Talking Stick - November/December 2009 - 32

No Small Measure Coming Soon: ACUHO-I Certificate in Housing Assessment by Paul Jahr Information can be a most valuable resource, and with the ACUHO-I Certificate in Housing Assessment, housing professionals will be able to more effectively collect and utilize the information they need to succeed. Scheduled to launch in March 2010, the ACUHO-I Certificate in Housing Assessment is the result of several years of work by the ACUHO-I Credentialing Task Force. The fruit of their labor will be three online, self-paced courses and an optional in-person capstone experience. To receive the certificate, the capstone must be completed, but the online courses have purposely been designed to deliver valuable learning outcomes on their own for those who do not choose to complete the certificate program. Certificate program participants will • Be able to verify, validate, and increase their knowledge and skills regarding housing assessment; • Be engaged in practical, robust learning activities that model adult learning principles; • Be able to apply what they are learning to their current campus or institution; • Have maximum flexibility in choosing when to participate in the self-paced modules and learning activities; and • Be able to demonstrate their competence in a number of areas related to housing assessment. There will be three courses offered in the program (see sidebar). Each course will require the learner to spend approximately 10-15 hours in on-screen learning and offline workplace learning activities. To ensure the value of these courses, experienced housing professionals – assisted by experts from the Center on Education and Training for Employment from the College of Education and Human Ecology at The Ohio State University in Columbus – developed a comprehensive set of competencies associated with the development and implementation of assessment within the housing field. Subject matter experts (SME) have also been selected to develop the online courses and the capstone experience. Those leaders chosen from the assessment field are • Dr. Bob Mosier, retired from the University of WisconsinStevens Point, will draw on more than 40 years of experience coordinating both assessment for his institution’s student affairs division and the institution’s accreditation process to develop the course “Advocating for Assessment and Creating a Comprehensive Plan.” • Dr. Gavin Henning is the associate director for assessment in the Office of Institutional Research at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and has been the institution’s director for student affairs planning, evaluation, and research. He is also a past chair for the ACPA Commission for Assessment and Evaluation. He will help create “Developing and Implementing Assessment Projects and Methodology.” • Dr. Nancy Lange is the assistant director for assessment, research, and technology in the Department of Residence Life at Michigan State University in East Lansing. She has 28 years of experience in housing and residence life. She will develop “Analyzing and Reporting Assessment Data.” • Dr. Joan Hirt has 32 years of experience in higher education, with 11 of those in housing. She is currently a professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg. She will develop the curriculum for the capstone event. • Kay Chitwood, an online faculty member with the Center for New Learning at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, will work with the SME to refine learning outcomes, the instructional documentation, and online learning activities. She brings 30 years of post-secondary education experience with an emphasis in incorporating leading-edge learning technologies. The ACUHO-I Certificate in Housing Assessment, and future certificate programs, will provide state-of-the-art professional development opportunities for housing professionals. Designed with adult learners in mind, the program will deliver valuable information in a usable fashion. Learners will be able to draw from their real-world experiences and utilize actual work situations as part of the educational process. As a result, the participants will be prepared to make accurate, knowledgebased decisions regarding assessment. They will be able to increase efficiencies, hone their operations, and demonstrate their worth: valuable tools indeed. More details regarding the program will be released through multiple media in the coming months. Individuals or departments may send an e-mail to credentialing@acuho-i.org to express their interest in participating in the credentialing program. Paul Jahr is the associate vice president for student affairs at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville. Talking STick

Talking Stick - November/December 2009

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