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Office of the Provost

Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Task Force

Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Task Force members

  • Sean Gehrke, Assistant Dean, Undergraduate Academic Affairs, Co-chair
  • Becca Price, Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences, Co-chair
  • Joan Bleecker, Associate Teaching Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
  • Jeremy Davis, Director of Academic Affairs & Policy, Graduate School
  • Ann Huppert, Associate Professor, Architecture, College of Built Environments; University Committee on General Education
  • Joe Janes, Associate Professor, Information School
  • Nathanie Lee, Assistant Teaching Professor, School of Education Studies; Faculty Council on Teaching & Learning
  • Kari Lerum, Associate Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences; UWB Campus Council on
  • Academic Standards & Curriculum; Faculty Council on Academic Standards
  • Julie Masura, Teaching Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences; UWT Academic Policy & Curriculum Committee
  • Pen Moon, Director, Center for Teaching & Learning, Academic Strategy & Affairs
  • Patricia Moy, Associate Vice Provost, Academic Strategy & Affairs
  • Deirdre Raynor, Associate Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences; UWT Office of Undergraduate Education
  • Casey Self, Teaching Professor, Biology, College of Arts & Sciences
  • Sarita Shukla, Associate Teaching Professor, School of Education Studies; UWB Campus Council on
    Assessment and Learning
  • ASUW Representative, TBD

Charge letter

Dear colleagues,

Thank you for your willingness to serve on the Undergraduate Learning Outcomes Task Force. Your time is valuable, and I appreciate your dedication to the undergraduates we serve across our three campuses.

The purpose of this Task Force is two-fold: (1) Develop a common set of tri-campus, baccalaureate-level, assessable learning outcomes, and (2) Develop a plan for assessing those learning outcomes. While excellence in undergraduate education abounds throughout our campuses, and though many programs maintain and assess their own learning outcomes, as an institution we have yet to establish and evaluate formal statements about what learning is associated with a bachelor’s degree, no matter the campus or program. Put simply, the task at hand is for us to be able to say that “All bachelor’s degree graduates will (know, be able to, etc.) …” and to develop mechanisms for understanding our success relative to the claims we make.

Your collective expertise and wisdom will drive this work. To ground your inquiry and decision-making, I encourage you to consider at least four information sources:

  • General Education (GE) requirement learning outcomes. In AY24, the University Committee on General Education affirmed a set of learning outcomes associated with each GE course requirement. Because all undergraduates must satisfy GE requirements, it stands to reason that degree-level learning outcomes will be reflective of them in some way.
  • Program-level learning outcomes. Most academic programs report maintaining learning outcomes for their undergraduates. While there will is variation between and among them, some analysis on your part may reveal important commonalities upon which degree-level learning outcomes may be based and how they may be assessed.
  • Peer comparisons. Many of our peers maintain institutional learning outcomes for and robust assessments of their undergraduates. Presumably a review of these will similarly show some commonalities that are worth paying attention to as you build undergraduate learning outcomes that are distinct to the UW along with an assessment plan. Peer groups that are of particular interest are fellow AAU and Big Ten institutions along with the set of peers we maintain with the Northwest Commission on Colleges & Universities.
  • Report on Undergraduate Learning Assessment. A few years ago, the Office of Educational Assessment (OEA) completed a study in which they asked academic program directors and department chairs to indicate what learning outcomes they require of their students and what assessment methods they use. This synthesis may aid your review of program-level learning outcomes and potentially serve as a source of inspiration for your work.

This project holds many important interconnections with shared governance throughout the University. You’ll notice that among the participants we have many representatives from various councils and committees across the three campuses. As your work moves forward, please do keep Senate, UWB General Faculty Organization, and UWT Faculty Assembly leadership apprised of your progress. Additionally, please coordinate with Vice Provost Phil Reid, and invite others into your work, however appropriate. Jason Johnson, Deputy Chief of Staff in the Executive Office, will provide staffing support.

I anticipate that this Task Force will need to meet monthly through the end of the current academic year, with smaller group meetings happening in between, to complete this work. In terms of milestones, please plan to:

  • Develop a draft set of learning outcomes and draft assessment plan by the end of Winter quarter and check-in with me;
  • Solicit feedback from partners (i.e., individuals and groups noted above) in April;
  • Develop a second draft of materials by mid-May; and
  • Solicit feedback from partners and develop final drafts in the form of a memo to me by mid-June.

I’m looking forward to learning from you and celebrating your contributions to this critical work.

Sincerely,

Tricia R. Serio
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor, Biochemistry

Updated: January 23, 2025