OCC Leads Higher Education Student Assessment Consortium in Michigan

As higher education institutions grapple with the reality of an ever-changing academic landscape, college and university faculty and staff remain steadfast in their commitment to student learning. More than ever, educators, academic leaders and accrediting bodies depend on student learning assessment to ensure students are gaining the necessary knowledge and skills required to successfully transfer to a four-year institution or advance their career opportunities and obtain employment within the local community.

Members of Oakland Community College’s Office of Institutional Effectiveness (IE) and the College’s Student Outcomes Assessment Committee (SOAC) took this time of accelerated change to launch a professional collaborative and developed the Student Learning Assessment in Michigan (SLAM) Consortium. This inaugural group consists of eight area community colleges and four university partners, working together to achieve a common objective: excellence in student learning. 

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“The overall goal of the consortium is to expand collaborative partnerships, share successes and challenges, and ultimately glean knowledge and information from this experience to improve the learning of all students in Michigan’s higher education system,” said OCC’s Chief Strategy Officer and SLAM consortium leader, Steve Simpson. 

His colleague Rachel Lathrop, OCC’s Director of Assessment, Accreditation and Quality, added, “we hope the consortium will expand to include more Michigan higher education institutions and colleagues will gather from across the State each year to focus on different assessment topics.”  

OCC’s inaugural SLAM event, “Co-Curricular Student Learning Assessment,” will be hosted on Friday, Nov. 4, 2022 via Zoom. In addition to colleague discussions, the event features a keynote address by Bev Cummins and Shawna Herwick from Southeast Community College in Nebraska, focused on assessment culture in institutions of higher learning. Attendees will also vote on a new consortium logo created by OCC’s Graphic Design students.   

Joining Oakland Community College, SLAM consortium members include Adrian College; Baker College; College for Creative Studies; Henry Ford College; Kettering University; Lansing Community College; Lawrence Technological University; Macomb Community College; Rochester University; Walsh College; and Wayne State University.         

For more information about OCC’s Student Assessment, visit oaklandcc.edu/assessment.  For more information about the SLAM Consortium contact Rachel A. Lathrop at ralathro@oaklandcc.edu  

About OCC   

Offering nearly 100 degrees and certificates, OCC is Michigan’s largest multi-campus community college and one of the top transfer institutions in the state. The College provides academic, career training and enriching experiences, designed to empower students to reach their potential and enhance our community. More than 1 million students have enrolled in the College since it opened in 1965. A seven-person Board of Trustees governs OCC. Board members are elected on a non-partisan, at-large basis, serve as volunteers and are not paid. Mission statement: OCC is committed to empowering our students to succeed and advancing our community. Learn more at oaklandcc.edu.  

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