Moving from Equity as an Ideal to Equity in Outcomes: Using Benchmarking as a Learning Process for Strategic Change

This session will offer an interactive learning format for institutional researchers interested in employing performance benchmarking and inquiry processes to create actionable knowledge out of institutional data. Researchers from the Center for Urban Education (CUE) will demonstrate a benchmarking and inquiry process that can be utilized for strategic planning. This equity‐focused learning and change process uses benchmarking to support specific campus priorities and initiatives, such enhanced basic skills course completion and graduation rates. CUE’s benchmarking process assists colleges in measuring progress towards internal, college goals as well as national goals such as President Obama’s College Completion Goals. The President specifically calls on community colleges to set performance benchmarks to increase outcomes for historically underserved student populations. The capacity to do so will enhance colleges’ ability to compete for federal funding and to demonstrate a culture of inquiry in the accreditation review process. Participants will have the opportunity to participate in hands‐on exercises to explore the impact of student success in key curricular milestones. The session illustrates how to translate these impacts into action plans for basic skills, strategic planning, accreditation, and beyond.