Haverford College: Approximately every 10 years, Haverford College academic departments engage in a rigorous external review. Following an extensive self-analysis that incorporates feedback from majors, minors, and alumni, a visiting team of scholars reviews the self study, meets with the Department, senior academic administrators, and students, and tours the facilities. The team’s evaluation report and recommendations often are the basis for curricular changes or tenure-line requests that are implemented though the College’s Educational Policy Committee. The external review process is crucial to ongoing curricular and faculty development.
Reflective departmental self-study also feeds College-wide assessment and planning. In 2005-2006, every academic department undertook careful self-analysis, and was challenged by a newly created Faculty Committee on Academic Enrichment (FCAE) to create the sharpest, deepest, and most engaging undergraduate curriculum in their discipline. FCAE synthesized these visions into the Blueprint for Haverford’s Future, an ambitious plan to enhance collaborative scholarly work between faculty and students that involves expansion of the faculty by 25-30%. The Blueprint was endorsed by the Board of Managers in 2008, and plans are underway to implement the Blueprint’s recommendations within 5-7 years. The work of FCAE remains ongoing and iterative, as new opportunities and challenges face curricula and departments.
