internal revisions through the strategic planning process, and changes to the program review process are expected. Necessary updates will be added to this section of the Academic Management Manual and communicated with program faculty and staff as soon as anticipated revisions are finalized.
The focus of this section is on how Palm Beach State College fulfills the requirements of Level II program review and for the College’s commitment to institutional effectiveness.
The three major ways in which curriculum can be divided at Palm Beach State is in terms of disciplines, programs and courses. Disciplines are defined as major areas of emphasis in the Associate in Arts degree and in general education; disciplines include areas such as mathematics, humanities and science. General education and the Associate in Arts degree are reviewed by the General Education Council with input from faculty College-wide. Programs are defined as career credit and noncredit programs of study that result in an award that does not necessarily transfer to another college or university.