Goal 1: Enhancing Student Learning and Success Core Curriculum See Goal 1 KPIs C and R
The fifth year of the core curriculum was one of recognition and transition. The collective work of crafting, implementing and assessing the core was robustly commended by the external reviewers as part of USD’s reaffirmation of accreditation with WSCUC. As an example, the role of the core’s Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice (DISJ) area of inquiry was noted as integral to promoting greater DISJ initiatives throughout the campus community. In addition, the Critical Thinking and Information Literacy Task Force 2.0 created recommendations for revision to be presented to the Core Curriculum Committee in the 2022-23 academic year. The Committee looks forward to continuing its work and faculty often present USD’s best practices in general education at regional and national conferences.
Academic Program Review See Goal 1 KPI S Progress on completing academic program reviews (APRs) for all programs continued this year, with many external reviews playing catchup after the pandemic. The policy and process for academic program review at USD has gained dynamic, participatory momentum over the
Academic Plan See Goal 1 KPI A and M In 2021-22, the Provost’s Office completed the second stage of the USD Academic Plan. In this stage, the deans presented the priorities of the Academic Plan to stakeholders in their units with the goal of articulating actions that are being developed or will be developed in the next three years (2022-2025) in alignment with the priorities. The proposed actions and their expected outcomes were discussed by the Dean’s Council. This process has increased a shared understanding of the work happening across units, which will lead to greater synergies and collaborations. In addition, the academic units proposed a series of concrete initiatives to the Provost’s Office in the areas of DEI, interdisciplinary initiatives and centers, program innovation, scholarship recognition and
past decade as an authentic opportunity to improve. Having said this,
communication, faculty excellence and accountability processes.
some programs at USD that are professionally accredited have not been
Enrollment Plan and Torero Promise See Goal 1 KPIs D, G, H and I
though USD’s APR process. In March 2022, USD’s accreditor, WSCUC, recommended that USD focus on ensuring these accredited programs go through the internal APR process in a timely manner, particularly for the long-term plan and MOU benefits. WSCUC also recommends implementing a process for aligning core, program and institutional outcomes. The University Assessment Committee, among other stakeholders, will discuss this recommendation next year to assure continuous improvement for every program.
This year, USD made steady progress toward our strategic enrollment goals. USD added two schools to the Torero Promise, bringing the total to 10 Catholic schools across San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. In Fall 2022, USD has over 100 students planning to enroll from these schools and 80% of them are Catholic, 81% are students of color and 40% are first-generation college students. Another objective of the enrollment plan is the implementation of the test-blind admissions policy, now in its second year. A committee continues to review the cohorts of students who were admitted before and after this policy to ensure similar rates of academic success, and USD will continue this policy until at least 2023. Despite national trends showing a decline in transfer students, USD has strong transfer applicant pools and has made progress on several transfer initiatives. USD completed its redesign on notifying students of their transfer credits earlier in the admissions process and continues to
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Strategic Plan and SIG Annual Report 2021-22
