UWP's Institute for Study Abroad Programs to undergo Quality Improvement Program review
PLATTEVILLE - The University of Wisconsin-Platteville's Institute for Study Abroad Programs is currently undergoing a program review as part of the Quality Improvement Program for Education Abroad. The QUIP review consists of a guided self-study and peer review process, which will result in a comprehensive report and recommendations in the areas of program design, evaluation and assessment, marketing and promotion, student advising, and resources and operations.
Four UWP faculty/staff members are participating in this process: Donna Anderson, the director of ISAP; Russ Braby, marketing and outreach specialist for ISAP; Barbara Daus, special assistant to the chancellor; and Susan Price, professor of animal science. These four will divide the review between themselves, complete individual queries and then meet to complete the Self-Study Report. Once the study has been submitted, two peer reviewers selected by The Forum on Education Abroad will come to the UWP campus to review the study and conduct interviews with relevant faculty and staff. They will also travel to Seville, Spain, to review UWP's program at the Spanish-American Institute for International Education, which was chosen because it is the university's oldest and largest study abroad program.
The two individuals from the forum will then prepare a Peer Review Report based on the Self-Study Report. The Self-Study Team will respond to and discuss the report's findings. Once this is complete, the Forum Review Panel, which is appointed by the Forum Board of Directors and the Forum Council, will thoroughly review both the Self-Study Report and the Peer Review Report. Finally, UWP will receive a letter written by the Forum Review Panel summarizing the findings of the QUIP review.
Chancellor David Markee expressed his support of this review and the benefit of it to the university.
"Our goal is to deliver programs of the highest quality. I believe this review process will assist us in continuing to achieve our goal by helping us identify our strengths and weaknesses as well as challenges and opportunities," Markee said.
The study will review UWP's seven study abroad programs administered directly by ISAP, thus creating a model for UWP to use for the other international programs.
According to the Forum on Education Abroad website, the approval granted through QUIP is similar to accreditation, but QUIP differs in that it supports an institution's own quality assurance initiatives and can be adapted to fit different philosophies and infrastructures. Institutions are matched with peer reviewers whose knowledge and expertise are best suited to the particular review.
This is the first year that the Comprehensive Program Review has been available. UWP will be one of the first universities to undergo this review.
Anderson recognized the importance of maintaining quality study abroad programs as UW-Platteville's ISAP serves students across the U.S.
"We hope this review will be an affirmation of the strengths of our program as well as a way to identify how we can make them even better," said Anderson.
Anderson hopes to have the results of the QUIP process back by late spring/early summer of 2008. Anyone wanting more information about ISAP may contact Donna Anderson at (608) 342-1727. For more information about QUIP, visit http://www.forumea.org.
Contact: Donna Anderson, director, Institute for Study Abroad Programs, (608) 342-1726, anderdon@uwplatt.edu Written by: Megan Mowry, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, mowryme@uwplatt.edu
<< Home