Assessment at Cornell

Assessment is "any effort to gather, analyze, and interpret evidence which describes institutional, division, or agency effectiveness" (Schuh & Upcraft, 2001). We use it to maintain a focus on our mission, improve programs, inform our planning efforts and decision-making, celebrate our successes, and, ultimately, foster student success and institutional effectiveness. Our work is driven by our "intellectual curiosity" (Maki, 2004) as educators.

At Cornell, two specific questions (Maki, 2004) guide our assessment work:

1. How well do we achieve our educational intentions?
2. How do we know?

The College follows a four-year assessment cycle, outlined in the Cornell College Assessment Plan. Each year of the cycle entails specific dimensions of assessment work. The expectations, educational information, and materials pertinent to each year may be found by selecting the appropriate year's link in the menu bar to the left.