Academic Program Check-Ins
Background
In Fall 2023, Ö÷²¥ÓÕ»ó’s Office of the Provost launched an Academic Transformation initiative to help Ö÷²¥ÓÕ»ó navigate an evolving higher education landscape. A charge of this project’s Academic Program Viability and Curricular Innovation working group was to “develop a clear, data-informed, and transparent set of processes and protocols for the early ongoing detection and required realignment of academic programs to current workforce needs and learner demand.”
A recommendation of this working group was to initiate Annual Check-Ins for each academic program to help guide strategic decisions about their trajectory. These Check-Ins will incorporate various measures designed with inclusivity and transparency in mind; they are based on existing data, policies, and processes, as well as factors including market intelligence and a brief program self-study. These will continue to be reviewed and adjusted based on efficacy and community feedback.
Data and perspectives from these Annual Check-Ins will help Ö÷²¥ÓÕ»ó's faculty and academic leaders assess and position programs for long-term strength and viability, maximize the efficiency of resource allocation, and increase the collective value of our academic offerings to students.
In February 2025, Provost team members began meeting with groups across campus to discuss how the working group's recommendations would be operationalized, and to gather feedback to guide development of the process. Spring and Summer 2025 have been devoted to training, testing, and refining processes and metrics based on community input, as we continue to co-create infrastructure for the Check-Ins to begin in Fall 2025, with constituent dialogue and data-driven action steps for identified programs progressing in the spring 2026 semester.
Project Resources
Documents Used in Program Check-Ins
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Training Documents
Fall 2025 Office Hours with Katie and Beth
Held between September and December 2025, this is an opportunity for programs to schedule with Katie Linder and Beth Myers to discuss process questions, data, or program supports.
Process Workshops
New for Fall 2025: Process Refreshers: Strongly recommended for all deans, associate deans, department chairs, program directors, and program staff. Other interested faculty and staff are welcome to attend and observe.
In this 90-minute session--held on Sept. 8 and 22--participants get an overview of the Annual Program Check-In process. The session includes background, context, and timelines, and reviews a sample dashboard, qualitative self-study, and action steps.
The Fall 2025 workshops reprise workshops held earlier this year to prepare Ö÷²¥ÓÕ»ó constituents for this process.
Do you have process questions?
Contact Us!
Spring Workshop Recordings and Presentations
Find them within each section tab below.
Why We Are Doing This
Since the Academic Program Viability and Curricular Innovation working group on this topic began its efforts 15 months ago, its participants—representing a cross-section of faculty, staff, and academic leadership—have recognized various reasons to develop an inclusive, systematic process to measure academic program viability and foster curricular innovation. For example, identification of a program’s challenges may prompt innovative ideas, such as shifts in program focus or outreach. Recognition of growth potential may suggest where targeted investments might drive enrollment. The working group has recommended a “no surprise” approach, whereby any considerations that may emerge from the Check-Ins are the result of data, dialogue (incorporating faculty and staff as well as academic and administrative leaders) and a transparent process.
While this initiative is vital for Ö÷²¥ÓÕ»ó’s long-term strength and success, we are mindful of the need to mitigate workload impacts. We are prioritizing efficiencies through dashboards, templates, the leveraging of existing data, and building on already-developed groundwork by the originating working group (whose report can be reviewed here). This effort is about synthesizing information we already have to inform determinations about the future direction of academic programs.
Process Timeline Overview
2023-2024
Academic Program Viability and Curricular Innovation Working Group develops report, recommendations.
2025
January - February
Operationalization planning work begins
March - May
Process training and project socialization, with feedback incorporated into the process
Summer
Further process preparation, finalization of data dashboard and self-study/action planning templates
Fall
Annual Check-Ins begin; Programs receive dashboards and submit self-study documentations to Deans (December 1)
2026
Winter
Action Steps Template submitted; programs begin work on action steps
Spring
Operationalization of action strategies