Introduction

The charge of the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (COPPS) Assessment Committee is to provide assessment and evaluation of outcomes of all activities in the College.

The Assessment Committee will:
• serve as advisor to the Executive Council and Faculty on matters related to quality control of courses
• develop, administer and assess the comprehensive examination
• assist faculty in developing assessment tools for courses, laboratories or rotations
• conduct course/faculty evaluations each semester
• conduct periodic alumni and employer surveys
• conduct student surveys
• conduct other assessment activities as assigned
• The Assessment Committee shall coordinate the activities with the Curriculum Committee.

Assessment Committee Mission and Goals

The Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU) College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences' (COPPS) mission is to educate and train students in the practice of Pharmaceutical Sciences in order to prepare them for their roles and responsibilities in delivering Pharmaceutical care through innovation and collaboration in pharmacy practice, education, research, and public service. In realizing the College's mission, the Assessment Committee uses formative and summative approaches to ensure an efficient, dynamic and continuous assessment process for COPPS to improve student learning, academic environment, scholarship and strategic planning.

This mission of the Assessment Committee is achieved through the following goals:

1. Develop the assessment guidelines for the COPPS based on the achievement of the stated objectives in the strategic plan.
2. Determine the methods for assessing and measuring student achievement at different stages in the Doctor of Pharmacy program using qualitative, quantitative, direct, indirect, formative and summative tools.
3. Develop feedback mechanisms to use results of findings in the assessment process for programmatic improvement.
4. Establish a time schedule of events for the annual assessment activities.
5. Formulate and manage the overall assessment plan for the COPPS.
6. Identify critical assessment needs, processes, tools, and data sources.
7. Define infrastructure and resources needed to manage program assessment and implement the assessment plan in congruence with FAMU FAMOUS plan.
8. Analyze the assessment data to identify areas of improvement for COPPS.
9. Disseminate the assessment data appropriately through feedback to the administration, the divisions and appropriate programs/committees.
10. Continuously review the assessment plan annually and revise if necessary.

Assessment in the COPPS serves the following three major purposes:

1. Program and service improvement;
2. Accountability aimed at demonstrating institutional responsiveness to external constituencies by ensuring that students demonstrate basic academic competencies and skills mandated by state and federal licensure exams; and
3. Institutional effectiveness aimed at meeting requirements by accrediting agencies.

Philosophy of Assessment

At FAMU assessment is "a systematic process of documenting and analyzing the effectiveness of the teaching and learning processes to ensure that the expectations and standards are met in fulfilling the mission of FAMU. Assessment at FAMU COPPS is based upon the University's FAMOUS assessment approach which involves six sequential and precise steps. Each letter of the acronym "FAMOUS" represents an important step that is connected to the next step in a chain that ultimately comes together to contribute to the goal of successfully developing and implementing an effective assessment plan. The assessment planning forms at FAMU, therefore, facilitate the documentation of the six steps.

"FAMOUS" Steps
Formulate statements of outcomes/objectives aligned to institutional mission/goals
Ascertain criteria for success
Measure performance using direct and indirect methods
Observe and analyze results for congruence between expected and actual results
Use result to effect improvement of programs and services
Strengthen programs and services by continuously evaluating, planning, allocating resources, and implementing new approaches

The Assessment process begins with the outcomes and specified criteria. Each year the outcomes are assessed through various tools to determine whether they meet the specified criteria. If the criteria are met, the results are documented. If the criteria are not met, the results are referred to the appropriate entity (committee, council, or administrator) for action plan development and implementation. The action taken is also provided to the Assessment Committee for future assessment. All results and actions taken are documented and submitted to all stakeholders (via Annual Report), and the University Assessment Office. The final step is to revise the specified goals and outcomes for the next year based on the information learned during the cycle and to be consistent with changes in the strategic planning goals and other areas of need determined by previous assessments or stakeholder input