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2016 Efficiency Reporting GuidanceIn the early part of 2015, Gov. John R. Kasich created the Ohio Task Force on Affordability and Efficiency to make recommendations to Ohio’s institutions of higher education based on three simultaneous principles: 1) to be more efficient both in expense management and revenue generation 2) while offering an education of equal or higher quality and 3) decreasing costs to students and their families. The Task Force met several times during the course of 2015. In October the Task Force issued a report with ten recommendations to advise institutions on efficiency and academic practices, which will improve both the quality of education and lower costs for students.

Furthermore, House Bill 64 (Section 369.550) requires each institution’s board of trustees to complete an efficiency review, based on the Task Force’s recommendations, by July 1, 2016, and submit their findings and implementation plans to the chancellor within 30 days, or by August 1, 2016. For additional information on each category and recommendation, please review the Action Steps to Reduce College Costs report, issued by the Ohio Task Force on Affordability and Efficiency.

This document is intended to provide guidance for institutions’ reports to the chancellor, based on the legislation – please modify and add additional detail as necessary. The institutional efficiency review and the implementation plans captured by this template will serve as the data for 2016 Efficiency Advisory Committee Report. These reports are due August 1, 2016. In 2017 and moving forward, ODHE will issue a survey to the institutions, based on the Task Force Report, as a status update to the implementation plans and will serve as the Efficiency Advisory Committee report.

Campuses will want to review the template to familiarize themselves with the format and content before beginning. The template is structured into four sections:

Section 1: Efficiencies – The first section captures practices likely to yield significant savings for institutions that can then be passed on to students. This includes Procurement, Administrative and Operational, and Energy.

Section 2: Academic Practices – This section covers areas such as textbooks, time to degree incentives, and academic course and program reviews. While improvements to academic processes and policies may not convey immediate cost savings, there will likely be tangible benefits that improve the quality of education for students.

Section 3: Policy Reforms – This section captures additional policy reforms recommended by the Task Force. Section 4: Cost Savings, Redeployment of Savings & Tangible Benefits to Students – The last section will ask

institutions to provide, if applicable, cost savings to the institution in actual dollars saved for each of the recommendations. Furthermore, the institution must advise if the institutional savings has been redeployed as a cost savings to students or offered a benefit to the quality of education for students.

Any questions can be directed to Sara Molski, Assistant Policy Director at the Ohio Department of Higher Education, at 614-728-8335 or by email at [email protected].

mailto:[email protected]

https://www.ohiohighered.org/sites/ohiohighered.org/files/uploads/affordability-efficiency/Action-Steps-to-Reduce-College-Costs_100115.pdf

https://www.ohiohighered.org/sites/ohiohighered.org/files/uploads/affordability-efficiency/Action-Steps-to-Reduce-College-Costs_100115.pdf

Section I: Efficiency Practices

Procurement

Recommendation 3A | Campus contracts: Each institution must require that its employees use existing contracts for purchasing goods and services, starting with the areas with the largest opportunities for savings.

Has the institution implemented this recommendation? If yes, please provide an overview of the process used and the key outcomes.

Yes.

The University of Akron (University) requires that: Office supplies be purchased through GBEX, LLC (along with its wholesale distributor OfficeMax); Promotional items be purchased through the new Managed Promotional Sourcing Program via the program’s two contracted

suppliers, Consolidus LLC of Akron and Global Promotions & Incentives (GPI) of ASW Global Company; and Copier/printer services be provided through the Cost Per Copy Services Program, currently contracted through Lake Business

Products.

Also, see responses within “Recommendation 3B” below. In an effort to increase both affordability and efficiency, the University has implemented a program to better leverage its resources, which requires that:

Computer and software purchases shall be reviewed by Information Technology Services for configuration, needs, compatibility and capacity;

Furniture purchases shall be reviewed by the Department of Purchasing in consultation with Capital Planning and Facilities Management for assurance of standards compliance and need; and

Off-campus printing purchases shall be reviewed by Institutional Marketing for assurance of standards compliance and to assess whether internal resources can complete the project.

If the institution has not implemented this recommendation, is there a plan to implement? If yes, what is the implementation plan? If the institution has not implemented this recommendation and does not plan to do so, please provide the rationale.

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Recommendation 3B | Collaborative contracts: Ohio’s colleges and universities must pursue new and/or strengthened joint purchasing agreements in the following categories:

• Copier/printer services;• Computer hardware;• Travel services;• Outbound shipping;• Scientific supplies and equipment; and• Office supplies and equipment.

Contract Type

Is the institution participating in joint

contracts?[yes, no, plan to]

Include additional explanation here if needed.If the institution chooses not to participate, please explain why.

Copier/printer services Yes The University initially implemented such a program July 1, 2009. The University conducted an RFP in January 2016, reviewed 7 proposals received, conducted interviews and made an award to ComDoc in July 2016. The University’s contract award was adopted by the IUC-PG for use by the IUC.

Computer hardware Plan to The University currently utilizes a “reseller” agreement with Dell and Apple which allows us to capture better net pricing than that offered through other contracts currently available to the University. The University will re-evaluate the State of Ohio Computer Agreement absorbed by the IUC-PG and will participate if better pricing is available.

Travel services Plan to The University conducted an RFP and made awards to two Travel Management companies, Chima Travel and Roy’s Stow Travel. The University will provide data for an IUC-PG RFP and intends to participate in the resulting program.

Outbound shipping Yes The University currently participates in the Outbound shipping contract (UPS rates are provided through the State of Ohio agreement and FedEx rates are provided through the E&I (Educational and Institutional) Consortium). In addition, the University was assigned the lead for the IUC-PG to develop, conduct an RFP, and implement a more comprehensive shipping program.

Scientific supplies & equipment

Yes The University has been utilizing the IUC competitively bid agreement(s) for several years and is currently participating in the new IUC collaborative bid that will be released to the scientific suppliers in 2016.

Office supplies & equipment

Yes The University utilizes the IUC competitively bid ‘premier’ agreement with Office Max/Office Depot (originally bid in 2010). The University utilizes the State of

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Ohio Certified Minority partner of Office Max (GBEX) for these office purchases in support of supplier diversity.

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Assets and Operations

Recommendation 4 | Assets and Operations4A Asset review: Each institution must conduct an assessment of its noncore assets to determine their market value if sold, leased or otherwise repurposed. Where opportunities exist, colleges and universities must consider coordinating these efforts with other Ohio institutions to reap larger benefits of scale.

Please provide an overview of the process used for the institution’s asset review and the key outcomes below or on additional pages:

1. The University previously identified Parking as potentially relevant to monetization.

Circa2012, the University conducted a feasibility study for the monetization of its parking facilities. The University engaged in an informal Request for Information (RFI) with two firms who were finalists in the Ohio State University (OSU) process for monetization of parking. The University provided the two firms a document of “Parking Facts” that contained a data profile, relevant financial information, and a listing of “issues to consider” and the University expressed its willingness to consider alternate parking models. Refer to the Parking Facts Attachment for the document of “Parking Facts” provided.

At that time the firms indicated that the University’s parking facilities could not provide a sustainable monetization model sufficiently attractive to third parties. The reasons provided were heavy reliance on high cost parking structures as opposed to surface lots, significant outstanding debt on parking inventory, and lack of parking space turn-over.

Based on the information referenced above, the University determined it was not in its best interest to engage in a long-term monetization agreement and did not pursue an RFP at that time. Nonetheless, the University is in the process of gathering a current data profile of its parking facilities and will once again investigate the feasibility of monetization as soon as practical.

2. The University’s Paul E. Martin Center (Martin Center) building was: Constructed in 1918

o 4 –floorso ~39,000 gross sq. ft.o Situated on nearly 3 acres

Granted to the University in 2000 Utilized until it was vacated in 2013

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In 2014, the University issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the highest and best use to repurpose the Martin Center and received a single response.

The University is currently evaluating a single response from a private company to potentially develop the Martin Center. Through a proposed ground lease, the building might be repurposed into a 60-room boutique hotel.

The basic structure of the agreement would include: 40-year operating lease arrangement Up-front payment to the University of ~$450k All required renovation costs, as well as all operating costs estimated at over $10M, would be borne by the private

company.

This proposal was explored in lieu of razing the structure and therefore could avoid a cost to the University of ~$400k as well as other annual operating and other costs of ~$17k.

4B Operations review: Each institution must conduct an assessment of non-academic operations that might be run more efficiently by a regional cooperative, private operator or other entity. These opportunities must then be evaluated to determine whether collaboration across institutions would increase efficiencies, improve service or otherwise add value.

Please provide an overview of the process used for the institution’s operations review and the key outcomes below or on additional pages:

On an ongoing basis, the University conducts cost benefit analyses to determine if efficiency or cost reductions could be achieved through engaging a third party to perform various services. If the analysis indicates there could be a benefit to the University, then an RFP is written and issued to determine if actual proposals support the analysis findings. If the proposals support the findings, then a recommendation is forwarded to senior leadership for review and approval.

The University has completed the following:

Food service operation was outsourced to Aramark, including residential and retail stores and catering. Refer to the Aramark Attachment for further details. An agreement for concessions is being pursued.

Internal decentralized custodial services were migrated to an internal centralized approach with some outsourced functions Refer to the Centralization of Maintenance Services Attachment for further details.

During January 2010, the University began processing certain Lorain County Community College (LCCC) financial data on

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equipment and applications which are owned by or licensed to the University. Additionally, certain LCCC data is stored (e.g., student grades, addresses, SSNs, etc.) on University equipment.

Several data processing functions are performed and managed by University employees. The University offers the following data center hosting and managed services: data center hosting services and managed services including server management, managed storage, and managed security.

The University migrated its main web service (uakron.edu) and domain name service (DNS) to the cloud. The University is exploring a reciprocal disaster recovery with high availability (HA) with Youngstown State University, LCCC, and the County of Summit (see recommendation 5E below for further details).

The following smaller awards also were made to outside service companies:o PTS Automotive, VanDevere and the City of Akron – vehicle maintenance and repairo ABM – janitorial services and bus operationso PNC Bank – student refunds; game ambassadors for football at InfoCision Stadium; etc.

Approximately two years ago, the University contracted with Akron METRO RTA to provide free rides throughout Summit County on any regular line service for UA students, faculty and staff. Approximately 20,000 such rides were taken each month by over 1,000 unique riders. Some of those UA riders rely on public transportation almost exclusively.

The University and the METRO RTA are nearing the completion of a new contract that will not only renew this program, but will also provide convenient access to students, faculty and staff on a new downtown circulator shuttle service that METRO will begin operating during August 2016.

This new downtown circulator starting from the METRO RTA hub to several locations including the University will completely replace an existing University-maintained shuttle route, and will, therefore, reduce the number of University buses needed to operate the University’s other regular weekday routes from eight (8) to four (4). The University’s remaining bus routes were evaluated, and the METRO RTA relationship will permit those routes to be nominally reduced without largely impacting efficiency.

Total savings from this integration will include significantly reduced operating and capital spend and are expected to be approximately $400k annually.

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4C Affinity partnerships and sponsorships: Institutions must, on determining assets and operations that are to be retained, evaluate opportunities or affinity relationships and sponsorships that can support students, faculty and staff. Colleges and universities can use these types of partnerships to generate new resources by identifying “win-win” opportunities with private entities that are interested in connecting with students, faculty, staff, alumni or other members of their communities.


Yes.

The University conducted an RFP for “Beverage Marketing Sponsorship” and awarded the contract to Coca-Cola. This included the cold beverage vending equipment throughout all campus and fountain equipment. All equipment is provided, stocked and maintained through the Coca-Cola agreement.

The University also entered into an agreement with the Bureau of the Visually Impaired to provide, maintain and operate the hot beverage and snack vending. The University awarded sports marketing and promotion to IMG.

The University entered into a partnership with the LeBron James Family Foundation and UA’s College of Education for it to become the LeBron James Family Foundation College of Education. LeBron James is one of the most recognized brands in the world today. He is known for his excellence on the basketball court, work ethic, leadership, maturity, business savvy and compassion for at-risk children. More people know Akron, Ohio, as a result of LeBron James (“Just a kid from Akron”) than any other means.


Please identify partnerships and sponsorships in effect for FY2016: Partnerships/Sponsorships Description

Coca Cola Sponsorship – Cold beverage fountain and vendingBureau of the Visually Impaired Hot beverage and snack vendingIMG Sports marketing and promotions

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Administrative

Recommendation 5 | Administrative cost reforms

5A Cost diagnostic: Each institution must produce a diagnostic to identify its cost drivers, along with priority areas that offer the best opportunities for efficiencies. This diagnostic must identify, over at least a 10-year period:

1) Key drivers of costs and revenue by administrative function and academic program;• Distribution of employee costs — both among types of compensation and among units;• Revenue sources connected to cost increases — whether students are paying for these through tuition and fees, or whether

they are externally funded;• Span of control for managers across the institution — how many employees managers typically oversee, by the manager’s

function; and• Priority steps that would reduce overhead while maintaining quality — which recommendations would have the most benefit?

Has the institution produced a cost diagnostic? If yes, please provide an overview of the process used and the key outcomes.

The University completed a 10-year diagnostic for the FYs 2002 through FY 2011 (Refer to the 10 Year View Attachment) and more recently, albeit differently, for FYs 2014 and 2015 (Refer to the FY 2015 Income Statement Attachment for the FY 2015 only).

The University is assessing the desired content and format for FY 2016 at which time a full 10-year comparable diagnostic will be completed thru fiscal year ended June 30, 2016.

Please provide details on the result of the assessment. What are the cost drivers, based on the categories above? Please discuss the institution’s priority areas that offer the best opportunities for recommendation.

If the institution has not produced a cost diagnostic, is there a plan to? If yes, what is the implementation plan? If the institution has not completed a cost diagnostic and does not plan to do so, please provide the rationale.

5B Productivity measure: The Department of Higher Education developed a common measurement of administrative productivity that can be adopted across Ohio’s public colleges and universities. While the measure should be consistent, each institution should have latitude to develop its own standards for the proper level of productivity in its units. This will allow, for instance, for appropriate differences between productivity in high-volume environments vs. high-touch ones.

What steps has the institution taken to improve the productivity measure score or what are the institution’s plans to improve the score?

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Approximately 25 employees attended University-sponsored week-long LEAN boot camp training sessions. These employees were represented from numerous functional areas:

Athletics Benefits Administration Career Center Central Stores Health Services Internal Audit Instructional Services Office of Research Administration (ORA) Parking Services Physical Facilities Printing Services Purchasing Department Training Center for Fire and Hazardous Materials UA Solutions

All who attended the sessions were encouraged to utilize the training to find areas where LEAN principles may be incorporated in their respective functional areas to improve processes and increase efficiencies.

An example where the LEAN process was implemented was in the area of hiring part-time faculty which yielded the outcomes as follows:

Pre-LEAN metrics Post-LEAN metricsProcess steps 107 24 78% reductionDecision points 18 5 72% reductionApprovals 6 2 67% reductionCycle time 42 days 5 days 88% reduction

Has the institution implemented or considered utilizing Lean Six Sigma methodology as a tool to evaluate the institution’s processes?

Yes. See above.

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5C Organizational structure: Each institution should, as part or as a consequence of its cost diagnostic, review its organizational structure in line with best practices to identify opportunities to streamline and reduce costs. The institutional reviews also should consider shared business services — among units or between institutions, when appropriate — for fiscal services, human resources and information technology.

Has the institution reviewed its organizational structure? If yes, please provide an overview of the process used and the key outcomes.

Yes; the University continually reviews its organizational structure. Some recent outcomes based on the ongoing reviews included:

1) Abolishment of approximately 210 positions. Refer to the Position Abolishment Attachment for further details.2) Elimination of an athletic program. Refer to the Position Abolishment Attachment for further details.3) Revamping the service delivery model of E. J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall. Refer to the E. J. Thomas Attachment for

further details.4) Outsourcing food service operation to Aramark. Refer to the Aramark Attachment for further details.5) Centralization and consolidation of maintenance and custodial functions, with some level of outsourcing, and Capital

Planning and Facilities Management (Physical Facilities Operations Center) functions into Finance and Administration. Refer to the Centralization of Maintenance Services Attachment for further details.

If the institution has not reviewed the organizational structure, is there a plan to? If yes, what is the implementation plan?If the institution not completed a review and does not plan to do so, please provide the rationale.

5D Health-care costs: Like other employers, colleges and universities have experienced rapid growth in health-care costs. To drive down costs and take advantage of economies of scale, the Department of Higher Education has convened a working group to identify opportunities to collaborate. While no information on healthcare costs is required in this year’s survey, please feel free to share ideas that the institution believes may be helpful for the working group to consider.

(Optional) Has the institution identified any healthcare reforms that the working group should consider? Please describe.

Not beyond the ideas identified by the working group.

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(Optional) Has the institution achieved any expected annual cost savings through healthcare efficiencies? Please explain how cost savings were estimated.

Yes.

The University implemented more aggressive clinical management of pharmacy. This occurred for the calendar year beginning January 1, 2016. The pharmacy benefits manager estimated an annual savings of approximately $320k for the calendar year 2016.

The University will be making several employee and retiree cost share changes for medical and prescription drug as well as dental for plan years 2017-2020.

Change in medical and prescription drug plan design that increases employee and retiree dependent coinsurance and copays effective January 1, 2017

Increase in medical and prescription drug employee and retiree dependent contribution to premium by 1% per year each January 1st 2017-2020 (from current 15% to 19%)

Implement employee dental premium contributions of 15% (currently 0%)

The University’s estimated cost avoidance is approximately $700k in 2017, with an additional 1% in savings per year in 2018-2020. Savings estimate is based on actuarial plan rates for 2017 calculated by Towers Watson consultants.

5E Data centers: Institutions must develop a plan to move their primary or disaster recovery data centers to the State of Ohio Computer Center (SOCC).


No.


The University is in the midst of the implementation of a plan to enhance its primary data center located on campus in Akron, Ohio and to establish a disaster recovery center for the University at a data center facility located at Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio.

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The establishment of the disaster recovery center will be based on a reciprocity agreement between the two institutions, whereby each institution will collocate equipment in each other’s data center for disaster recovery purposes. This equipment will be placed on isolated and secured network interconnects provided through OARnet using existing data center and networking facilities at each site. No fees or costs will be charged or incurred through this arrangement between the two institutions.

Key tasks associated with the plan to implement this include:

Development and approval of a Memorandum of Understanding between The University of Akron and Youngstown State University (in progress);

Procurement and setup of server equipment and replication software to be used for primary and disaster recovery purposes (in progress);

Initial testing of system and equipment (to be completed); Deployment and setup of equipment at each associated data center (to be completed); Integrated testing of system and equipment (to be completed); Go live implementation of disaster recovery functions (to be completed); and Establishment of periodic testing of disaster recovery and business continuity capability through the established process (to be

completed).

5F Space utilization: Each Ohio institution must study the utilization of its campus and employ a system that encourages optimization of physical spaces.


Yes.

The Department of Capital Planning provides raw data (building, room number, capacity, etc.) for the inventory of spaces available for use in the PeopleSoft facility file. The office of University Registrar collects the data of all classroom and class lab use for the HEI Classroom and Lab Utilization Report. Capital Planning relies on the Classroom and Lab Utilization Report in the recommendation of classroom and/or lab construction.

The Registrar’s office uses Resource 25 software to place room reservations in the most efficient location utilizing specific requirements of the reservation.

The office of University Scheduling relies on the 25Live software to allow users to search for an available space to place an event

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reservation.

There is a download of data from Resource 25 to 25Live and a similar upload of data from 25Live to Resource 25.

Please provide details on the results of the assessment below or on additional pages:


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Energy Efficiencies seek to refine sustainable methods utilized by institutions to procure and use energy (resulting in more efficient use of energy), including, but not limited to lighting systems, heating & cooling systems, electricity, natural gas, and utility monitoring.

What energy efficiency projects has the institution implemented or enhanced within fiscal year 2016?

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Project Collaborative Partnership(s) ExplanationPerformance Contract Johnson Controls Inc. The State of Ohio recognizes Performance Contracting as a self-

funding vehicle to pursue energy reductions and campus infrastructure enhancements throughout its facilities. Specifically speaking, Ohio House Bill 7 was enacted to help Ohio Higher Education campuses meet the June 30, 2014 deadline of 20% energy reductions mandated by Ohio House Bill 251.

In seeking to fulfill its mandate, the University aggressively began its pursuit of 20% energy reduction in December of 2012, and in June of 2013 signed a $60M contract with Johnson Controls to address energy reduction, deferred maintenance, and capital improvement projects.

This project is just finishing its 3rd and final year of construction and the University has seen an actual decline in electricity consumption of nearly 36%, and a natural gas consumption decline of 42% since FY 2014, resulting in over $3M in energy savings thus far.

In all future years, the performance contract is expected to yield over $3M per year in utility savings and is backed by a fiscal guarantee for the 15 year term of the agreement by the vendor.

Section II: Academic Practices

Recommendation 6 | Textbook Affordability

6A Negotiate cost: Professional negotiators must be assigned to help faculty obtain the best deals for students on textbooks and instructional materials, starting with high-volume, high-cost courses. Faculty must consider both cost and quality in the selection of course materials.


Yes.

The selection of an external vendor occurred in June 2014. At that time, negotiations of the terms of the contract included two percentage options for payment to the University, 1) the affordability of textbooks or 2) the margin set for the pricing of textbooks and educational materials.

The University chose the second option, which established a lesser payment guarantee and ensured that the cost of textbooks would be lowered. For 2014 fall semester, all textbook prices and educational materials in the bookstore were repriced, and all newly ordered materials from that point forward had a new price point.

Also, the expansion of rental titles by publishers has allowed students to have additional options. Barnes & Noble has continually encouraged publishers to offer more rental titles, and over the past two years the percentage of textbooks in the bookstore that have a rental option has increased from nearly 40 percent of all titles to over 60 percent.


6B Standardize materials: Institutions must encourage departments to choose common materials, including digital elements, for courses that serve a large enrollment of students.


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Yes.

Recently, courses offered with the greatest enrollment on campus have established standardized materials and negotiated costs with publishers and the University’s bookstore vendor. Prime examples include the educational materials for the Public Speaking course (7600:105), the gateway courses of Algebra and Statistics (3450:100 and 3470:250) and Principles of Chemistry and Anatomy & Physiology (3150:151 and 3100:201).

Additionally, the materials for the gateway course, College Success (1100:101), were standardized and delivered through Springboard (with an optional free print copy provided by the publisher); each student had access to the materials immediately.

Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS): The School of Communication has created a custom textbook for Oral Communication classes that is used repeatedly from semesters to semester.

College of Applied Science and Technology (CAST): Large-enrollment courses in the Department of Applied General and Technical Studies, which offers CAST's applied general education curriculum, use common textbooks, common assessment materials, and electronic supplemental materials.

College of Engineering (COE): Other, discipline-specific examples include eight sections of 4300:201 (Statics) that all use the same textbook, as well as five sections of 4300:202 (Mechanics of Solids) that all use the same textbook.

The faculty at Wayne College, the University’s regional campus in Orrville, continues to work with the academic departments at the main campus to select textbooks that are used uniformly in freshman- and sophomore-level courses which are the traditional high-volume, high-cost courses. To ensure quality of the textbooks selected, faculty work with the academic departments to choose the best textbook based on a balance of cost and quality and that will serve our students. Additionally, Wayne College faculty work with the University’s library system to adopt e-book opportunities where possible.


6C Develop digital capabilities: Institutions must be part of a consortium to develop digital tools and materials, including open educational resources, that provide students with high-quality, low-cost materials.

Please explain your efforts to develop digital tools and materials.

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College Success course is a recent example of developing digital capabilities.

In the GenEd Core Principles of Microeconomics, the faculty collaborated to adopt the OpenStax textbook (free to download), replacing a $240 book from Pearson.

In the GenEd Core Exploring Biology, the faculty collaborated to adopt a $25 open textbook from Boundless.

In the GenEd Core Composition I and GenEd Core Composition II, the faculty collaborated to use an OpenSource textbook for both courses.

Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS): The use of digital materials via Springboard has become common in many units in BCAS. Good examples are the GenEd Core classes in Geology and Political Science.

College of Applied Science and Technology (CAST): The Emergency Management and Homeland Security program in CAST utilizes several digital tools and resources that offer high-quality, no-cost instructional materials to students. The Disaster Mitigation course requires students to pull research from the National Hazards Research and Application Center, a free Web site published by the academic disaster community at the University of Colorado at Boulder. In the Disaster Planning course, students also take free certification courses through the National Incident Management Program as part of the required course curriculum. The Disaster Science course uses a digital weather station, installed on top of the Polsky Building, for analysis. In the Hazardous Science and Management course, students use data and sources from the National Weather Service, United States Geological Survey, and the Centers for Disease Control. Students taking the Incident Management for Emergency Responders course visit the FEMA Web site and take the National Incident Management System (NIMS) course at no cost, at which time they receive a certificate upon completion. These instructional materials provide students with the most up-to-date information related to their curriculum at no cost.

College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering (CPSPE): Electronic resources available through the library are used for course instruction. These include journal articles and textbooks when available. For example, the textbook “Principles of Polymerization, 4th edition” by George Odian is used as an e-book through OhioLINK.


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Recommendation 7 | Time to Degree

7A Education campaign: Each institution must develop a coordinated campaign to educate its full-time undergraduates about the course loads needed to graduate on time (two years for most associate degrees and four years for most bachelor’s degrees).


Yes.

Finish in Time is a campaign intended to move the culture of the students to on-time completion. It is both a communications and a marketing strategy. The target audiences include students, parents and the campus community. The benefits are clear. Students who complete on time accrue less debt and reach their career or graduate school goals sooner. In addition, data suggests that, regardless of level of academic preparation, those students enrolled in 15 or more credit hours per semester tend to achieve more academic success than those who enroll in less than 15. As a matter of policy in support of the change, individuals pay the same tuition amount when attempting 12-18 credits in a term. Initial outcomes show increased percentages of first-time, full-time students enrolling in more than 15 or more credit hours in their first semester from 48.6 percent (2013), 70.2 percent (2014), to 74 percent (2015).

Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS): Several programs have streamlined their degree programs; for example the Masters of Pubic Administration has reduced the required credits from 48 to 39.

College of Applied Science and Technology (CAST): In addition to the University's Finish in Time campaign, CAST's Department of Academic Advising and Student Services has comprehensive courses of action that help educate full-time CAST students about graduating on time. All first-semester students are required to meet with an advisor who will then monitor their progress and determine if a student needs additional resources (e.g., tutoring, Office of Accessibility, counseling) to achieve success in the classroom. Advisors also visit classrooms for outreach purposes to keep students informed about course offerings, registration, and program updates. Several CAST advisors also have developed registration workshops that provides opportunities to meet with students to determine if issues or concerns about a student's progress towards graduation can be identified and addressed. Advisors also encourage students to view their Degree Audit Report System (DARS) so they can monitor their own degree progress and determine which degree requirements remain. All of these efforts serve to keep students engaged and informed about their degree completion progress.

In the College of Business Administration (CBA), each student receives a personalized Graduation Planning Summary (GPS) when admitted into the college detailing the requirements to graduate as well as course sequencing in a 4-year time frame. The CBA also follows the 15/15 rule when working with students: Recommending that students who take 15 credit hours of classes or more only work approximately 15 hours per week outside of class in order for students to have enough time to focus on their classes so they can be

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successful in completing their degree within a 4 year time period.

Within the College of Engineering (COE), curriculum sheets are available to students that list the courses to take each semester for each of our 8 programs in order that they graduate on-time. Two versions of each sheet exist: one for co-op and the other without co-op. In all cases, mandatory freshman advising is provided to make sure students start out on the proper pathway. Faculty advisors are provided for each student so they have a person they can contact about coursework and staying on track.

Wayne College maintains an orientation program for all incoming freshmen but also hosts “Welcome to Wayne Day.” Both orientation and the welcome day are structured so that new students are instructed on 1) the minimum course load required each semester in order to graduate in four years and 2) the federal financial aid system and the advantages and consequences associated with financing a college education. As well, the Finish In Time campaign initiated at the main campus has been extended to Wayne College. As Wayne College incorporates more two- and four-year programs, only academic programs that require 60 and 120 credit hours, respectively, will be adopted. The advising and admissions staff at Wayne College requires students to objectively look at their strengths and weaknesses to determine the best major and academic path toward a degree.


7B Graduation incentive: Institutions should consider establishing financial incentives to encourage full-time students to take at least 15 credits per semester.


See above.


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7C Standardize credits for degree: Institutions should streamline graduation requirements so that most bachelor’s degree programs can be completed within 126 credit hours or less and an associate degree programs can be completed within 65 credit hours or less. Exceptions are allowed for accreditation requirements.


Yes.

The University has made progress toward degrees being reduced from 128 to 120 credits with more work to be done.

Required # of Credits

# of Degree Majors/Tracks %

Bachelor Degrees127-152 159 67.7121-126 9 3.8

32.3120 67 28.5

Associate Degrees66-72 22 33.961-65 24 36.9

66.260 19 29.2

LeBron James Family Foundation College of Education (LBJFF COE): Although teacher preparation programs are state-regulated and immersed in intensive accreditation requirements, program faculty have created new dual licensure Bachelor’s degree programs by eliminating redundancies in two single licensure Bachelors’ degree programs and by creating new courses that integrate required academic content, e.g., the Early Childhood Inclusive Teacher Preparation Program consisting of 137 undergraduate credit hours was created by merging and redesigning the Early Childhood Intervention Specialist program (133 credits) with the Early Childhood Education program (137). The result is that students are eligible to teach in more functional areas of instruction with less time to degree.

College of Applied Science and Technology (CAST): Based on results from assessments of our technical programs, CAST (1) revised a significant majority of its technical curriculum to enhance desired student learning outcomes, (2) eliminated unnecessary electives from its Associate and Baccalaureate degrees, and (3) began the initial revision of the College's general education program to align it with the University's revised general education initiative. To that end, 67% of CAST's Bachelor degrees can be completed within

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126 credits or less, and 87% of its Associate degrees can be completed within 65 credits or less. CAST continues to work on streamlining the College's graduation requirements to provide students with a high quality education in a more timely and cost-efficient manner.

For the College of Business Administration (CBA), the following majors have reduced their credits to graduate with 120 credit hours:Corporate Finance, Financial Planning, Financial Services, Human Resource Management, Supply Chain Operations Management, Information Systems. The following majors will be submitting a curriculum proposal during the 2016-17 academic year to graduate with 120 credit hours: Marketing Management, Sales Management, Integrated Marketing Communication, and International Business. The only major that is currently remaining at 128 credit hours is the Accounting program. One concern is that students in the accelerated program will need 150 credit hours to sit for the CPA exam which students achieve through the accelerated combined Bachelor & Master’s degree.

Within the College of Engineering (COE), Departmental Industrial Advisory Boards have direct impact (through accreditation processes) on a program’s objectives and, in turn, their curriculum and courses they offer. For example, the Industrial Advisory Board in Civil Engineering wants graduates (who are the employees they hire) to have a broad base in multiple areas of Civil Engineering (e.g. structures, environmental, transportation). To adequately accommodate this input from the Advisory Board, the curriculum requires 135 credit hours.


7D Data-driven advising: Institutions should enhance academic advising services so that students benefit from both high-impact, personalized consultations and data systems that proactively identify risk factors that hinder student success.


Yes.

Advising offices are organized to focus on students’ levels of preparation and their corresponding needs. The benefits of this advising structure, designed for pre-majors, in the Division of Student Success, include: 1) advising is tailored to students’ academic preparedness; 2) the advising model ensures increased student contact and more meaningful contact; 3) students are connected to majors and potential careers during the first year; and 4) advising centers and college advisors work together to streamline a student’s pathway to an appropriate major.

The earlier students have contact with full-time faculty, the more likely they are to succeed. The combination of full-time

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faculty contact with professional advisor and staff guidance and intervention will improve retention and persistence. Although faculty and staff contact takes many forms, measureable feedback in relation to student progress includes the use of early-term progress reports, primarily for the 100- and 200-level courses, where faculty enter satisfactory or unsatisfactory indicators during the third to fifth week of the term. Faculty participation was 42 percent for fall 2015 with intent to expand.

The University has contracted with a retention analytics vender, the Student Success Collaborative (SSC) from the Education Advisory Board (EAB). In our research and RFP process, we found key attributes of this system that will likely have a positive impact on student retention and completion. EAB developed this product as a tool to focus advisor efforts to best impact student success. By measuring success in gateway courses, the system uses predictive analytics to identify challenges and solutions for student academic success. The system predicts graduation rates based on student performance and can suggest other majors in which students may perform well. We intend to implement the retention analytics system for identified pilot programs (pre-major students) by spring 2017 and assess impact.

Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS) has reorganized the college-level advising so that each advisor specialized in particular areas, such as natural sciences or humanities. The workload has also been redistributed reducing the wait time for students to see an advisor.

College of Applied Science and Technology (CAST): The highly-impactful advising model that CAST uses includes mandatory appointments, mandatory progress reports, and interim grades for monitoring student progress. CAST advisors also use a case management approach to their student caseloads that enables them to build a rapport and relationship with students. This rapport demonstrates to students that advisors are their advocates and the "go-to person" for their concerns. Students are contacted several times throughout the semester with pertinent information. Advisors also are assigned liaison areas that they share with other advisors to help everyone keep up-to-date on changes that need to be communicated to students in a timely manner. Advisors also use the University-wide Grades First student management program system that determines student progress in 100- and 200-level courses in the 5th and 10th weeks of the 15-week semester. Interim grade reporting also is utilized to determine if a student is meeting course requirements satisfactorily. If an unsatisfactory grade is submitted, advisors contact students to determine if additional resources are needed to assure the student's success. Advisors also work with faculty to ensure that students are receiving the support necessary to be successful in their classes.

The College of Business Administration (CBA) assigns each student an academic advisor based upon his/her major. While students can make an appointment to meet with their advisor at any point, the CBA advisors focus on specific students who may be at risk: 1) First-year students are required to meet with an academic advisor during their first semester to discuss academic progress, adjustment to the University and to review degree audit and curriculum planning; 2) Students who are undecided within the CBA are required to meet with their academic advisor to declare their major before their Junior year; 3) Students who have not completed Calculus prior to 64 credit hours are required to meet with their advisor to review degree

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progress. Additionally, the CBA advisors use data systems to identify & outreach to these students who may be at risk: 1) Students with unsatisfactory indicators during their 3rd – 5th weeks of classes based upon faculty progress reports; 2) students with a GPA of 2.0-2.5 (referred to as the ‘Murky Middle’); the advisors work with these students to improve out of class experiences (i.e. internships, leadership) or to raise their GPA to help students be more likely candidates for full-time employment and/or graduate school; 3) pre-Business students (admitted to UA, but not the college) with high credit hours or a GPA within range of being admitted; The CBA advisors work closely with the pre-Business advisors in CAASS to create early-Inter College Transfer (ICT) opportunities for those students who have done well academically after their first semester and to review High Credit Hour students to create a plan for graduation.

Additionally, the CBA utilizes the University’s not enrolled report to actively contact students who have not enrolled once the registration time period has opened. As the University implements the retention analytics system, that will be a valuable resource for the advisors within the college.

The School of Law’s Academic Success Program is directed toward helping students graduate and succeeding on the professional licensing exam (i.e. the bar exam). This program has been developed around and specifically tailored to identify risk factors in the first and subsequent semesters of law school. Poor performance in foundational courses in the first semester triggers a requirement that students successfully complete a special class in the second semester, which enhances students’ legal reasoning skills and prepares them for improved performance on law school exams and the bar exam. This special class is specifically tailored to address each student’s particular weaknesses. In addition, students who have fallen below a particular GPA during their law school career are required to take an Advanced Legal Applications course during their final year of law school, which is designed to enhance a student’s ability to prepare for the bar exam, and to provide students with an understanding of the critical skills, techniques, and strategies necessary to pass the bar examination.

College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering (CPSPE): In the PhD and MS programs in CPSPE each student has a faculty advisor or advisors who advises the student on their thesis research and coursework. Even with a higher than typical student/faculty ratio the completion rate for these programs is still nearly 100%.

College of Engineering (COE): In an effort to provide personalized consultation with our first-year students, the COE has required advising for Freshman students during their first year. If a Freshman student is on academic probation after their first semester, we recently piloted several student success workshops for the spring semester in order to help get the students “back on track”.


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7E Summer programs: Each campus must develop plans to evaluate utilization rates for summer session and consider opportunities to increase productive activity. In particular, institutions should consider adding summer-session options for high-demand classes and bottleneck courses that are required for degree completion.

Please provide details on the results of the assessment. In particular, please address whether the campus added summer session options for high-demand and bottleneck classes.


Each academic college dean is responsible for scheduling efficiencies across intercession, summer, fall and spring terms with oversight from the Provost’s office. Colleges utilize various methods to determine high-demand courses, small course loads, and frequency of course offerings. These approaches take into account classroom/lab utilization and instructional/staffing costs as well as the need for prerequisite and core course offerings in the summer to enable timely degree completion. In addition, high-demand elective and/or bottleneck classes are offered in the summer as well. The classes offered (beyond the required ones) are those that allow students to either stay on track or get back on track toward degree completion (i.e. trailer classes for students who did not perform well during the academic year to make up lost ground in the summer).

Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS): In the summer of 2016, BCAS began implementing a more efficient system for offering required courses in summer school.

The LeBron James Family Foundation College of Education (LBJFF COE) provides creative and distinctive opportunities for teachers to persist to degree. A new Master’s degree education course was developed for this purpose entitled, “Engineering for Educators.” The course covers conceptual engineering concepts centered on the engineering design process. Practicing teachers learn the process of discovering pain points, or societal problems, and demonstrating hands-on projects that can be replicated in the classroom. Those adult students use what they learn to run a week-long entrepreneurial camp for area middle or high school students, called “From Think Tank to Shark Tank.” By the end of the week, school children create business plans, commercials and presentations for business ideas. The Engineering for Educators students then create instructional units for use in their own classrooms.

The College of Applied Science and Technology (CAST) continually evaluates its summer course offerings to help students complete their degrees on time. For example, the Department of Applied General and Technical Studies runs summer sessions of two high-demand courses (2030:345 Technical Data Analysis and 2040:256 Diversity in American Society) and a bottle-neck course in 2030:356 Technical Calculus II. CAST's Construction Engineering program offers two bottle-neck courses (2990:469 Construction Specifications and Contracts, and 2990:245 Construction Estimating) that often have full enrollment in the summer and fall semesters.

The College of Business Administration (CBA) offers summer courses in each of the Core Discipline courses – courses that are required for all business majors to take. The Accounting program also offers upper-level courses in the summer to allow students to intern during

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the Spring’s tax season. The CBA Advising Office lists the fall/spring only courses on each student’s Graduation Planning Summary (course sequencing) to help students plan their courses accordingly.

The College of Health Professions offers a number of classes during the summer to enable students to better complete their required course work in our degree granting programs.

The School of Law has been increasing both the number of summer session courses offered, and the variety of formats in which summer courses are offered. This increase has been in response to both student demand for opportunities to accelerate degree completion (with either required or elective courses) and as a matter of accommodating year-round part-time students, particularly in high-demand required or recommended courses.

The College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering (CPSPE) is launching a new Master’s degree program in Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering in spring 2017. Part of the curriculum are two lab courses. As the enrollment for each section of these two courses is capped at ~20 students, due to lab space, it is planned to offer them year round as enrollment increases to maximize the ability of students to complete their degrees, timewise, in the most efficient manner possible.

The College of Engineering has required summer classes for some of their degree programs in order to allow access to experiential learning opportunities. Additionally, summer “trailer” courses are offered in some programs during the sophomore year (e.g. Circuits 2) to keep students on track to take fall course offerings in that discipline.

The Williams Honors College offers honors colloquia during summer session to help students to meet their scheduling needs. This summer, a faculty member from our Confucius Institute taught one of the sections, which enabled us to save costs associated with part-time faculty compensation.

7F Pathway agreements: Ohio institutions should continue to develop agreements that create seamless pathways for students who begin their educations at community or technical colleges and complete them at universities.


Yes

Please provide details. In particular, how many articulation agreements does the institution have with other Ohio colleges and universities (either 2+2 or 3+1)?

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The University provides a variety of seamless pathways for students coming from community and technical colleges. The Provost’s office has approved a template for use by faculty both inside the college and at the partnering institutions. These collaborations lead to recommendations for articulated credit. The formal Articulation Agreement is then developed out of the college dean’s office and sent on for approval.

The College of Applied Science and Technology houses 24 Associate degree programs. All of those degree options have a pathway into one or more of the Bachelor programs that are offered at the college. Currently, the College of Applied Science and Technology has 34 articulation agreements with area Ohio community colleges and CAST Bachelor degree programs in the areas of Computer Information Systems, Emergency Management, Engineering & Science, and Organizational Supervision. The College is in the process of developing new and updating existing agreements in similar areas. It is the goal of the College to expand the number of articulation agreements in the upcoming fiscal year. CAST currently has over 100 articulation agreements with other Ohio colleges and universities. Articulation agreements are currently in place with Cuyahoga Community College, Eastern Gateway Community College, Lorain Community College, Stark State College, Ashtabula Career Center, Auburn Career Center, Cuyahoga Valley Career Center, Medina County Career Center, Portage Lakes Career Center, Wayne County Career Center, and apprenticeship programs with the Akron Fire Department, Cleveland Clinic/Akron General Medical Center, LuK, National Tooling and Machining Association, SFS Intec, and Summa/St. Thomas Hospital.

The College of Health Professions (e.g. Nursing) has the following articulation agreements that were originally completed in CAST: Respiratory Therapy

o Eastern Gateway Community Collegeo Lakeland Community Collegeo North Central State Community Collegeo Stark State Collegeo Cuyahoga Community College

In the Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS), the department of Political Science and the Law school have created a 3+3 program, so that students can obtain a BA in Political Science and a JD in six years rather than seven. Similar degrees will be proposed in other departments this year. Interdisciplinary degrees in criminal justice, combining existing degrees in Political Science and Sociology; and Criminal Justice Technology is nearly complete. These degrees will have a new pathway from the Associates degree in criminal justice.

The College of Business Administration (CBA) currently has an articulation agreement with Belmont College (formerly Belmont Technical College) for the Accounting, Management and general Business degrees. The CBA is currently working with Stark State to create a formal 2+2 or 3+1 program. The goal is to work with one community college at a time to create an agreement. Additionally, the CBA provides Transfer Guides to each of the area’s community college which provides CBA courses that are equivalent to business

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courses at the community colleges.

The College of Engineering (COE) has articulation agreements with Stark State College in the areas of Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Civil Engineering, with Computer Engineering being reviewed. The COE also has an agreement with Malone University on an articulation agreement that allows students to earn degrees at both Malone University and The University of Akron. Finally, the COE is exploring articulation degrees with other 2-year schools in the region, notably Lakeland Community College.


7G Competency-based education: Institutions should consider developing or expanding programs that measure student success based on demonstrated competencies instead of through the amount of time students spend studying a subject.


Yes.

If applicable, please provide additional details. In particular, how many students does the institution estimate the competency-based education programs will serve?

The University is engaging discussions across multiple disciplines interested in demonstrating competency-based education (CBE). The College of Health Professions’ School of Social Work has progressed furthest in this regard, although faculty in the College of Business Administration, Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences, and College of Applied Science and Technology also are exploring hybrid or fully CBE programs across classroom and online, as well as credit and non-credit, options.

The School of Social Work is uniquely positioned to develop and implement a CBE approach to an online Master of Social Work (MSW) program. As a professional degree, the accreditation standards for social work are competency based and strictly regulated by the Council on Social Work Education. Therefore, the UA social work programs have operated for years on a competency-based model. In addition, the UA MSW program will now function as an independent program from Cleveland State University, beginning with the summer 2016 semester. Road Maps were collaboratively designed to document progress, and identify future deliverables.

The College of Business Administration (CBA) requires that student learning goals be implemented into the foundation of the CBA’s curriculum. These learning goals are measured through a faculty-led Assessment of Learning (AOL) committee. The Learning Goals are: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of core business fundamentals. Demonstrate ability to apply core business fundamentals through case analyses and simulations.

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Understand and show appreciation for the global nature of contemporary business. Have effective oral and written communication skills. Demonstrate the ability to think critically. Work effectively in teams that include diverse individuals. Have information technology and knowledge management skills. Understand, identify and address ethical circumstances and dilemmas and the responsibility of business professionals in society. Demonstrate an understanding of an appreciation for leadership

The School of Law recently adopted a list of seven Program Learning Outcomes,* around which it will begin conducting annual ongoing evaluations of its program of legal education, assessing the extent of student success across a range of competencies.

These are: (1) students will gain knowledge and understanding of the substantive and procedural law sufficient to pass the bar exam and to practice law; (2) students will learn the principles of legal analysis and reasoning such that they can apply legal principles to novel factual scenarios; (3) students will demonstrate the ability to employ problem-solving strategies and techniques in order to satisfy clients' needs when practicing law; (4) students will demonstrate effective written communication as may be required for different contexts in the practice of law; (5) students will acquire effective legal research skills; (6) students will learn effective oral communication skills for a variety of legal contexts; and (7) students will learn their professional and ethical responsibilities to their clients, the legal system, and their community.


Recommendation 8 | Course and Program Evaluation

8 Duplicative Programs: Institutions should consider consolidating courses and/or programs that are duplicated at other colleges and universities in their geographic area.

Has the institution implemented this recommendation? If yes, please provide an overview of the process used and the key outcomes.What courses/programs are currently being shared with other institutions?

Course/Program Partnering Institution ExplanationJoint Ph.D. in Psychology - Adult Development and Aging

Cleveland State University The psychology departments at The University of Akron and Cleveland State University offer a joint doctoral program in the Psychology of Adult Development and Aging. Students admitted to the program are required to take

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approximately equal amounts of coursework at each institution. The coursework covers the areas of research methods/design, foundation courses in adult biobehavioral functioning, adult psychosocial functioning, and advanced research seminars.

Joint Doctor of Audiology Kent State University NOAC merges the strong assets of two university programs that focus on the scientific and clinical bases of audiology with the Cleveland Clinic Section of Audiology to provide students with exposure to the breadth and depth of diagnostic and rehabilitative audiology. We are dedicated to providing world class education in audiology.

Collaborative distance learning Master of Arts in Speech-Language Pathology

Bowling Green State University, Kent State University, Ohio State University, University of Cincinnati, University of Toledo

Students are matriculated through two 'home' universities – The University of Akron and University of Cincinnati. During the eight-semester, part-time program, courses are delivered online through several additional American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)-accredited Ohio universities. Students complete the required clinical practicum requirements in their local communities to be eligible for ASHA certification, and Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology and Ohio Department of Education licensure.

Joint Ph.D. in Nursing Kent State University The program is offered as a joint program between The University of Akron School of Nursing and Kent State University College of Nursing, thus giving students the synergies of resources from two major universities of Northeastern Ohio. Degrees and diplomas are issued from a student’s choice of one of the two universities.

Joint Ph.D. in Sociology Kent State University The degree is earned at the university of

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admittance; once admitted to the program, students, faculty, and courses are treated as a single graduate department. Coursework is offered at both campuses and faculty and students interchange freely.

Coordinated program for the Ph.D. in Engineering

Youngstown State University The engineering student from Youngstown State University must satisfy the degree requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering at The University of Akron, subject to the following modifications. One of the members of the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Committee for the joint doctoral program candidate shall be an engineering faculty member from Youngstown State University and normally would be the student’s dissertation director, although this is not necessary. The faculty member from Youngstown State University shall have adjunct status at The University of Akron and qualify for Category II graduate faculty membership. One-half of the coursework and one-half of the research credits may be taken at Youngstown State University. The parity of courses is decided by the faculty on the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Committee when the student submits a proposed Plan of Study. At the Advancement to Candidacy, the Committee recommends official transfer of credits from Youngstown State University to The University of Akron.

Consortial Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing

Cleveland State University, Kent State University, Youngstown State University

Students in the Northeast Ohio Master of Fine Arts (NEOMFA) have the opportunity to take classes at four different campuses with four different sets of faculty that all offer their own unique perspectives. Taking workshops on all campuses with different writers will expand students’ possibilities for feedback and for

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learning a variety of processes and aesthetics, not to mention the chance to meet and connect with other highly motivated and talented students from different gateway campuses.

Consortial Master of Public Health Cleveland State University, Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED), Ohio University, Kent State University, Youngstown State University

Provides distance learning for the six core courses (interactive videoconferencing and web-enhanced learning), Saturday classes for the six core courses to accommodate working students, and elective courses at any partner university

Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences (BCAS): UA is working with NEOMED and other partner institutions to create new pathways to medical school, replacing the 2+4 BSMD program with new 3+4 and 4+4 programs. At UA, the new pathway will stress “interprofessional care.”

Institutions already provided a list of low-enrollment courses to ODHE by January 31. NOTE: this benchmark will be added to the 2017 Institution Efficiency Survey.


Section III: Policy Reforms

Recommendation 10 | Policy Reforms

10A Financial advising: Ohio’s colleges and universities should make financial literacy a standard part of students’ education. Has the institution implemented this recommendation? If yes, please provide an overview of the process used and the key outcomes.

Yes.

Through collaboration with Cash Course and the National Endowment for Financial Education, the University provides a variety of financial literacy topics to new freshmen and continuing students through its Akron Experience course. The Office of Student Financial

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Aid conducts workshops and assigns financial literacy modules to students during this mandatory course so that they may gain a better understanding of important financial topics such as budgeting, building and maintaining credit, managing expenses, borrowing student loans conservatively, seeking financial aid opportunities, etc. Student test scores are reviewed at the completion of the course and any necessary follow-up with faculty is conducted.

In addition, during the coming year, the University will be requesting proposals for a comprehensive financial literacy program that will be deployed to students in conjunction with new student loan default prevention measures. This program will ensure that students have immediate access to relevant financial literacy topics in the manner that they prefer.


10B Obstacles: The state Department of Higher Education and/or state legislature should seek to remove any obstacles in policy, rule or statute that inhibit the efficiencies envisioned in these recommendations.

What legislative obstacles or policy roadblocks, if any, inhibit efficiencies and affordability practices at the institution?

The number of reporting mandates seems to have steadily increased in volume. Universities spend a great deal of time and resources gathering data and preparing these reports.

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Section IV: Cost Savings, Redeployment of Savings & Tangible Benefits to StudentsThe following charts allow each institution to report this information. For the first chart, please provide, if applicable, any actual cost savings to the institution for fiscal year 2016 (or expected annual cost savings) for each of the recommendations from the Task Force. (Please note this does NOT include cost avoidance.) Then the institution should indicates “yes” or “no” to the savings being redeployed to lower costs for students in terms of tuition, room and board, and/or student financial aid. If there was no savings or the institutional savings was not redeployed, please indicate “yes” or “no” to the practice providing a tangible benefit to the quality of students’ education.

For the second chart, please provide more detail as to how cost savings were deployed, specifically in the following categories: reductions in cost of attendance, student financial aid, student services, investment in efficiency and affordability tools, and student program improvements. Please use the explanation field to provide further detail.

Please use the chart below to capture, if applicable, FY16 cost savings, or expected annual savings, to institutions in actual dollars:

Recommendation

If applicable, provide the actual FY16 cost savings, or expected annual cost

savings to the institution*Put NA if no savings

Were the savings redeployed to reduce the

cost of college for students? (Yes or No)

Or did the practice provide tangible benefits to the

quality of students' education? (Yes or No)

Efficiency Practices

3A: Campus ContractsRefer to the Master Recommendation

Spreadsheet See explanation below* See explanation below*

3B: Collaborative contractsRefer to the Master Recommendation


4A: Asset ReviewRefer to the Master Recommendation


4B: Operations ReviewRefer to the Master Recommendation

Spreadsheet See explanation below* See explanation below*4C: Affinity partnerships and sponsorships

Refer to the Master Recommendation Spreadsheet See explanation below* See explanation below*

5A: Cost diagnostic NA See explanation below* See explanation below*5B: Productivity measure NA See explanation below* See explanation below*

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5C: Organizational Structure


5D: Health-care costs NA See explanation below* See explanation below*5E: Data Centers NA See explanation below* See explanation below*5F: Space utilization NA See explanation below* See explanation below*

Energy projectsRefer to the Master Recommendation

Spreadsheet See explanation below* See explanation below*Academic Practices and

Policies6A: Negotiate cost on textbook affordability NA See explanation below* See explanation below*6B: Standardize materials NA See explanation below* See explanation below*6C: Develop digital capabilities

NASee explanation below* See explanation below*

7A: Education Campaign NA See explanation below* See explanation below*7B: Graduation Incentive NA See explanation below* See explanation below*7C: Standardize credits for degrees


7D: Data-driven advising NA See explanation below* See explanation below*7E: Summer programs NA See explanation below* See explanation below*7F: Pathway agreements NA See explanation below* See explanation below*7G: Competency-based education


8: Duplicative courses and programs


Low-enrollment programs: NASee explanation below* See explanation below*

10: Financial advising: NA See explanation below* See explanation below*Total Expected AnnualCost Savings:


Please utilize the chart below to show how the total actual cost savings listed above were redeployed to either (1) reduce the cost of college for students or (2) to provide tangible benefits for the quality of students’ education:

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*In lieu of completing the chart below, refer to the explanation below.

Category Amount Invested ExplanationReductions to the total cost of attendance (tuition, fees, room and board, books and materials, or related costs — such as technology)Student financial aidStudent success services, particularly with regard to completion and time to degreeInvestments in tools related to affordability and efficiencyImprovements to high-demand/high-value student programsAdd other categories as needed

* The costs savings and revenue generation highlighted throughout this report, were largely pursued to balance the finances. However, in an effort to make College more affordable for our students, the University did make the following investments:

Fall 2016, increased the undergraduate scholarship award cap by $1,500. Fall 2016, increased the average scholarship awards for the incoming freshman class by $500 as compared to the previous Fall

and, nearly 1,800 students benefitted. Fall 2016, increased undergraduate Akron Advantage Blue Award for the incoming freshman class by $1,000 and, nearly 180

students benefitted. This scholarship is for out-of-state students and it applies toward the non-resident surcharge. Fall 2015, increased the tuition plateau from 16 to 18 student credit hours and, nearly 5,100 students benefitted to date. Fall 2015, began delivering “GenEd Core” courses which offers certain General Education Courses at $50 per student credit hours.

Metrics for Fall 2016 “GenEd Core” courses include:

Course

StudentsEnrolled

Student Credit Hours

Principles of Microeconomics 58 174English Composition I 35 105

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English Composition II 36 108Introduction to Geography 57 171Earth Science 55 165College Algebra 52 208Basic Statistics 41 123Intro to Ethics 95 285Government & Politics in US 44 176Introduction to Psychology 78 234Introduction to Sociology 41 123Exploring Music: Bach to Rock 118 354

Total 710 2,226

Additionally, the University:

Negotiated a vendor contract to reduce the cost of textbooks, standardized certain educational materials, and offered digital textbooks (refer to recommendations 6A, 6B, and 6C within this report for further information)

Developed accelerated programs to help students earn a baccalaureate degree in three years (~70 degree programs) Lowered degree-completion criteria from 128 to 120 student credit hours for certain degrees (refer to recommendation 7C within

this report for further information)

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Documents

€¦ · Web viewGenEd Core Principles of Microeconomics, ... identify challenges and solutions for student ... progress in 100- and 200-level courses in the 5th and 10th weeks