palo alto college 2016 malcolm baldrige national quality award · pdf filenoel levitz noel...

1400 W. Villaret Blvd.San Antonio, Texas 78224

PALO ALTO COLLEGE

2016 MALCOLM BALDRIGE NATIONAL QUALITY AWARD

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Palo Alto College Table of Contents

Eligibility Certification Form E-1 Organization Chart O-1 Award Application Form, page A-1 A-1 Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations G-1 Organizational Profile i Category 1 Leadership 1.1 Senior Leadership 1 1.2 Governance and Societal Responsibilities 5 Category 2 Strategy 2.1 Strategy Development 7 2.2 Strategy Implementation 10 Category 3 Customers 3.1 Voice of the Customer 12 3.2 Customer Engagement 15 Category 4 Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management 4.1 Measurement, Analysis, and Improvement of Organizational Performance 19 4.2 Knowledge Management, Information, and Information Technology 22 Category 5 Workforce 5.1 Workforce Environment 24 5.2 Workforce Engagement and Performance 27 Category 6 Operations 6.1 Work Processes 31 6.2 Operational Effectiveness 34 Category 7 Results 7.1 Student Learning and Process Results 36 7.2 Customer-Focused Results 40 7.3 Workforce-Focused Results 42 7.4 Leadership and Governance Results 45 7.5 Budgetary, Financial, and Market Results 48

ELIGIBILITY CERTIFICATION

FORM

Eligibility package due February 22, 2016

Award package due May 3, 2016 (April 26 on CD only)

2016 Eligibility Certification Form Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award

OMB Control No. 0693-0006

Expiration Date: 05/31/2016 Page E-8 of 10

Sites* (U.S. and Foreign) List the city and the state or country.

use “N/A”

(not applicable).

Check one or more.

Employees

Faculty

Staff

Volunteers

(no. or N/A)

Check one.

% of Sales

Revenue

Budget

1400 W. Villaret Blvd., San Antonio, Texas 78224 545

100% Education

Total 1 545 100%

*If your organization has any joint ventures, please call the Baldrige Program at (877) 237-9064, option 3, for guidance

on filling out this form.

**The term workforce refers to all people actively involved in accomplishing the work of an organization. The workforce includes paid employees (e.g., permanent, part-time, temporary, telecommuting, and contract employees supervised by the

organization) and volunteers, as appropriate; it also includes team leaders, supervisors, and managers at all levels.

13. Key Business/Organization Factors

List or briefly describe where necessary the following key business/organization factors (we recommend using

bullets). Please be concise, but be as specific as possible. Provide full names of organizations (i.e., do not use

acronyms). The Baldrige Program uses this information to avoid conflicts of interest when assigning examiners to

your application. Examiners also use this information in their evaluations.

a. Main products and/or services and major markets served (local, regional, national, and international)

Post-secondary educational services to include student support services, career and technical education, liberal arts education, certificates, Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, Associate of Applied Science, and Associate of Arts in Teaching degrees. PAC offers community services such as adult education and English as a second language (ESL).

b. Key competitors (those that constitute 5 percent or more of your competitors)

(1) St. Philips College, (2) San Antonio College, (3) Northwest Vista College, (4) Northeast Lakeview College, (5) Texas A&M University – San Antonio, (6) UTSA, and (7) UT Health Sciences Center.

c. Key customers/users (those that constitute 5 percent or more of your customers/users)

College students, local K-16 feeder schools, transfer institutions, employers and other stakeholders in the south side community of San Antonio.

d. Key suppliers/partners (those that constitute 5 percent or more of your suppliers/partners)

Alamo Community College District Support Services (DSO)

Contracted auxiliary vendors (Follett Bookstore Services, GCA Housekeeping, Dell Computers, Lancer Food Service, etc.)

e. Financial auditor Fiscal year (e.g., October 1–September 30)

Grant Thornton LLP, PO Box 71352, Chicago, IL 60694 September 1 – August 31

f. Parent organization (if your organization is a subunit).

Alamo Community College District September 1 – August 31

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ORGANIZATION CHART

AWARD APPLICATION FORM

(PAGE A-1)

Award package due May 3, 2016 (April 26 on CD only)

2016 Award Application Form Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award

OMB Clearance #0693-0006

Expiration Date: 05/31/2016 Page A-1 of 2

1. Your Organization

Official name Palo Alto College

Mailing address

1400 W. Villaret San Antonio, Texas 78224

2. Award Category and Criteria Used

a. Award category (Check one.)

Manufacturing

Service

Small business. The larger percentage of sales is in (check one) Manufacturing Service

Education

Health care

Nonprofit

b. Criteria used (Check one.)

Business/Nonprofit

Education

Health Care

3. Official Contact Point

Designate a person with in-depth knowledge of the

organization, a good understanding of the application, and the authority to answer inquiries and arrange a site visit, if

necessary. Contact between the Baldrige Program and your

organization is limited to this individual and the alternate

official contact point. If the official contact point changes during the application process, please inform the program.

Mr. Mrs. Ms. Dr.

Name Dr. Mike Flores

Title President

Mailing

address

Same as above

Overnight

mailing address

Same as above (Do not use a P.O.

box number.)

Telephone 210-486-3960

Fax 210-486-9271

E-mail [email protected]

4. Alternate Official Contact Point

Mr. Mrs. Ms. Dr.

Name Leticia De La Rosa


Fax 210-486-9271

E-mail [email protected]

5. Release and Ethics Statements

Release Statement

I understand that this application will be reviewed by

members of the Board of Examiners.

If my organization is selected for a site visit, I agree that the

organization will

host the site visit,

facilitate an open and unbiased examination, and

pay reasonable costs associated with the site visit

(see Award Process Fees on our website [http://

www.nist.gov/baldrige/enter/award_fees.cfm]).

If selected to receive an award, my organization will share nonproprietary information on its successful performance

excellence strategies with other U.S. organizations.

Ethics Statement and Signature of Highest-Ranking Official

I state and attest that

(1) I have reviewed the information provided by my

organization in this award application package.

(2) To the best of my knowledge,

this package contains no untrue statement of a

material fact and

omits no material fact that I am legally permitted to

disclose and that affects my organization’s ethical

and legal practices. This includes but is not limited

to sanctions and ethical breaches.

04/25/16

Signature Date

Mr. Mrs. Ms. Dr.

Printed name Mike Flores

Job title President

Applicant name Dr. Mike Flores

Mailing address Same as above


Fax 210-486-9271

http://www.nist.gov/baldrige/enter/award_fees.cfm

GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND

ABBREVIATIONS

Palo Alto College Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations

G-1

Acronym Definition 4DX Four Disciplines of Execution ACCD Alamo Community Colleges ACES Alamo Colleges Educational Services, the online portal for services at the Alamo

Colleges for student, faculty, and staff

ACPD Alamo Colleges Police Department Ad Hoc Teams Formed as needed to collaborate on problem solving activities or address special

projects AD&D Accidental Death and Dismemberment ADA Americans with Disability Act Alamo The Alamo Colleges Alamo Amigo Alamo College Staff Mentor Program AlamoShare Alamo Colleges Sharepoint ALAS Alamo Colleges Leadership Academy for Success AtD Achieving the Dream AVC Associate Vice Chancellor AVMA American Veterinary Medical Association

Banner Banner system is a web-based system used throughout the Alamo Colleges to monitor student records and fiscal records

BAT Building Action Teams BLS Bureau of Labor Standards BMI Body Mass Index CAP College Action Plan CAT Certified Advisor Training CC Community College CCP College Connection Program CCSSE The Community College Survey of Student Engagement CCSSE LC CCSSE Large Colleges CE Continuing Education Celebración Fundraiser to raise money to support PAC scholarship fund CEO Chief Executive Officer

CISCO Cisco Systems sponsors a line of IT Professional certifications for Cisco products. There are five levels of certification: Entry (CCENT), Associate (CCNA / CCDA), Professional (CCNP / CCDP), Expert (CCIE / CCDE), and recently Architect, as well as eight different paths, Routing & Switching, Design, Network Security, Service Provider, Service Provider Operations, Storage Networking, Voice, Datacenter and Wireless.

CLT College Leadership Team Covey Franklin Covey is a global company specializing in performance improvement. It helps

organizations achieve results that require a change in human behavior. Expertise is in seven areas: Leadership, Execution, Productivity, Trust, Sales Performance, Customer Loyalty, and Education

CPP College Performance Protocol CPR Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation CQI Continuous Quality Improvement

CQIN Continuous Quality Improvement Network


G-2

Cross-Functional Teams Bring different areas together to communicate across Unit lines and make decisions, solve problems, plan events, design and improve processes, create innovations, and provide feedback

CTE Career and Technical Education DACUM Designing A Curriculum DC Dual Credit DCP Dual Credit Program DSO District Support Offices EAP Employee Assistance Program ECHS Early College High School ECO Ethics and Compliance Officer EEOC Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ELI Engage, Listen, and Inform ELP Emerging Leaders Program EMT Emergency Medical Technician EOP Emergency Operations Plan EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Regulations EPE Employee Performance Evaluation ERM Enterprise Risk Management ES Environmental Scan ESL/ESOL English as a Second Language E-Team Executive Team that includes the President, Vice Presidents, Deans, and Directors FAFSA Free Application for Federal Student Aid FERPA The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act FM Financial Management FMLA Family Medical Leave Act FMP Feedback Management Process FOCUS PDCA Continuous Improvement Methodology that includes the following steps: Find,

Organize, Clarify, Understand, Select, Plan, Do, Check, Act FT Full Time FTIC First Time in College GED General Educational Development (GED) tests are a group of four subject tests which,

when passed, certify that the test taker has American or Canadian high school-level academic skills.

Gen Ed General Education GPA Grade Point Average HIP High Impact Practices HR Human Resources HS High School HSI Hispanic-Serving Institution HSPD Homeland Security Presidential Directive ID Identity IEC Institutional Effectiveness Council InT Instructional Technologies IPEDS The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System IR Palo Alto College Office of Institutional Research ISD Independent School District


G-3

IT or ITS Information Technology or Information Technology Services K-12 Public School System, Kindergarten to 12th Grade

Kirkpatrick Kirkpatrick's four levels are designed as a sequence of ways to evaluate training programs. The four levels of Kirkpatrick's evaluation model are as follows: 1.Reaction - what participants thought and felt about the training2.Learning - the resulting increase in knowledge and/or skills, and change in attitudes.3.Behavior - transfer of knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes from classroom to the job4.Results - the final results that occurred because of attendance and participation in atraining program

KMP Knowledge Management ProcessKMS KPI Measurement SystemKPI Key Performance IndicatorLC Learning CommunitiesLO Learning OutcomesLT Long TermMinnie Piper Stevens Award The Piper Professor Award was established by the San Antonio–based Minnie Stevens

Piper Foundation in 1958 to annually recognize outstanding college professors acrossTexas. Selection is made on the basis of nominations; each two and four-year collegeand university in the state may submit only one nominee annually.

Moody Moody Investors Service, bond credit ratingMOU Memorandums of UnderstandingMVV Mission, Vision, and ValuesNAEYC National Association for the Education of Young ChildrenNILIE National Initiative for Leadership and Institutional EffectivenessNIMS National Incident Management SystemNISOD National Institute for Staff and Organizational DevelopmentNLC Northeast Lakeview CollegeNoel Levitz Noel Levitz Student Satisfaction InventoryNSC New Student ConvocationNSO New Student OrientationNVC Northwest Vista CollegeOA Organizational AssessmentOER Open Educational ResourcesOnCampus Weekly Online PublicationOP Organizational ProfileORP Optional Retirement PlanOSHA Occupational Safety and Health Administration RegulationsPAC Palo Alto CollegePACE The Personal Assessment of the College EnvironmentPACfest Palo Alto Official Fiesta EventPAF Performance Appraisal FormPASS Prep for Accuplacer Student SuccessPB Participatory BudgetingPBL Problem-based LearningP-card Procurement CardPCI Payment Card IndustryPDM PAC Design Model


G-4

PEDP Performance Evaluation and Development Process PLANET Professional Landscape Network POC Point of Contact PPE Personal Protection Equipment PRP Performance Review Process PSE PAC Standard of Excellence PSELM PAC Standard of Excellence Leadership Model PT Part Time PTP Progress to Plan PVC Presidents Vice Chancellors QEP Quality Enhancement Plan RAC Resource Allocation Committee RIP Radical Innovation Process ROI Return on Investment ROPD Reallocation of People Process S&P Standard and Poor's investment rating services SAC San Antonio College SACS-COC or SACS Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges SD Strategic Directions SE CCSSE Benchmark: Student Engagement SFA Strategic Focus Area SFI CCSSE Benchmark: Student Faculty Interaction SFL CCSSE Benchmark: Support for Learners SMU St. Mary’s University SOP Standard Operating Procedure SPC Strategic Planning Committee SPP Strategic Planning Process ST Short Term Starfish Award State Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board-Community College State Level Data STEM Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics SWOT Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats TAMU-SA Texas A&M University - San Antonio TAPE Texas Award for Performance Excellence TEA Texas Education Agency TEC Texas Education Code THECB Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board TMS Talent Management System TRS Texas Retirement System UAP Unit Action Plan UM Unit Managers

ORGANIZATIONAL PROFILE

Palo Alto College Preface: Organizational Profile

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Organizational Profile P.1 Organizational Description Palo Alto College (PAC) was established in March 1983 and is one of the five Alamo Colleges (referred to as District) located in and serving San Antonio, Texas and the surrounding area. In addition to PAC, Northeast Lakeview College, Northwest Vista College, San Antonio College, and St. Philips College comprise the group and are independently accredited. PAC is a publicly funded, two-year community college serving the needs of predominantly Hispanic students, many of whom are from low income families and educationally underserved. The service area is mainly the San Antonio Southside, but it also includes the counties of Bexar, Atascosa, Guadalupe, Medina and Wilson. Classes began at PAC in September 1985 with enrollment of 231 students and by Spring of 2016, enrollment had grown to 8,960 students. PAC’s educational outreach extends beyond the campus with courses offered in several off-site locations. We are a two-year degree and certificate granting institution with more than 52 degrees and 42 certificate offerings. Community colleges are chartered to serve the communities in which they are located as a higher education alternative to four-year university systems. They serve as stepping stones for students to accomplish their educational goals, which often include transfer to one of those universities. The San Antonio Economic Development Foundation indicates that San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the nation with 1.4 million people, of which 63.2% are Hispanic. Of all students enrolled in post-secondary education in the city, 22.9% are enrolled in one of the Alamo Colleges. We operate in a challenging environment and our faculty and staff continually operate with a Can-do Spirit in accordance with our values. Our complete focus is on Students First and we face our challenges straight on and develop the most creative and innovative solutions possible. Much of our success is directly related to the extraordinary effort and loyalty of our workforce. We have been using the Baldrige Criteria to guide us for a number of years and were a recipient of the Texas Award for Performance Excellence (TAPE) in 2015. P.1a Organizational Environment (1) Educational and Service Offerings - PAC is an open-door institution that understands that students come to the College with various goals and at different levels of preparedness. As indicated in Figure OP-1, our main educational and service offerings are designed to meet the educational goals and service needs of our students. We deliver these services through semester, flex, weekend, and evening courses using the various means shown. (2) Vision and Mission – Our Value Proposition - “Distinct Programs, Early Access, with a Focus on the Arts and Sciences” - reflects our commitment to the community we

serve. Founded on the belief that education is the central element in improving lives, PAC continues to be an institution focused on students and maintaining high academic standards. This belief is reflected in our Guiding Principles - the Mission, Vision, and Value (MVV) statements - as well as our Core Competencies that support them, all of which are shown in Figure OP-2. The MVV help define our culture and encompass the width and breath of PAC’s commitment, passion and obligation. Our Mission captures the essence of our passion, beliefs, and driving forces; the Values guide PAC’s student-focused and collaborative nature which strives to take into account cultural differences as well as contemporary academic needs; our shared Vision expresses the essence of what we strive to become. Our faculty, staff, and students developed the MVV in a major revision effort that occurred during our 2014 strategic plan development process and we played a significant role in the effort by ACCD to create a set of District Shared Values. We ensure that our defined core competencies relate to our mission through the Strategic Planning Process (SPP), during which the MVV guide development of specific Strategic Directions and the Core Competencies required to attain those directions. PAC’s commitment to excellence is further evidenced through its focus on the Baldrige Criteria; participation in the nationwide Achieving the Dream (AtD) initiative, whose stated goal is “to increase the success of community college students, particularly low-income and students of color”; and the Continuous Quality Improvement Network (CQIN) whose

Offerings Importance Delivery Methods Degree Seeking - programs for students seeking an AA, AS, AAT, or AAS degree

49.8% of students indicate this is their goal

CI; DE; InT; LLC; LC; A&CL

Transfer - programs for students who plan to transfer to a four-year institution

35.9% of students indicate this is their goal

CI; DE; InT; LLC; LC; A&CL

Workforce Development - programs providing a certificate or other customized training

2.8% of students indicate this is their goal; 3506 enrollments including CE

CI; InT; LLC; A&CL (focus on tech programs)

Community Programs - for underprepared students in college-level Math, Reading, or Writing

59.6% of students; basic skills development, literacy programs, ESL/ESOL

CI; InT; LLC; A&CL; Advocacy (specialized tutoring and support)

Student Success - programs and services to enrich and support learning and access

Supports student completion of all key programs

Direct contact and interaction with students

Figure OP-1 Educational and Service Offerings CI = Classroom Instruction; DE = Distance Education; InT = Instructional Technologies; LLC = Labs & Learning Centers; LC = Learning Communities; A&CL = Active & Collaborative Learning


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goal is to help colleges attain performance excellence through focused learning of best practices from the business world and translating them to a higher education environment. (3) Workforce Profile – The profile of our workforce is shown in Figure OP-3. This figure indicates that our workforce is highly diverse and well-educated and shows the level of District support that is provided on campus. The College represents the community and its student composition by approximating the demographics of the underserved Southside. Teaching faculty are required to meet the certification requirements associated with accreditation set by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). No bargaining units exist, however, Faculty Senate and Staff Council provide a

level of bargaining power and support for College initiatives. These groups are part of a larger, unified District faculty senate and staff council. The key elements that engage our employees in accomplishing our mission and shared vision are shown in Figure OP-4. Various workforce segments have additional requirements as shown in Figure OP-5. Figure 5.1-2 shows key employee benefits. Health, special health, and safety procedures relative to safety requirements are discussed in Area 5.1b(1), including ergonomic and facility accessibility. A wellness center provides fitness/wellness opportunities for our students and our workforce.

(4) Assets - PAC encompasses more than 465,750 square feet on 126 acres. San Jacinto Hall opened in January 1991, doubling the original classroom space on campus. An 88,000 square-foot Natatorium/Gymnasium Complex opened in 1992 in partnership with the City of San Antonio. The George Ozuna Jr. Library and Academic Center opened in 1997, adding one-third to the existing square footage. In 2005, Sabine Hall opened, and in 2008 the Veterinary Technology Building and the Performing Arts Center opened. The Performing Arts Center houses a 400-seat theatre, speech and drama classrooms, dance and recording studios, a recital hall, and a scene shop. In 2009, Brazos Hall opened with biology, physics and geology classrooms, computer labs, Allied Health, and EMT. Unique facilities are also afforded to students, such as the aviation classrooms adjacent to the runway at historic Stinson Municipal Airport. Key technology and equipment consists of computers, servers, printers, copiers, scanners, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), phone systems, and wireless Internet availability throughout campus for all employees, students, and guests. Specialized technologies are available for students in fine arts programs, engineering and science labs. Additional provisions include: specialized software for students with disabilities such as Ease Reader that assists with reading books; Jaws 11 and FS Reader that assist with reading text; Inspiration that assists with writing; and Merlin Enhanced Vision hardware that assists with viewing text by enlarging it.. We use BANNER Enterprise Information System to manage student and financial aid data, finance and HR modules. (5) Regulatory Requirements - SACSCOC is the body that provides accreditation to PAC. We initially received full accreditation in 1989 and were reaccredited in 2002 and 2012.

Mission* To inspire, empower, and educate our community for leadership and success

Vision* The Alamo Colleges will be the best in the nation in Student Success and Performance Excellence.

Values* The members of Alamo Colleges are committed to building individual and collective character through the following set of shared values in order to fulfill our vision and mission.

• Students First • Respect for All • Community-engaged • Collaboration • Can-do Spirit • Data-informed

Core Competencies 1) Student-Centered Approach - Reflects the commitment for PAC staff and faculty to engage and help students to succeed, often by way of one-on-one interactions. 2) Creating Bridges to the Community - Highlights PAC’s commitment to the community through outreach.

3) Early Access to Higher Education - Includes our dual credit, early college high school, and summer camp programs. 4) Serving Diverse Communities - PAC serves many different student populations, including first time in college, first generation, socioeconomically disadvantaged, and many other students through a wide array of interventions. 5) Learning-Centeredness - Learning-centeredness is practiced among faculty, staff, and students as a means to continuously improve, acquire knowledge, and act upon feedback provided from one another. Figure OP-2 Guiding Principles and Core Competencies

Faculty and Staff Demographics Full Time Administrators - 9; Professional - 74;

Classified - 63; Faculty - 107 Part Time Faculty - 126 Staff - 98

Faculty Ratios Full Time - 69.1% Part Time - 30.9%

Gender Female 53.9%, Male 46.1% Ethnicity Hispanic = 49.9%; White = 35.1%; African-

American = 5.9%; Asian = 1.6%; Other = 7.5% Education PhD = 10.7%; Master = 70.5%; Bachelor = 16.9% Work Study 62 District Staff on-site 226 Figure OP-3 Workforce Profile

Engagement Elements Work that Contributes to Student Success Collaborative Work Environment

Empowerment - a Role in Decision-making

Learning and Development Opportunities

Figure OP-4 Workforce Engagement Factors


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Our SACS accreditation is independent of the other Alamo Colleges and the District, ensuring that we manage responsibility for the factors considered in accreditation. In addition, the Veterinary Technology program is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) for educating veterinary technicians, the Landscape Horticultural Science program is accredited by the Professional Landcare Network, and the Ray Ellison Family Center is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). We operate within the Texas Education Code (TEC) monitored through the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), which regulates contact hour funding, common courses, and the approval of new programs. THECB also provides comparative demographic and financial data and monitors institutional effectiveness. We also operate under specific FERPA, ADA, OSHA, EPA, and EEOC requirements. P.1b Organizational Relationships (1) Organizational Structure - The ACCD Chancellor is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and reports to a nine-member, community elected Board. By state statute, the Board is the governing body that sets policy consistent with the Alamo Colleges mission. The Board appoints the Chancellor, levies property taxes, and approves the budget. The Board is the final authority on all policies that govern the five Colleges. College Presidents report to the Chancellor and serve as CEOs of their College. The District consolidates support for all of the colleges in the following areas: Finance, HR, Facilities, Acquisitions, Campus Police, and IT (a shared approach with PAC). (2) Customers - Students and other key customer groups are shown in Figure OP-6 along with their key requirements. To best serve our students, we segment them based on education goal and other target demographic factors. More than half of our students are academically underprepared and require developmental education (pre-college level mathematics, writing, and reading instruction), with 46.5% placed in developmental math. We provide support programs and tutoring for the underprepared students; other special services include counseling for veterans and international students, as

well as support services for the disabled. 18% of students are full-time and 82% part-time; 61% female and 39% male; 69% Hispanic; 21% White; 3% African-American; and 37% economically disadvantaged. Graduation and transfer are strongly encouraged and transfer partnerships exist with 28 universities, but most graduates go to Texas A&M University - San Antonio (TAMU-SA) or the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). (3) Suppliers and Partners - Partners, collaborators, and suppliers (Figure OP-7) are important to PAC for four reasons. First, partners are often directly involved in the delivery of services to students and other customers; second, our people devote substantial time and effort working with partners and collaborators to achieve short- or long-term objectives; third, the products and services that we procure can directly impact the quality of education we provide and how effective we are in delivering that education; and fourth, non-labor expenses represent a significant component of our costs. For these reasons, we have established a number of partnerships and collaborative relationships and identified key suppliers of vital products and services. Partners – those organizations that we have a strategic alliance with, have a direct role in supporting delivery of education services, and for which there are reciprocating relationships, or dual requirements.

Segment Requirement All Employees

• Technical support • Communication • Safe workplace • Professional, leadership, and career

development All Faculty • Academic freedom Adjunct Faculty • Relationship with team

• Faculty Leadership Part-Time

• Inclusion • Relationship with team

District Employees • Communication and engagement Figure OP-5 Workforce Segments and Requirements

Customer Groups Key Requirements

Market Segments • High School Students • Veterans • Workforce Development

• Focused Recruitment • Information About PAC • Easy Access to Services

Student Segments All Students

• High Quality Instruction • Financial Aid • Communication • Easy Access to Faculty & Academic

Support Services • Safety and Security

Transfer Seeking

• Transfer Articulation • Degree Completion Info • Academic Challenge

Degree/Certificate Seeking • Degree Completion Info • Academic Challenges

Underprepared • Development Programs Distance Education • Online Education and Support Services

• Technology Orientation Other Customers

Feeder Schools; ECHS, Transfer Schools; Employers

See Figure OP-7

Community

• Access • Citizenship Skills for Students • High Quality Education

Figure OP-6 Customer Groups and Requirements


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Collaborators – organizations that we work with to achieve short- or long-term objectives or support initiatives that benefit stakeholder or community groups. Key Suppliers – those organizations from whom we purchase goods and services of significance or who play a role in delivering services directly to our students. P.2 Organizational Situation P.2a Competitive Environment (1) Competitive Position - We operate within a competitive-cooperative environment, particularly regarding our relationship with our four sister colleges. Students have the choice of attending these or any of the four-year institutions in the area or beyond. The other four Alamo Colleges represent a modest level of competition for attracting incoming students. Local public, four-year competitors are TAMU-SA, UTSA and the University of Texas Health Science Center (UTHSC). Other competitors include local, private, four-year universities such as Our Lady of the Lake University, St. Mary’s University, Trinity University, and University of the Incarnate Word. (2) Competitiveness Changes – The major changes in competitiveness revolved around the growth of higher education options for students. Additional online providers continue to enter the market and provide appeal to potential students, along with the additional educational services being offered by existing four-year schools in the area. Another factor that threatens to impact enrollment in the future is a growing perception among families and high school students that the value of higher education is not as great as it once was,

in view of the high costs involved and job opportunities that may afford higher income levels that do not necessarily require a college degree, particularly in the technology field. (3) Comparative Data - Our primary sources of comparative data are shown in Figure OP-8. P.2b Strategic Context Strategic challenges and advantages are shown in Figure OP-9.

P.2c Performance Improvement System A focus on performance excellence and organizational learning is embedded in our culture and is reinforced through a series of processes designed to help us achieve the PAC Standard of Excellence, which we define as the top performance among the Alamo Colleges and top quartile performance against our national and state benchmarks. The PAC Standard of Excellence Leadership Model (PSELM), Figure OP-10, reflects our leadership and performance improvement approach and provides a strong focus on improvement and innovation. This is accomplished by integrating the Strategic Planning Process (SPP) with the KPI Measurement System (KMS), Unit Planning Process (UPP), and Employee Performance Evaluation (EPE) Process. These processes select, deploy and align our Strategic Directions (SDs), Goals, College Action Plans (CAPs), KPIs and Targets throughout the organization and link them to Unit and individual actions and goals.

The SPP creates SDs and CAPs in each of our four Strategic Focus Areas (SFAs): Student Success; Culture of Inclusiveness; Faculty and Staff Excellence; and Resource Effectiveness. The KMS process identifies the KPIs and Targets that align with the SDs and CAPs and allows for tracking performance at the organizational level. The UPP

P/C/S Role Requirements

Partners and Collaborators

Feeder and Early College High Schools

• Provide students • Shared processes for

access, data, info on students

• Distinct programs • Early access • Easy access • Engagement

Transfer Schools

• Provide input on requirements

• Receive students • Sign agreements

• Articulation agreements • Engagement • Qualified students

Employers and Advisory Committees

• Provide needs info • Provide students • Hire graduates

• High Quality programs • Skilled graduates

Key Suppliers ACCD

• Provide finance, legal, HR, IT, police, and facilities services

• Collaboration • Student focus • Efficiency and

Effectiveness Services Providers

• Bookstore, cafeteria, housekeeping

• Student focus • High quality service • Shared MVV

Technology Providers

• Technology solutions • Upgrade and purchase

planning

• Expertise • High quality services • Responsiveness • Innovative products

Figure OP-7 Partners, Collaborators and Key Suppliers

Data Type Source of Data Student Satisfaction CCSSE; Noel Levitz Student and Education Program Performance

IPEDS; ACCD; THECB Accountability System

Financial Performance ACCD; Moody; S&P Workforce PACE, BLS Leadership PACE Figure OP-8 Comparative Data Sources

Strategic Advantages 1 - Affordability and Value 2 - Distinct Programs 3 - Early Access 4 - Arts and Sciences Foundation Strategic Challenges 1 - Possibility of additional reductions in state funding 2 - High percentage of underprepared students 3 - Competition from other higher education institutions 4 - High school misalignment with colleges Figure OP-9 Strategic Advantages and Challenges


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serves to identify aligned UAPs, KPIs and Targets at the Unit level and provides for monitoring performance and tracking progress toward implementation of plans and achievement of goals. The EPE process identifies commitments on the part of the workforce to achieve goals relative to their job responsibilities that align with the UAPs and goals. The PSELM approach includes reviews of performance and creation of improvement plans at the College level, the Unit level, the individual level, and the key process level. Performance of the College as a whole is monitored through the Performance Review Process that includes reviews of KPIs and status of CAP implementation. Performance at the Unit level is monitored through UAP reviews that are held within each Unit. Likewise, Unit managers work with their individual staff members to track progress on their actions and goals informally throughout the year and formally as part of the EPE process. At the process level, a CQI culture using FOCUS PDCA has been created to inspire process improvement and innovation. Process measures are established and reviewed to ensure that process performance is stable and to identify when process improvements are needed. We also complete a Baldrige-based assessment annually, which provides an overall evaluation of the approaches used to lead and manage organizational activities and provides feedback that is integrated into the SPP. This approach focuses PAC on performance improvement and innovation continuously over the course of the year. On a daily basis, FOCUS PDCA efforts allow process owners and Unit managers to understand performance of their processes and design

improvements and innovations as needed and as opportunities arise. PTP reviews using KPI, CAP, and UAP updates and financial and quality reports, permit a focus on broader performance requirements. On an annual basis, the Baldrige assessments, the SPP, and the EPE allow an emphasis on longer-term requirements needed to sustain and enhance our level of excellence and individual performance improvement.

Figure'OP*10'Palo'Alto'College'Standard'of'Excellence'Leadership'Model'

Strategic'Planning'

Challenges,'Opportuni@es,'Advantages'

Core'Competencies'

'Guiding'Principles'

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Strategic'Focus'Areas'

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Performance!Reviews!and!Results!

PAC'Standard'of'Excellence'Organiza@on'Assessment'

PAC'Standard'of'Excellence'Priori@es'for'

Ac@on'

Refresh

Strategic''Plan'

Strategic'Direc@ons'and'

Goals'

College'Ac@on'Plans'

'Unit'Ac@on'

Plans'!

KPI'Measurement'

System'

College'Performance'Protocol'

College'KPIs'

Unit'KPIs'!

Individual'Performance'Management'

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Individual'Goals'and'Ac@ons'

Learning'and'Development'

Opera@ons'Management'

Work'Systems'and'Processes'

FOCUS'PDCA'Applica@on'

Improvement'and'Innova@on''

RESPONSES ADDRESSING ALL CRITIERA ITEMS (CATEGORY 1-7)

Palo Alto College 2016 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award

1

Category 1 Leadership 1.1 Senior Leadership 1.1a Vision, Values and Mission (1) Vision and Values – The PAC Standard of Excellence Leadership Model (PSELM) (Figure OP-10) is our leadership approach and forms the basis for deployment of the Mission, Vision, and Values (MVV - Figure OP-2) to all leaders, the workforce, partners, key suppliers and customers. A number of leadership teams implement the model on a daily basis and these are shown in Figure 1.1-1. Senior leaders set the organization’s MVV during the Developing step of the SPP. Each winter the College Leadership Team (CLT) meets to develop the strategic plan and review PAC's Guiding Principles, which include the Mission Statement, the Vision, and the Values. While these Guiding Principles tend to endure over time they are reviewed annually and are adjusted as needed based on changing priorities. During 2015 strategy development, for example, the MVV were revised to better align with the District and to establish greater focus on the PSE. The MVV are reviewed with the District periodically, discussed at leadership team meetings throughout the year, and routinely reinforced at daily "Check-in" and through all the methods shown in Figure 1.1-2. The MVV are prominently displayed throughout the campus in offices and public areas and are documented in the PAC Catalog and on the PAC Website for more widespread deployment to the faculty and staff, students and other customers, and stakeholder groups. Faculty, staff, and students are introduced to the MVV during orientation, and leadership has integrated the values into both the faculty and staff evaluation processes to ensure full deployment of these important principles. In the staff process, for example, individuals are evaluated on a set of General Performance Measures that include Customer Service (Students First and Community-engaged); Teamwork and Teambuilding (Collaboration); Initiative (Can-do Spirit); Leadership (Respect for All); and Organization, Planning, and Problem Solving (Data- informed). In this way, the Values are constantly reinforced and the staff are mentored on how to improve their performance in these critical areas on a regular basis. The faculty evaluation process also addresses the Values as part its process, in particular Students First. Partners, collaborators and key suppliers are introduced to these statements during meetings with staff, and all

stakeholders are exposed to the MVV in various publications and communications venues. Senior leaders model the values in their interactions with the workforce, students, the community, partners, collaborators and suppliers to demonstrate their personal commitment to the values and provide further support for the formal deployment tools. This is accomplished by publicly recognizing the faculty and staff for their outstanding work in support of students (Students First), supporting community-related activities (Community Engaged), and personally pursuing the PSE in all that they do (Can-Do Spirit). Leaders are also evaluated on their performance like other staff, which includes how well they live the values. (2) Promoting Legal and Ethical Behavior – Senior leaders demonstrate their commitment to legal and ethical behavior by doing what is right at all times and by personally promoting an environment that fosters, requires, and results in legal and ethical behavior. The Alamo Colleges Ethics and Compliance Department supports PAC's efforts in this area by designating an ethics and compliance officer charged with operating and monitoring the compliance program; developing policies and procedures and a Code of Conduct that promotes responsible and ethical behavior; educating and training our employees on the benefits of making ethical decisions; providing a medium for our employees, students and citizens to submit anonymous reporting without the fear of retaliation; taking immediate action in disciplining ethics and compliance violations; auditing and monitoring operations in an effort to detect illegal or improper activities; and taking corrective action and implementing internal controls to avoid recurrence of previous offenses. The PAC leadership approach for legal and ethical behavior includes: the Chancellor’s Policy Clarifications; the Alamo Colleges Ethics Handbook; required annual on-line compliance and ethics training; Title IX training for the workforce and students; an annual assessment as part of the performance evaluation process; an ethics hotline; an investigation process and review venue for reporting and responding to perceived ethical violations; and open lines of communication for asking questions and sharing concerns. Senior leaders support, model and enforce the information contained in the Chancellor’s Policy Clarifications and the Alamo Colleges Ethics Handbook, which represents our formal policy that outlines requirements and expectations for compliance and ethical behavior, identifies reporting methods,

Team Members Function Frequency PVC Chancellor, Vice Chancellors, College

Presidents Maintain alignment between District and College operations; discuss matters of District-wide importance

Weekly

Vice Presidents President and Vice Presidents Make key decisions; discuss critical issues; review performance; address strategic direction

Bi-monthly

Executive Team (E-Team)

President, VPs, Deans, Directors, Faculty and Staff Representatives

Strategic plan review; performance review; operational planning; communicate on issues of importance; reinforce MVV

Weekly

College Leadership Team (CLT)

E-Team plus Department Chairs and Leads, and representatives for Students, Other Customers, Suppliers

Strategic Plan development; KPI and Target development; PTP Review Process implementation; Participatory Budgeting, process improvement, leadership development, communicate on issues of importance, reinforce MVV

Bi-monthly

Figure 1.1-1 Leadership Team Structure


2

and establishes consequences for failure to meet the standards. Senior leaders invite and encourage frank, two-way communications with all stakeholders through the Engage, Listen, and Inform (ELI) system shown in Figure 1.1-4, and have established methods for people to pass a question, concern, or suspected breach of ethical behavior to senior leaders or our Ethics and Compliance Officer (ECO), who ensures that a strong focus is established in this area. (3) Creating a Successful Organization – Senior leaders have created an environment for achievement of the mission, improvement of organizational performance, performance leadership, and organizational and personal learning through development and deployment of the PSELM. All components of the PSELM are focused on mission achievement, particularly the Strategic Focus Areas (SFAs); Strategic Plan; College Performance Protocol (CPP); Work Systems and Processes; and the PSE Work Culture. Similarly, the PSELM fosters organizational performance improvement through development of Strategic Directions (SDs), Goals, College Action Plans (CAPs) and Unit Action Plans (UAPs); Performance Reviews; Process Improvement and Innovation; and Individual Goals and Actions. Performance leadership is addressed as a result of the PSE (Baldrige-based) Organization Assessment (OA), which includes comparisons to competitors and benchmarks. Organizational learning is created through

Performance Reviews and Results and the OA, and personal learning through individual Learning and Development activities, all of which produce the PSE Priorities for Action. Senior leaders have also created a workforce culture that promotes a positive experience for students and other customers and fosters strong engagement. Most of our Values place a strong focus in this area - Students First, Respect for All, Community-engaged, Collaboration, and Can-do Spirit - and each of these point in the direction of promoting satisfaction and engagement of our students and other customers. In addition, Empowering Students for Success and Creating and Sustaining a Culture of Inclusiveness are SFAs and are emphasized to the workforce through the PSELM, the SDs and Goals, and our measurement system (from the CPP KPIs down to Unit KPIs) also focuses on student learning, success and their satisfaction. Our e-newsletters, OnCampus and Alumni and Friends, spotlight employees and the extraordinary effort they put forth to serve students, and customer comments are often posted on the intranet identifying positive experiences that customers have had with our people. Senior leaders create an environment for innovation and intelligent risk taking, achievement of SDs and Goals, and organizational agility by promoting empowerment throughout the organization, providing timely information, and maintaining an organizational structure that is conducive to efficient decision-making at the point of greatest impact. Senior leaders have created an environment that embraces change and all staff are empowered and encouraged to generate improvements and innovations within a structured approach where implementation is authorized when other components of the organization are unaffected. If the impact is more widespread, proposals are brought to the CLT and the E-Team for intelligent risk assessment and decision, with the E-Team exercising final authority. Similarly, senior leaders have empowered managers to identify actions and goals at the Unit and individual levels to address the SDs and organization-wide CAPs. Senior leaders and managers conduct progress-to-plan reviews to evaluate progress and make adjustments where needed. This promotes organizational agility by providing opportunity for modification on a frequent and scheduled basis. To further development of innovations, leadership has put in place the Radical Innovation Process (RIP) which provides a methodology for intelligence risk taking. RIP (Figure 1.1-3) includes the following three phases: Discovery, which includes internal and external data inputs such as the environmental scan, SWOT analysis, KPI results, and census data that identify opportunities for the institution and an early stage risk/reward assessment; Incubation, which includes a proposal for more detailed assessment of opportunities that are chosen for further development and typically includes a Proof of Concept, ROI, Metrics, alignment with the Strategic Plan,

Method of Deployment

Stakeholder Group

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Part

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Supp

liers

Col

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Stud

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Orientations * * * * Job/Service Description * Strategic Plan * * * * * Daily "Check-in" * Code of Conduct * * * * CLT * * * * * PSE Leadership Model * * * * * Core Competencies * College Performance Protocol * * Performance Reviews * Meeting Agendas * * * Team Activity * * * * * Reward and Recognition * * * * Town Hall Meetings * * Convocations * * Faculty Meetings * Formal Contact * * * Student Catalog * Facility Signage * * * * * Marketing Materials * * * * * OnCampus eNewsletter * * * * * Alumni and Friends eNewsletter * * Learning/Development Events * Employee Development Day * Faculty Senate/Staff Council * Unit/Division Meetings * Figure 1.1-2 PAC Methods to Deploy MVV


3

sustainability, and feasibility; and Acceleration for those opportunities deemed viable, which includes implementation for a defined time period and evaluation of the incubation which determines if the program should be institutionalized or discontinued. This approach has been most recently applied to the development and implementation of the ECHS Program.

Unit Owner

Senior leaders are also involved in succession planning and development of future organizational leaders through identification of high potential individuals in performance evaluations; involving high potential employees in leadership activities; nomination and selection of individuals for promotions; and through participation in leadership development initiatives, particularly the Alamo Colleges Leadership Academy for Success (ALAS) and the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP). ALAS is a nine-month leadership development program designed to prepare high performing individuals for future senior leadership roles at PAC and throughout the District. It serves to provide participants personal and professional growth and new knowledge to effectively lead within the Alamo Colleges and in their respective areas of work. The objective is to provide definition and understanding in four leadership imperatives and their qualities: Inspire Trust; Clarify Purpose; Align Systems; and Unleash Talent. The E-Team chooses two to five people from different Units to participate in the program annually. ELP is designed to prepare high potential employees for leadership positions of greater responsibility by giving them the necessary mindset, skill sets, and tools to make that possible. The program is six-months in duration with ALAS graduates serving as mentors. Participants are nominated by their supervisor and selected by the President. We also identify individuals to participate in the leadership development programs sponsored by the Southside, Hispanic, and Women's Chambers of Commerce. 1.1b. Communication and Organizational Performance (1) Communication – Senior leaders communicate with and engage the workforce, students, and other customers and encourage direct, two-way communications throughout the organization by means of the ELI system, which contains a wide variety of communication methods as shown in Figure 1.1-4. This process begins with the recruiting and hiring

process when the President interviews potential new hires and establishes a relationship with them. He also invites and encourages all employees to bring any issue to his attention at any time. To support this invitation, senior leaders have an open door policy to facilitate direct engagement and encourage use of e-mail to make direct contact. A key component of the ELI System is "Check-in", a method by which members of the leadership team meet in the morning to go over the key activities and issues for the day. Information is shared and then cascaded down throughout the organization by those in attendance. In addition to formal communication methods, senior leaders also use informal approaches such as visiting work centers, celebrations, and social interactions to pass information to the workforce and hear about concerns. Several methods are used to communicate key decisions and the need for organizational change to the workforce. If the decision or change requirement relates to the strategic direction of the organization in the context of strategic planning and budgeting, senior leaders use the systematic strategy deployment component of the SPP to communicate strategies and goals and align Unit and individual actions. Senior leaders also meet with the workforce to communicate this information and often follow up with e-mail messages and intranet announcements as progress is made. Other decisions and change requirements made are communicated to the workforce, students and stakeholders using Town Hall meetings, Convocations and newsletters. Senior leaders take an active role in motivating the workforce by fully engaging with them through their visits to work centers and meetings which bring various workforce groups together with leadership. In addition, leaders focus on the key factors that drive engagement and satisfaction to develop methods to promote high performance. For example, one of the key factors for the workforce is to have a role in decision-making. Therefore, senior leaders promote delegation of authority, have instituted methods to encourage their participation in making decisions such as Participatory Budgeting, and allow decision making at the point of greatest impact on customer satisfaction. Improvement teams and individuals are empowered to identify and implement improvement opportunities, and all faculty and staff members are empowered to make decisions to resolve complaints on the spot. Managers empower their staff to make decisions such as scheduling and action planning, and faculty and staff members are routinely involved in most other Unit decision-making. In addition, senior leaders strive to afford the workforce ownership in PAC success through the empowerment initiatives in place and by generating the understanding that everyone’s responsibilities lead to our core objective of achieving the PSE. All employees understand their contribution to overall organization success because they have

Discovery

• Internal Inputs

• External Inputs

Incubation

• Proof of Concept

• ROI• Metrics

Acceleration

• Implemen-tation

• Evaluation

Knowledge Management

Figure 1.1-3 Radical Innovation: Engaging in Intelligent Risk


4

“line of sight” from their individual responsibilities to the organization’s objectives. The PSE work culture has instilled a strong sense of pride throughout PAC and the vision and values provide a set of expectations that all aspire to realize. Senior leaders are also directly involved in the employee recognition program, presenting or otherwise participating in events where individuals are recognized with awards such as NISOD, Employee of the Month, and honoring those who have received Degrees and Certificates at Convocations and at others times throughout the year. (2) Focus on Action – Senior leaders create a focus on action that will achieve our objectives, improve performance, enable innovation and intelligent risk taking, and attain the vision through the PSELM, which produces the SFAs, SDs, Goals, CAPs, and UAPs, KPIs, and Progress to Plan Reviews all of which are aligned and integrated to produce higher levels of performance as we seek to achieve the PSE. PAC leaders are assigned accountability for CAPs, thereby serving as "champions" in those areas. As such, they play a pivotal role in overseeing the steps needed to deploy and communicate plans, track progress, and ensure that we maintain our focus

throughout the plan year. In addition, senior leaders have led the implementation of the "Four Disciplines of Execution" (4DX) to drive development of "Wildly Important Goals" or WIGs and actions designed to achieve those goals. 4DX is a proven set of practices that have been tested and refined over many years, and has produced excellent results when individuals and organizations adhere to the disciplines. Even in the face of the "Whirlwind", the urgent activity required to keep things going on a day-to-day basis that often drains the organization of the time and energy to execute its strategy, the disciplines have proven to be successful. They include: • Focusing on the Wildly Important • Acting on Lead Measures; • Keeping a Compelling Scoreboard; and • Creating a Cadence of Accountability.

We believe we can produce breakthrough results, even when executing a strategy that requires a significant change in behavior, through the application of this concept and have achieved full deployment. Our College WIG is to increase degrees and certificates earned by our students, and 4DX

Method What Who Frequency PVC Meetings* MVV, strategic direction, critical information Chancellor and College Presidents Weekly Presentations to Board Program/ student highlights, best practices, CPP College leadership and Board Quarterly Vice President Meetings* Strategic direction, key decisions, critical issues President and VPs Bi-Monthly Executive Team Meetings* Strategic planning, operational planning, important

information President, VPs, Deans, Directors, Faculty, Staff Weekly

Check-in Events, activities, issues, status All workforce Daily College Leadership Team Meetings*

Leadership development, process improvement, important information, strategic planning, including Participatory Budgeting and Resource Allocation

President, VPs, Deans, Directors, Department Chairs, Department Leads, Faculty, Staff, Students, Suppliers

Bi-Monthly

Councils and Committees* Key Decisions, minutes posted on AlamoShare President, VPs, Deans, Directors, Department Chairs, Department Leads, Faculty, Staff, Students

Most Monthly

Department/Discipline Meetings*

Progress to plans, news, recognition, best practices, MVV, expectations

Department Chairs, Faculty Monthly

Workforce Performance Evaluations*

Performance and expectations, learning and development opportunities, values, goals

Staff Yearly

New Employee Orientation* MVV, seeking excellence culture, history, ethics and compliance

District and College Leadership, New Employees Ongoing

Town Hall Meetings* CPP, strategic plan, budget, general information, items of interest

Workforce Semi-Annual

Strategic Planning Retreat* ES, SWOT Analysis, MVV, SDs, CAPs, KPIs CLT Yearly Convocation* Annual directions, MVV, recognition, development Workforce and Students Semi-annual Employee Development Meeting*

Thematic organizational knowledge, best practices sharing

Workforce and Students Yearly

Budget Planning Meetings* Review of proposed current budget Workforce and Students Ongoing Faculty Senate Meetings* Organizational knowledge and best practices Faculty Monthly Staff Council Meetings* Organizational knowledge and best practices Staff Monthly New Student and ECHS Convocation/Orientation*

Information sharing Students, Community Semi-Annual/Yearly

Faculty Development Seminars*

Thematic organizational knowledge, best practices sharing for faculty

Deans, Chairs, Leads, Staff, Faculty Ongoing

Policies, Procedures, and Guidelines

Standards, organizational knowledge and learning, best practices

Workforce, Students, Suppliers, Community, Alumni

Ongoing

PAC Catalog College resources, general info with emphasis on degree plans

Faculty, Staff, Students, Community Ongoing

OnCampus and Alumni and Friends eNewsletters

Campus news, upcoming events, important information, employee spotlight

Workforce, Students, Suppliers, Community, Alumni

Weekly

AlamoShare Access Folders Organizational knowledge Workforce Ongoing Website/Social Media Organization knowledge, resources, college

information Workforce, Students, Suppliers, Community, Alumni

Ongoing

Figure 1.1-4 ELI Communication Methods * Two-way communications (in bold)


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actions and standards to drive this outcome have been established across the institution (see Area 3.2b(1). Senior leaders create and balance value for students, other customers, and stakeholders by use of multiple methods to understand the needs and expectations of these groups through the VOC process described in Item 3.1. During planning, senior leaders evaluate those needs and expectations, identify where requirements of different customers and stakeholders conflict, establish priorities based upon the need to maximize value, and reflect those priorities in their planning decisions. 1.2 Governance and Societal Responsibilities 1.2a Organizational Governance (1) Governance System – The District is governed by a nine-member Board of Trustees, the members of which represent nine different districts in the San Antonio area and are elected by community members of those districts to serve for a term of six years. District and PAC governance systems and internal controls are integrated to ensure accountability within the College and within our place in the District. Figure 1.2-1 outlines key governance requirements and actions taken. This system is reviewed annually by the District Board, Chancellor and PAC leaders. We present performance updates to the Board on a quarterly basis.

(2) Performance Evaluation – The Chancellor evaluates the performance of our President based upon pre-defined expectations, including our accomplishments and performance throughout the year and the CPP KPIs. In addition, a comprehensive appraisal of the President and other senior leaders is done annually using the Performance Evaluation and Development Process (PEDP), which consists of two components. First is Performance Planning, where the leader and supervisor define major job responsibilities and agree on performance goals and standards for the rating period. Second is the Performance Evaluation during which the supervisor evaluates the extent to which the leader's work meets the expectations that were established at the outset. Leaders are rated on a scale of 1 to 9 for each of the standards. Where there

are improvement opportunities, development plans are created, documented, and acted on so leaders can enhance their leadership skills and abilities. The evaluation standards throughout the system are aligned with the CPP KPIs. These performance evaluations are used to: determine the extent to which the leader's performance meets expectations; open up channels of communication; appraise past performance; recognize good performance; identify areas that may require improvement; and enable the rater to assess his or her own communication and supervisory skills. Upon completion of the evaluation process, a recommendation for continued employment is made by the President and submitted to the Chancellor for review, consideration, and Board approval. Similarly, when the Chancellor completes the President's annual performance review, he recommends continued employment renewal or non-renewal to the Board. 1.2b Legal and Ethical Behavior (1) Legal Behavior, Regulatory Behavior, and Accreditation – We have determined that the key potential adverse impacts on society and public concerns that we need to anticipate and address are: • Safety and Emergency Preparedness Risks • Student Performance Results; • Ethics and Compliance Violations; • Environmental Sustainability; and • Supplier Issues.

These conclusions are based on our expertise, environmental scanning, and information obtained from the community “listening posts” shown in Figure 3.1-1. Information is aggregated and analyzed in the SPP to identify emerging concerns, actions that can be taken to mitigate concerns, and determine how the community can be better served. In addition, District and PAC leaders obtain input pertaining to our operations through their community interactions and discuss that input at leadership team meetings throughout the year. For example, when it became apparent that the two-lane road leading to the campus main entrance was producing safety concerns, we partnered with the City Council to provide right-of-way access so the road could be expanded to enhance safety for the community and students. We consider regulatory, legal, and accreditation requirements and strive to surpass these requirements when establishing our educational and operational performance expectations. These standards and regulations come directly from several controlling and accrediting bodies as identified in P.1a(5). The VP for College Services is responsible to monitor the regulatory environment and identify when changing requirements are emerging. The District plays a role in this regard and tracks the regulatory environment to identify changes that are emerging and coordinates with the five colleges as information becomes available. THECB holds

Key Aspects Actions Taken Review Approach

Senior Leader Actions and Strategic Plan

Chancellor's Report CPP Reviews PVC meetings

Annual performance review by Chancellor and District Board

Fiscal Accountability

Financial info on website; independent financial audit

Financial reviews at all levels; Board Reviews Audit Report

Transparency of Operations

Board meetings broadcast on TV

Board proceedings open to public

Independence Board elected Election cycle Protection of Stakeholder Interests

Detailed processes to ensure compliance and ethical behavior

KPI reviews, Program Reviews, Audits, PSE assessments, SACS accreditation reviews

Succession Planning

ALAS; Emerging Leaders Program

Tracking grad status and KPI reviews

Figure 1.2-1 Achievement of Governance System Key Aspects


6

meetings three times per year to discuss pertinent regulatory requirements and legislative issues, and we provide quarterly reports to verify compliance. The VP for College Services also is responsible for identification of risks associated with our programs and services and for ensuring we continually meet all accreditation requirements. The Institutional Effectiveness Council (IEC) is a college-wide group that meets on a regular and ad hoc basis to review our effectiveness efforts. It examines issues related to institutional effectiveness, planning, accreditation, research, and assessment. Additionally, it provides a forum for members to discuss best practices, especially pertaining to data collection, analysis, reporting, and integration of results. The IEC also reviews substantive change documents that are to be submitted to SACSCOC regarding accreditation and review to ensure that all requirements are met with a high level of accuracy. Processes, KPIs and Targets in these areas are addressed in Figure 1.2-2. (2) Ethical Behavior - We promote and ensure ethical conduct and responsible practices through our Chancellor’s Policy Clarifications and the Alamo Colleges Ethics Handbook, which clearly spell out all requirements as explained in Area 1.1a.(2). The District Ethics Compliance Officer oversees the ethics program and ensures that expectations are clear to each of the Colleges. The PAC ECO ensures that our faculty and staff, students, partners, suppliers, collaborators, and the community are fully knowledgeable of all requirements through the methods explained in Area 1.1a.(2). Processes, KPIs and Targets are shown in Figure 1.2-2. 1.2c Societal Responsibilities (1) Societal Well-Being – We are an integral part of Bexar County and the San Antonio Community, not only as provider of higher education but also as a good citizen who cares for the overall well-being of the local citizenry. As a result, we focus on environmental, social, and economic needs annually during the SPP, in leadership team meetings throughout the year, and through the UPP. Data from Workforce Alamo, Bexar County Census, and data we collect through surveys taken at public events and from students and staff through our IR Department are used. Senior leaders engage with the community on boards, community leadership teams, and in informal settings and gather data in that manner. From an environmental standpoint, we have established a PAC Sustainability Program with seven areas of concentration: Sustainability Literacy; Energy; Air Quality; Waste Management; Water; Facility Maintenance, Renovation and Construction; and Purchasing, Procedures, and Guidelines. For example, we have created a water acequia system and Botanical Gardens outside of our library for use as outdoor classrooms to provide education about the importance of soil and water conservation. From a social standpoint, the PAC campus provides a VITA Center to offer no cost tax assistance to the community, and we host the Cystic Fibrosis Bike and Run Benefit and the CORE 4 STEM Expo.

Economically, 40% of those in the 18-24 age bracket in our community do not have a high school diploma so we have responded with an Adult Learning Academy offering the community a means to obtain a diploma, and many are deterred from requesting financial aid due to the complicated application process, so we conduct Financial Aid Saturday from February thru May to provide help to students and families in completing complicated financial aid documents. (2) Community Support – Our key community is south San Antonio, the geographic area we are designated to support with our educational services. We determine areas for organizational involvement in our community by actively seeking input from our corporate and community partners to help identify needs and the best opportunities for us to enhance community engagement. In addition to the well-being initiatives, we provide Dual Credit and Early College High School Programs and our campus library is open to the public and offers summer camps for children. Our Aquatic & Fitness Center provides community access to enhance fitness and health and our Performing Arts Center is a cultural hub for the south San Antonio community. We conduct the Little Palomino Tree Project to provide gifts to the children of families in need, PAC Gives Back, a community food drive and graffiti cleanup during spring break, and bring large numbers of people from the community to campus for PACfest, our official Fiesta San Antonio event that raises funds for student activities. A major social highlight on

Area Processes KPIs Targets

Leadership

ELI System Effectiveness 4.0 Reinforce Values 4.0

Accountability Audit Results Clean

Succession Planning

ALAS Progress 100% Emerging Leader Progress 100%

Legal and Regulatory

Monitoring # Compliance Issues Zero Training % Trained 100

Ethics Behavior Monitoring

Ethics Environment 4.0 # Ethics Breaches Zero

Training % Trained 100

Accreditation IEC; Monitoring & Preparedness

Accreditation Outcomes Full

Risk Management

Emergency Prep AAR Results 100%

Health, Safety and Security Initiatives

Crimes on Campus -5% Injury Rate -5% Worker's Comp $$ -5% Security Satisfaction 85% Safety Perception 4.0

Community Support and Improvement

All Initiatives Community Satisfaction 80%

Early College High School # Enrolled 400

PACfest $$$ Raised $15K Celebración $$$ Raised $75K Aquatic Center Customer Sat 4.0 Viva Verde Recycling Pounds Recycled 50K

VITA Center # Provided Aid 1500

Figure 1.2-2 Leadership Processes, KPIs, and Targets


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campus is Celebración, our main fundraising event that supports our Scholarship Endowment Fund. Category 2 Strategy 2.1 Strategy Development 2.1a Strategy Development Process (1) Strategic Planning Process – We conduct our strategic planning using the Strategic Planning Process (SPP) shown in Figure 2.1-1, which depicts the four major phases: Visioning, which takes place from October to January and includes participation in the District strategic planning retreat to provide top level guidance and alignment; Development, which takes place during the February to August timeframe and includes PAC retreats to develop the college-level plan and subsequently the KPIs and Targets; Deployment, which takes place from March to August during which Unit Planning and Resource Allocation occur; and Review, which takes place throughout the plan year. The plan is ready for implementation on September 1st, which is the start of our academic, fiscal, and plan years. The key process steps within each phase are also shown. The CLT implements the process and also evaluates its effectiveness and makes improvements. Significant improvements have been made over the last few years including: engaging with a broader cross-section of the campus community during planning; identifying Key Strategic Challenges, Advantages, and Opportunities; instituting College Action Plans to create greater focus in selected areas; and formalizing the Progress to Plan Review Process to permit modification of the plan during the plan year. Key participants on the CLT are shown in Figure 1.1-1 and they make the key planning decisions. Our long-term planning horizon is up to five years, which is addressed by our Strategic Directions (SDs), while our short-term planning horizon is one year, which is generally addressed by the College Action Plans (CAPs) and Unit Action Plans (UAPs), although both can be longer term as needed. We develop a five-year long-term strategy with SDs, and a short-term plan made up of CAPs and UAPs that generally cover the one-year timeframe with built-in agility to stretch out further as needed and to rapidly respond to opportunities and challenges that arise within the one-year planning horizon. The SPP addresses these time horizons by looking out over a five-year period through our

Environmental Scan (ES) to help us understand what the challenges and opportunities will be over that period, thereby giving us the necessary information to produce SDs to address them and CAPs and UAPs that begin immediately upon plan implementation to move toward achievement of the SDs. In addition, the process is cyclical, producing an updated plan each year that builds on the prior year's plan to ensure continuity of purpose, and it is dynamic in that the current year's plan can be modified throughout the year as new issues emerge or progress takes place. The SPP addresses the need for organizational agility and operational flexibility through the cyclical and dynamic nature of the process. The District sets the one-year and five-year planning horizons to align thinking at the College level and balance organizational needs to focus on the future and remain agile in a dynamic higher education environment and in market conditions which often change. Tracking progress to plan during the plan year and making just-in-time decisions and modifications provides us the ability to be agile in response to changing needs and flexible in how we respond to maximize our effectiveness and enhance our competitiveness in the marketplace. The CLT conducts regular reviews of plan progress to identify where adjustments and modifications need to be made. The Visioning phase of the SPP begins with data gathering to support the ES that includes both external and internal factors that have a bearing on strategy development. The ES is developed by the Office of Strategic Planning and Performance Excellence and applies to all of the Alamo Colleges. Data are collected through an in-depth analysis of community trends and projections and when complete, the ES provides demographic, educational, economic, fiscal, technological, political, legislative and regulatory, and competitor data, information, and trends impacting the entire District. In addition to the ES, the District also conducts a SWOT Analysis to provide for sound strategy development and decision making. During the SWOT we evaluate institutional strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in order to match strengths to external opportunities, transform weaknesses into strengths, convert external threats into opportunities, and eliminate or minimize weaknesses and threats. To supplement the ES and expand the data available

Figure 2.1-1 Strategic Planning Process


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for planning the SWOT Analysis survey process calls upon the knowledge and expertise of leaders throughout the District to provide input. The online survey asks a broad cross-section of the workforce to respond to questions which are similar to those in the PAC survey discussed below. Upon completion of the survey, a SWOT Analysis Report is developed identifying the Alamo Colleges’ Top Five Strengths Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats; Top Priorities; and Top Competitive Factors. The report includes a list of the priorities identified by survey respondents as well as a list of competitive factors related to area institutions of higher education. The data are segmented by individual college and stakeholder category so that differences can be identified and specifically addressed during plan development at each of the colleges. Along with the ES, this information is provided prior to the District strategic planning retreat as a tool to use in preparation for the review, update, and reaffirmation of the District plan. This allows us to address the need for transformational change and prioritization of change initiatives. Once the ES and the SWOT Analysis are complete, PAC participates in a District planning retreat to develop top level guidance and direction for the entire organization. In preparation for the retreat, the District assembles panels of internal and external experts to analyze and synthesize the most relevant environmental issues and priorities impacting the Alamo Colleges. Conclusions from these analyses and other information from the environmental scan are shared with retreat participants who review these materials prior to the retreat to enable “fact-based” planning. Attendees at the retreat include District personnel (Chancellor, VCs, AVCs, Directors, staff, and other leaders); key District customers including College presidents, vice presidents, leaders of the faculty and staff senate/councils, and representatives of faculty and staff; student representatives, including leaders of student government; community members such as members of advisory committees and key workforce customers; and District Board members. During the retreat, we lend our voice and involvement in identifying needs, priorities, and strategies in setting the direction; use the SWOT analysis to develop the most important strategic advantages and challenges to be addressed in the short- and longer-terms; and define our top priority actions to leverage advantages and address challenges. Subsequent to this retreat, the District provides a documented plan outlining the strategic direction for all of the Alamo Colleges. With the District-wide strategic guidance in hand, we embark upon development of the PAC strategic plan. In preparation for this activity, we customize both the ES and the SWOT to focus on PAC specific information. This includes conducting our own SWOT by reaching out to the workforce and students through a survey process that includes the questions shown in Figure 2.1-2. Through a series of CLT meetings culminating

with a day-long retreat, we assess the District-wide strategic challenges, advantages, and opportunities and modify them as necessary based on our PAC specific data gathering; assess our Core Competencies; review and affirm or modify our Guiding Principles (Mission, Vision, Values) and the Strategic Focus Areas (SFAs), those areas of focus deemed most critical to our long-term success; and refresh our SDs, Goals, and CAPs. Later in the year a follow on retreat is held to refresh our KPIs and Targets to assure alignment with the updated strategic plan prior to plan implementation.

(2) Innovation – We create an environment that supports innovation by emphasizing both the internal and external challenges that we face and the need for priority action against those challenges; focusing on breakthrough change during strategic planning; reviewing our progress to plan throughout the plan year so that we have opportunities to discuss where significant improvement is needed; promoting empowerment throughout the organization; creating a college-wide culture of active learning through such innovative initiatives as Problem-based Learning and Learning Communities; and implementing a formal intelligent risk-taking process. We identify key strategic opportunities as part of the SPP in CLT "Lunch and Learn" meetings leading up to the strategic planning retreat, and then determine which of these are intelligent risks using the Discovery phase of the RIP described in Area 1.1a(3). Those strategic opportunities that are to be pursued are later translated into CAPs and enter the Incubation phase of the RIP for further assessment and a final implementation decision. Our key strategic opportunities include: 1) Develop additional articulation agreements with four-

year institutions 2) Further develop the Early College High School program 3) Further develop the student Early Alert system 4) Develop the STEM program 5) Develop an Honors program 6) Address new and emerging needs for career and

technical education

Area Question Strengths What are the top 3 activities that PAC performs well? Weaknesses What are the top 3 activities that PAC should

improve? Opportunities What 3 opportunities could the PAC take advantage

of in the next three years? Threats What is changing in the environment which could

adversely affect PAC? Priorities 1 What should PAC address immediately? Priorities 2 What should PAC preserve at all costs? Priorities 3 What future direction or decision should PAC avoid

at all costs? Competitive Factors 1

What does PAC do better than other institutions of higher education in?

Competitive Factors 2

What do other institutions of higher education do better than PAC?

Figure 2.1-2 PAC SWOT Analysis Questions


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(3) Strategy Considerations – We collect and analyze relevant data and develop information on key planning elements as follows. Strategic Challenges and Advantages – As explained above, the ES and SWOT Analysis produce the necessary data collection and analysis to provide the basic information to determine our challenges and advantages. We deem these elements as critical to long-term sustainability and strive to ensure that each is addressed in our SDs and/or CAPs. Risks to Future Success and Blind Spots – Risks are assessed during CLT discussions that take place as we customize the District developed challenges and advantages and determine which should be affirmed for PAC, which should be modified, and what others should be added. Later, as SDs and CAPs are developed, we cross check those plan components back against the challenges and advantages to ensure that all have been addressed. Similarly, a discussion takes place to ascertain risks associated with our ability to successfully achieve our goals as well as the risks associated with not choosing goals that may have been proposed. The focus is to consider contingencies and identify potential blind spots that could materialize if some issues are not addressed in the plan. As the plan nears completion, a final discussion is held to confirm that there is confidence in our ability to execute the plan from a time and resource perspective, and to verify that the challenges and advantages have been satisfactorily addressed by the SDs and/or CAPs. Regulatory Environment – We obtain information pertaining to potential and real changes to the regulatory environment through four positions charged with that responsibility. The District Associate Vice Chancellor of Communication is our liaison with the Texas legislature and is responsible for keeping us updated on actual and potential legislative changes; the District Director of Student Financial Services keeps PAC apprised of all actual and potential changes in federal financial aid funding; the District Grants Compliance Coordinator keeps us informed of changes in federal legislation affecting grant applications, implementation, and reporting; and the PAC VP of College Services is our liaison with the SACS and keeps us informed of actual and potential changes in regulations concerning accreditation. Ability to Execute the Plan – During these deliberations, the CLT is required to give consideration to workload and resource requirements to ensure that the scope of work and level of effort is manageable so that the plan can be executed effectively. As budgets are developed there is a continual assessment of the financial and personnel resources needed to support the plan, including education needs, and if resources become a limiting factor, priorities are established so that the most critical plan elements are retained and there is assurance that they can be resourced.

(4) Work Systems and Core Competencies – Five key work systems form the basis for all of our operations: Student Intake; Student Learning; Student Completion; Student Support Services; and Operational Support Systems as indicated in Figure 6.1-2. We make decisions on our work systems as part of the SPP. During the Visioning phase we review ES data pertaining to emerging market requirements, organizational capability relative to key customer needs, and organizational performance, and consider how they impact our work systems to determine what adjustments must be made now or in the future. If new SDs are selected, we evaluate our work system structure to ensure that it is appropriately aligned to support accomplishment of those SDs. We also evaluate our core competencies to ensure alignment with our work systems and determine the need for new and improved competencies that must be developed to support work system improvement and innovation, and also what opportunities we have to make work system adjustments based on core competency strengths that we already possess. Based on the challenges and advantages that have been identified, the CLT assesses our core competencies (Figure OP-2) to affirm those that have been identified before, determine if any actions are required to strengthen existing competencies, and identify any new competencies that may be required to deal with the challenges on the horizon. We strive to maximize the use of internal resources in our work systems in order to increase the likelihood that all requirements and objectives will be better understood and enhance the likelihood that they will be met. However, there are situations where core competencies are not available internally or financial considerations suggest the use of external resources. These decisions are made either during strategic planning or at other times during the year in various leadership team settings based on new issues or opportunities that might arise. When the option of using external resources is proposed a cost-benefit analysis is conducted. This includes a determination of anticipated effectiveness of outsourcing as compared to internal operations, determination of the cost to outsource as compared to internal costs, a judgment of supplier core competencies and their capability to align with our Guiding Principles and meet all of our requirements. The results of the cost-benefit analysis are reviewed and discussed, then a collaborative decision is made. Areas where external resources are used include: bookstore; food services; housekeeping; and enrollment and financial aid call centers. Determination of future core competencies is made during the Core Competencies step of the SPP. The CLT makes determinations about core competency needs to address future challenges and opportunities, as well as the competencies needed to succeed in each of the SFAs. If they judge that there is a gap between what we currently possess and what is needed, actions are taken to develop SDs and/or CAPs to address that gap.


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2.1b Strategic Objectives (1) Key Strategic Objectives – Our SDs, Key Goals, the timetable for achieving them, and key changes planned are shown in Figure 2.1-3. SDs are created in the Developing phase of the SPP. The CLT breaks into four sub-teams, one for each of the SFAs, which work to establish the five-year SDs for their focus area. To begin this effort, the teams assess the Key Strategic Advantages, Challenges, and Opportunities to determine the linkage to their SFA. The teams are then responsible to define candidate SDs that will address the challenges, build on key advantages, act on opportunities, and project the level of performance needed to move PAC closer to realization of its vision. Once all of the sub-teams have completed their work, each presents recommendations, discussion ensues, and consensus on the SDs is achieved.

(2) Strategic Objective Considerations – Figure 2.1-4 demonstrates which SDs (see Figure 2.1-3) address the Strategic Challenges, leverage the Core Competencies, Strategic Advantages, and Strategic Opportunities, and balance the short- and longer-term horizons and the needs of all stakeholders. The numbers in the figure identify the

specific challenge, competency, advantage, and opportunity that aligns with that particular SD - see Figures OP-2; OP-9; and Area 2.1a(2). 2.2 Strategy Implementation 2.2a Action Plan Development and Deployment (1) Action Plans – The CLT develops the CAPs to support achievement of the SDs right after they complete work on the SDs. Once again the group is divided into four sub-teams, one for each SFA, and is tasked to identify appropriate CAPs to support each of the SDs within their respective focus areas. When the teams have completed their work they present their recommendations to one another, discussion ensues, and consensus is achieved on the CAPs for each of the SDs, which are shown in Figure 2.2-1. (2) Action Plan Implementation – Once the CLT retreat is complete, the CAPs are assigned to individuals or teams (CAP “Champions”) for follow through and long-term accountability, a target completion date is established, the draft plan is coordinated with key stakeholders, and modifications are made as necessary. At that point the plan is presented to the faculty and staff by the President and the Unit Planning Process (UPP) begins. Each Unit Manager is required to complete an evaluation of progress made on last year's plan, assess the new College Strategic Plan, and based on those two assessments identify Unit Goals for his or her Unit that align with the PAC Goals and key unit requirements for the coming year. In addition, Unit Action Plans (UAPs) aligned with the SDs, CAPs, and Unit requirements, and Unit KPIs and Targets aligned with the PAC KPIs and Targets, are created, methods of Dissemination established, and Budget Implications developed. Deployment of action plans to the individual level of the organization is accomplished

SFA Strategic Directions Key Goals & Timeframe Key Changes Planned Student Success

1) Empowering Students for Success - explore educational opportunities, identify career pathways and experience high impact educational practices. Address students' unique interests and needs using tools & strategies to help students succeed academically and professionally.

Goal A - Increase student retention, persistence, and completion. (LT) Goal B - Increase outreach to our community and provide greater access to our college. (LT) Goal C - Provide students with quality high impact instruction and support. (LT) Goal D - Align with K-12 partners and transfer institutions in career and academic pathways. (LT)

1) Full implementation of the new Advising Model 2) Expansion of the ECHS and Dual Credit programs 3) Involvement of more faculty and students in High Impact Practices 4) Strengthen STEM programming

Culture of Inclusiveness

2) Creating and Sustaining a Culture of Inclusiveness - Maintain a culturally inclusive environment that embraces mutual respect, effective relationships, clear communication, understandings about expectations, and critical self-reflection.

Goal A - Include all PAC stakeholders in decision-making processes. (ST) Goal B - Foster a climate of mutual respect and concern for one another. (LT)

1) Modification of various decision-making processes 2) Implement cultural shifts to achieve goal

Faculty and Staff Excellence

3) Celebrate and Share PAC Excellence - Strengthen the identity of the institution by celebrating PAC successes and sharing with all stakeholders.

Goal A - Empower PAC stakeholders to create, identify, and promote PAC excellence both internally and externally. (ST) Goal B - Develop offline and online platforms for stakeholders to share PAC excellence. (LT)

1) Develop additional methods to identify and share best practices and excellence 2) Implement Honors Program

Resource Effectiveness

4) Targeting Our Resources for Success - involve stakeholders in the prioritization of initiatives and improving processes to support student success.

Goal A - Use cross-functional teams to engage internal and external resources to build institutional capacity and generate community advancement. (LT)

1) Expand CTE and GED programs 2) Create an Advocacy Resource Center (health clinic, food pantry, clothes closet)

Figure 2.1-3 SFAs, SDs, Goals, Changes Planned LT = Long-term ST = Short-term

SDs 1 2 3 4

# - Strategic Challenges All 1,4 1,4 All

# - Core Competencies 1,3,5 2,4 All 2,3,4

# - Strategic Advantages All 2 All All

# - Strategic Opportunities

1,2,3,4 N/A 5 6

ST/LT Horizon LT ST/LT ST/LT LT Balance needs * * * * Figure 2.1-4 Strategic Considerations


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through assignments and tasks that align with their job responsibilities by Unit Managers. Plans are deployed to partners, collaborators and key suppliers through direct contact as appropriate when they are involved in or impacted by any of the plans. CLT members work directly with partners and collaborators, and procurement personnel provide plan information to key suppliers. CAP Champions are responsible to oversee the work to develop and implement the CAP they are assigned, and are also responsible to ensure sustainability of the outcomes of their plans. This is accomplished through development of Unit Plan Worksheets, establishment of KPIs and targets, tracking progress and performance, reporting to senior leaders, and reviewing effectiveness once the implementation has been complete. (3) Resource Allocation – Staffing and financial resources to assure the capability of carrying out the CAPs and UAPs are incorporated into the annual operating budget for the fiscal year. To ensure this happens, the SPP is integrated with the Resource Allocation process as indicated in Figure 2.1-1. As part of an evaluation and improvement effort for the budget process, the Resource Allocation Committee (RAC) was created to facilitate the prioritization of college resources. The RAC process is integrated with the UPP and provides Units with an opportunity to discuss their UAPs and needs for the upcoming academic year. Each Unit provides a brief presentation about their upcoming UAPs and budget requests to the RAC in order to keep the PAC family informed of what other Units have planned for the next year and to help prioritize the budget requests. The presentations are given by each Unit over the course of four CLT budget sessions that typically occur in April of each year. As Units complete their presentations, they are uploaded to the IR Unit Planning page on AlamoShare for participants to review. After all Units have the opportunity to present, the RAC participates in a voting session to prioritize the various budget requests. During the voting session, all budget request presentations are posted for RAC members to review. Each RAC member is given 6 stickers to represent his or her votes, then the participants vote

on the budget request items they feel should receive high priority by placing the stickers next to those budget items. In this process they do not vote on their own requests and do not vote on the same request more than once. After all participants have voted, the budget request slides are collected by IR and the budgeting process continues. In addition, we have initiated an innovative Participatory Budgeting (PB) process where units and individuals are able to submit proposals for initiatives that are aligned with the SFAs. The proposals are announced and all members of the faculty and staff are invited to vote on the proposals and identify those they believe should be approved as part of the budget process. In 2015, 11 proposals were approved for consideration and 7 were selected in the voting process, and the remaining 4 were afforded alternative funding. This improvement to the budget process has been well received and gives all employees another indication that they have a say in financial decisions that are made and it has been presented as a best practice at both the League of Innovation and NISOD national conferences. As a process improvement, PB has now been extended to include students as well as the faculty and staff. (4) Workforce Plans – Key workforce plans to support the SDs and CAPs and their impacts on the workforce are shown in Figure 2.2-2.

(5) Performance Measures – KPIs to track the performance and effectiveness of the SDs and CAPs are shown in Figure 2.2-3. These measures are designed to reflect progress relative to the SDs, and CAPs and are tracked through the College Performance Protocol and PTP Review processes. (6) Performance Projections – We calculate projected performance in the KPIs and Targets based on the impact we expect the strategic plan to have and compare those projections to past performance and relevant benchmarks whenever possible. When performance is not at the desired level or further improvement is warranted, new or modified strategies and plans are created through the SPP annually or modification to existing plans is made during the progress to plan reviews. Performance projections reflect the expected improvement that will occur as a result of implementation of the CAPs. The overall intent is to produce a level of performance to achieve our SDs and goals. Figure 2.2-3 displays our most recent

SD College Action Plans

1

• Strengthen new Advising Model • Strengthen the Early Alert system • Enhance the Early College High School program • Enhance the Tutoring program • Expand Learning Communities • Enhance STEM programming

2 • Implement additional internal communication methods

3 • Implement additional external communication methods • Develop and implement the Honors Program

4

• Expand the Career and Technical Education program • Expand the GED program • Develop a Strategic Enrollment Management approach • Create the Student Resource Initiative/Advocacy Resource

Center • Further develop Open Education Resources

Figure 2.2-1 College Action Plans

SD Plans Impact

1 • Certify adjunct faculty Further engage adjuncts

2 • Learning and development initiatives pertaining to decision-making techniques

Further promote inclusiveness

3 • Continue training and implementation of 4DX

Further engage workforce

4 • Strengthen Community Programs instructor recruiting

Expand Community Programs

Figure 2.2-2 Key Workforce Plans


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performance, our projections for 2017, and projected comparisons for 2017. 2.2b Action Plan Modification – We modify CAPs through the PTP Review Process when it becomes necessary to change direction. This process provides the opportunity for discussion and mid-course corrections depending on progress and changes in the environment as described in Area 4.1b. For example, during CAP review sessions held in Fall 2015 and Spring 2016, correlation data were presented that showed students with a greater number of tutoring sessions had better PGRs in MATH 0310. Those who attended 14 tutoring sessions consistently outperformed those who attended fewer sessions. Upon investigation, it was determined that attendance was low because tutoring times were not scheduled as part of the course. Therefore, the plan was modified to require students to attend 14 sessions as part of the class beginning in Spring 2016, with specific tutoring times scheduled for each section. Attendance is taken and participation is worth 10% of the course grade. We are now tracking results to see if this modification further increases student success as we expect. Category 3 Customers 3.1 Voice of the Customer 3.1a Listening to Students and Other Customers (1) Current Students and Other Customers – PAC employs multiple student and other customer listening approaches to obtain actionable information to understand customer needs,

expectations and their relative importance so that we are better able to design, improve, and innovate educational programs and services. We accomplish this through the Voice of the Customer (VOC) system, which is comprised of the data gathering approaches shown in Figure 3.1-1. These reflect a wide variety of direct communication, print, and technology tools, which vary by customer group as shown. Their frequency of use and how the data are used are also included. So that data received becomes actionable, we utilize the PDM (Figure 6.1-1) and FOCUS PDCA (Figure 6.1-3) to integrate findings as part of our efforts to design, redesign, improve, and innovate educational programs, services, and processes. VOC data are also used in the SPP (Figure 2.1-1) to help identify the need for new programs and services. The important responsibility for aggregating, analyzing, and distributing VOC data falls mainly to the Institutional Research Department (IR). For the student customer group, IR is responsible for analyzing student-related data from the variety of sources used and provide a continuous flow of knowledge about issues and changing requirements to all concerned Units. Leaders then use that data to make adjustments in their programs, processes and service features to ensure that we proactively address emerging needs and notify faculty and staff members so they can take necessary actions. The entire workforce is an integral part of the VOC process and has an extremely strong focus on student needs and expectations in accordance with our Values in this regard (Students First; Data-informed). Faculty and staff stress student contact and personalized service as high priorities and spend significant time interacting with students to understand what progress they are making and how they feel about their student experience. This approach is used to adjust and improve service delivery, is embedded in our culture, is characteristic of the workforce, and is a core competency. The VOC process for other customer groups is also well developed. We gather and analyze the data that are captured and use those data to determine customer needs and expectations, and to make educational program and service adjustments to enhance satisfaction and effectiveness. Student Success coordinates VOC data for Feeder Schools, Early College High Schools, Transfer Schools, and Employers, while Public Relations addresses data pertaining to our Community customer group. As issues, concerns, or the need for college-wide improvement action are identified, information is brought to the E-Team for discussion and decision-making. VOC information is also aggregated and compiled into the ES and SWOT Analysis for use in strategic planning and to allow for E-Team review and monitoring throughout the year. Social media and web-based technologies have become an important method of communicating with our current and potential students and other customers. We utilize social media to communicate directly to students, and our students and

SFAs and KPIs Most

Recent Projections

2017 Comp Student Success FTIC Transfer Rate 17.6% 21% 23.5% Academic Student Employment 6 Months After Graduation 38% 42% 40%

Technical Student Employment 6 Months After Graduation 67.7% 75% 78%

3 Year Graduation Rate 20.3% 24% 17% Degrees/Certificates Awarded 1165 1200 N/A Course Completion Rate 90.2% 92% 92% Course Success Rate 77.5% 79% 78.6% Fall to Fall Persistence Rate 62.9% 65% 57.5% High Risk Courses 14 12 28 Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction 83% 85% 78%

CCSSE Student Satisfaction 85.5% 88.5% 85.0% Culture of Inclusiveness PACE Supervisory Relationships 4.1 4.2 3.85

PACE Teamwork 4.2 4.3 3.85 Faculty and Staff Excellence Communication Effectiveness 3.75 4.0 3.39 PACE Overall Climate 4.03 4.1 3.85 Resource Effectiveness PACE Institutional Structure 3.8 4.0 3.55 % Budget Expensed 95% 95% N/A Figure 2.2-3 Performance Projections and Comparisons


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community are able to provide real-time feedback and engage in meaningful dialogue with the College. We have implemented social media analytics that gathers online conversations happening on campus and this helps us understand what is most important to our students, alumni and the community. The PAC Website provides comprehensive information about the College and has a contact page for general information, as well as a means to submit comments and questions. We focus on Facebook to immediately connect with our students and have several Facebook pages in place, including: the official Palo Alto College Facebook page, along with specialty pages such as Alumni & Friends, Student Life, Veterans Affairs, Bookstore, Aquatic Center, Campus Recreation, Photography Club and Celebración. We take a proactive approach to increase our fans by reviewing Facebook “reach” and “engagement” data to determine what information our fans are interested in and then tailor our posts to meet that interest. In addition, our Facebook page allows users to provide us comments about College activities and services. We send an e-newsletter to subscribers and invite comments in response to information provided. We also use Twitter,

Instagram, and our own PAC YouTube channel to provide information to students and other customers, provide an e-mail account to each student to facilitate communication, and use the Canvas online learning management system for online classroom discussions. Our listening methods vary based upon the stage of our customer’s relationship with us in the following ways. Methods focused on former and potential students, the community, and employers are designed to establish a relationship with those who are not currently a student or other customer but could become one in the future. Methods focused on current students and employers we are already engaged with, as well as feeder and transfer schools, are designed to grow relationships further to generate loyalty and positive word of mouth. These methods begin immediately when a student or other customer engages with us for educational programs and services and continue until we cease providing those programs and services. Education and service delivery, feeder school visits, articulation agreements, community involvement, and advisory committees are examples of initiatives that occur during the period that educational programs and services are being provided and typically focus on customer needs and expectations now and in the future as well as satisfaction with current services. Satisfaction surveys, reviews, and focus groups are examples of initiatives generally occurring after a program or service has been provided and the student or other customer may still be engaged with us and we are seeking to understand satisfaction with our current performance so we can identify improvement opportunities. Outreach initiatives are typically focused on the needs and expectations of those potential students and other customers that we are not currently engaged with so that we can design educational programs and services as well as marketing approaches that might appeal to those groups. We seek immediate and actionable feedback on the quality of service provided to students and other customers as shown in Figure 3.1-2. 4DX Standards, explained in Area 3.2b, are at the core of how we interact with our customers and require that we ask them if there is anything more we can do for them after every contact. Point of Contact (POC) surveys are conducted throughout all Student Success Units and for New Student Convocation, Countdown to College, Discover PAC, ECHS NSC, and ImPACt Luncheons with HS Counselors and CCP Partners. Most of the Career and Technical Education instructional programs include an External Learning Experience in the form of a cooperative, practicum, or internship. Each of these has a series of feedback instruments imbedded within the course. Included in these instruments are student and employer evaluations to determine the value of the education delivered prior to and during the external learning experience. Advisory committees provide input each semester about the facilities and equipment used to teach the skills, the

Approach Customer Freq Data Use Direct Communication

Classroom Observation CS, EC O SL, E, I Service Delivery CS, EC, E O S, E, I Advisor Meetings CS, EC, FS O SL, E, I Open Access to President All O SL. S, E, I, C School Visits K-12, EC, PS W SL, S, E Transfer Articulation MOU TS O SL, S, E Focus Groups PS P SL, S, E, I Community Outreach C, PS O S, E, I Community Involvement CS, EC, C O S, E, I, C Campus Events All O S Advisory Committees E, C M SL, S, E, I SPP Participation All A SL, S, E, I Environmental Scan All O SL, S, E, I Meetings and Reviews CS, EC, C, TS, E O SL, S, E, I, C Complaint Management All O S, C Ethics Hotline All O S, C Regulatory Bodies All O S, E

Print Assessments/Tests CS, EC O SL, S, E, I Newsletters CS, EC, PS W S, E, C Correspondence All O S, I, C

Technology Website All O S, E, I, C Surveys CS, EC A SL, S, E, I Facebook, Twitter, YouTube Channel, Instagram

CS, EC,PS, C O S, E, I, C

Telephone All O SL, S, E, C Registration CS, EC A SL, E E-mail All O SL, S, E, C , I Figure 3.1-1 Voice of the Customer Methods Customer - CS = Current Students; FS = Former Students; PS = Potential Students K-12 = Feeder Schools; EC = Early College High Schools; TS = Transfer Schools; E = Employers; C=Community Frequency - O = Ongoing; P = Periodically; A = Annually; M = Monthly; W = Weekly; Data Use - SL = Improve Student Learning; S = Improve Service; E = Improve Efficiency/Effectiveness; I = Improve or Innovate; C = Resolve Complaint or Concern


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curriculum, and the workforce needs for the industry. This information is used to continue, deactivate, or build new options to the existing delivery of instruction in that program area. Additional input may come in the form of completion of licensure or certification examinations. Students self-report this information to the instructional departments since not all agencies share it. For example, CISCO and aviation students let instructors know when they have passed their respective exams. (2) Potential Students and Other Customers – Methods to listen to and learn about former and potential students are shown in Figure 3.1-1. We obtain information about the students of competitors through a scan of data obtained by means of direct discussions with other Alamo Colleges and other area schools, websites, journals, research reports, job fairs, and high school visits. This information is analyzed and potential impacts discussed during leadership reviews, then is used for planning and program or service design, improvement or innovation We consider the “Community” to be largely comprised of potential students. 3.1b Determination of Student and Other Customer Satisfaction and Engagement (1) Satisfaction, Dissatisfaction, and Engagement – We continually assess student and other customer satisfaction and engagement and actively solicit information on suggestions for improvement using a number of the VOC approaches. These tools are designed to: ensure that satisfaction and engagement determination are valid and thorough; benchmarks are obtained for comparison purposes; satisfaction results are trended over time; results are used to enhance the knowledge of the faculty and staff; and the information obtained is used to improve service offerings. To achieve these objectives, we partner with two third-party organizations. First, we work with the Community College Leadership Program at The University of Texas at Austin to administer the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) to measure student satisfaction and engagement every other spring semester. Second, we work with Noel-Levitz Consultants to administer their Student Satisfaction Inventory the alternate spring semester to determine satisfaction and engagement across all elements of student services and offerings. Student satisfaction and engagement reports from CCSSE and Noel Levitz are

coordinated by IR and the data contained in them are analyzed, trended, and distributed throughout the campus for review and action. Each Unit uses the data to monitor service delivery and for performance improvement. In addition, we conduct the many POC Satisfaction Surveys to obtain immediate feedback on our service. For these surveys, which provide actionable data more frequently, each Department is charged with reviewing the results each month at their staff meeting and to identify improvement opportunities and follow up actions. In addition, a survey agenda item is placed on the SS Leads Weekly Tactical Meeting for Departments to share results and actions being taken to address them. For specific events (NSO, NSC, Countdown to College) an event final report is produced containing the survey results as well as enrollment/attendance data. A SWOT is conducted to hone in on specific improvement requirements and follow up actions are taken. We obtain community satisfaction information by means of the Community Perception Survey that we conduct during PACfest, and the methods described in Item 1.2. Employer satisfaction is determined through the External Learning Experience survey process and through direct input to the President and other staff members. All comments are documented and reviewed by leadership and specific issues are sent to the appropriate staff member or Unit for review and action. In addition, there are a number of other survey initiatives including: students who are participating in the graduation ceremony are required to complete a survey about their experience at PAC; recruiters, business members and students who are part of or attend major campus events are surveyed regarding their experience. We determine dissatisfaction through three methods. First, assessment of the various survey methods used to determine satisfaction and engagement. The lowest rated areas are analyzed and trended so that we understand where concerns exist and address them accordingly. Second, as a learning organization we seek opportunities for improvement proactively in the formal and informal conversations that we conduct with students and other customers. Whenever a formal conversation is held, and most times when informal conversations are held, we ask for input on what we can do better. Third, we analyze unsolicited feedback data to identify not only individual areas of concern but also to identify more systemic issues that emerge when multiple concerns are submitted. For each of these methods, information is provided to leadership and various Units as appropriate, and actions are taken to improve when needs are validated. For example, when we received feedback that an insufficient number of advisors were available for registration we revised the orientation process to incorporate split registration sessions to ensure that everyone attending would have access to an advisor. (2) Satisfaction Relative to Competitors – Our primary methods for determining our student and other customer

Customer Methods

Students

4DX standards; POC satisfaction surveys; in class feedback; advising sessions; degree and transfer planning sessions; New Student Orientation; CTE feedback instruments

Feeder Schools 4DX standards; site visit outbriefs

Early College High Schools

4DX standards; POC satisfaction surveys; in class feedback; group advising sessions; Convocation; consortium meetings

Transfer Schools 4DX standards; Transfer Agreement reviews

Employers 4DX standards; Advisory Committee meetings; face-to-face meetings

Community 4DX standards; event surveys; informal discussions Figure 3.1-2 Customer Immediate Feedback Methods


15

satisfaction relative to that of students at other colleges are the analyses we conduct of the data provided by the nationally-normed surveys we use: CCSSE and Noel-Levitz. Each of these survey processes produces comparative data reports that we use to determine our relative performance. The College Connection survey of high school counselors and students participating in the program also provide us information about competing colleges. Less formal methods used to obtain comparative data include student and community conversations, focus groups and other methods that we have to converse informally with students and other customer groups. We use these and other comparisons to identify opportunities for improvement, to confirm that we are meeting and exceeding student and other customer expectations, to establish performance targets for our KPIs, and to identify areas of outstanding performance. 3.2 Customer Engagement 3.2a Program and Service Offerings and Student and Other Customer Support (1) Program and Service Offerings – Program and service offerings for students who are seeking degrees or certificates are driven by our transfer school customers and employers to whom we provide potential employees. Program and service offerings for Early College students are driven by the ECHS participants and transferability of courses. Program and service offerings for workforce development training are driven by employers who identify the need for new or modified workplace skills and might have a need to engage with us for this type of training, as well as individuals who are looking to develop their personal skills so as to have better opportunities for employment. We reach out to each of these customer groups to obtain input on requirements on a routine basis through the VOC System (Figure 3.1-1). When we identify changing requirements we use a number of approaches to identify and adapt our offerings to meet the new requirements and exceed the expectations of our students. These include the SPP; New Program Development Process; PDM and FOCUS PDCA; sharing best practices and ideas with other Alamo Colleges, AtD Colleges, and CQIN colleges; and monitoring accrediting and regulatory bodies. Through these mechanisms, input is captured from a broad base of customers and stakeholders and data are input into the ES and SWOT Analysis, strategic opportunities are defined, and strategies, including new or modified educational programs and services, are identified (Item 2.1). This approach allows us to systematically identify and innovate new, or improve existing, programs and services to meet the needs of students, other customers and our market segments and expand our relationships with them by providing additional opportunities. This approach also takes into consideration the opportunity to attract new students and other customers. We also proactively conduct a Program Review Process (PRP) to evaluate program effectiveness and determine if

programs and services require adjustment. Each program, including support services, must undergo a review every five years to: provide opportunity for the self-evaluation of the program by the faculty and/or staff; identify program needs and the basis for determining those needs; establish a procedure for the systematic improvement of programs; assist in curriculum and staff development; ensure quality curricula and programs; and suggest means of appropriately allocating PAC resources. Program Review Committees oversee this process and are responsible to ensure that they meet all requirements and that the outcomes of the reviews are provided to the Vice President of the program undergoing the review and ultimately to the President so that appropriate improvement actions can be directed. In the Workforce Development market segment, industry representatives typically approach our Contract Training office through the Corporate and Community Education office, centralized at the District level, to request specific training for their employees. We also utilize the Demand Occupations listing provided by the local Workforce Development Board (WDB) to trigger the development of new programs. Data mining is also utilized to determine trends in the service area for new industry needs that may be moving to the local market. We have established separate industry-based Advisory Committees for each workforce education program or cluster of closely related programs. The broad purposes of the Advisory Committees are to help document the need for a workforce education program; ensure that the program has both adequate resources and a well-designed curriculum to provide students with the skills, knowledge, and behaviors necessary to successfully meet the needs of business and industry; and ensure the effective communication between all stakeholders. The Advisory Committee is one of the principal means of ensuring meaningful business and industry participation in program creation and revision. Requirements are determined through DACUM (Designing A Curriculum) sessions, Industry Surveys, Advisory Committee input, licensure examination requirements, and model programs across the state and nation. Industry and/or academic partners identify the necessary skills for potential employees/students to perform the jobs within their respective fields. These skills are translated into student learning outcomes within the courses. Most of these courses are found in the Workforce Education Course Manual and the Lower Division Academic Course Guide Manual for the state of Texas. These learning outcomes and courses are reviewed by the Advisory Committees to assure that no skills are left out of the necessary training for students interested in pursuing the field of study. (2) Student and Other Customer Support – Access is an important objective for PAC and we have established a requirement to minimize the barriers of time, place, cost, and educational preparation levels so that all in the community will


16

have an opportunity to obtain educational programs and services from us. Consequently, we have developed a variety of methods to enable students and other customers to seek information and support, gain access to our offerings, and provide feedback on our performance (Figure 3.2-1). We determine key support requirements using the PDM as individual program and service work processes are designed or redesigned. Step 2 of the PDM, Develop Conceptual Design, requires process owners to obtain input from the customers of their processes to gain an understanding of needs and expectations and how they might be changing over time. Support and access are major considerations as this work is accomplished. The PDM design team considers various

methods to provide the greatest support and access possible using their background and expertise; VOC data; research into best practices; direct contact with customers and stakeholders of the process; and benchmarking with AtD and CQIN learning partners. Teams look beyond the norm, striving to establish new and innovative approaches. For example, we have implemented the First Year Experience program to enhance support and access for new students. This includes an enhanced New Student Orientation, New Student Convocation, and a Student Development Class. An intensive Advising Model (AlamoAdvise) that has become a District best practice has been implemented along with and expanded set of Student Life activities. Support and access requirements are deployed to the faculty and staff involved in student and stakeholder support by involving these process stakeholders on design and improvement/innovation teams, by process owners as they collaborate with them on process steps and changes that might be made over time, by sharing information on process performance and effectiveness with process stakeholders, and during process performance reviews. Process owners establish KPIs to determine how well their process meets requirements and monitor performance by collecting data, including feedback from their customers and stakeholders. (3) Student and Other Customer Segmentation – We use student and stakeholder, market, and educational program and service information to identify groups and segments in the following ways. For market segmentation, our primary market area is South San Antonio where we place high emphasis on and target three market segments: High School Students, Workforce Development Students, and Veterans. Within these market segments, we have established a number of student segments as shown in Figure OP-6. We define segments as groups that require special accommodations during their interaction with the College, beginning with recruitment and continuing throughout each segment’s experience at or with the school, with special emphasis on student success. After a group is identified, the accommodations needed are specified and plans are developed to meet those needs. Segmentation involves a review of the data associated with the ES, data produced by the VOC System, and student performance results. The ES provides a detailed summary of community education needs in the market area, emerging student and stakeholder requirements, and an assessment of competing institutions; the VOC System provides detailed information on current and emerging student and stakeholder preferences, and levels of engagement and satisfaction; and student performance data indicate if performance differs for student groups. In assessing this information, we seek to determine if segmentation should be altered based on the following considerations: • special needs exist for a certain group of students that are

significantly different than the entire group;

Stud

ents

Support and Information

Access Feedback

Workforce (e-mail, in person, phone, text)

Dual Credit, College Connection

Satisfaction & engagement surveys

Social media Developmental Ed offerings

Community conversations

Technology in classrooms & labs

Student services offices

Student conversations

Experiential Learning

Online course offerings

Student focus groups

Faculty office hours Flexible course schedule

Student evaluations

Transfer agreements Online registration POC service surveys

Work-study Extended hours for services

Social media

Feed

er

Website, phone and e-mail

Recruiter Meetings

Recruiter meetings

Social media MOUs CC survey Recruiter meetings Campus events

and tours

Discover PAC High school visits Dual enrollment

EC

HS

Website, phone, and e-mail

TEA blueprint ECHS Model MOUs

NSC, ImPACt lunch surveys

Consortium meetings

Parent Info Nights Feedback from Parent Nights

High School visits Assigned advisor Class climate surveys

Tra

nsfe

r Website, phone and

e-mail Transfer agreements

Reverse transfer survey

Social media Meetings Meetings Campus events and tours

Campus events and tours

Em

ploy

ers

Website, phone and e-mail

Classes at work location

Employer surveys

Social media Campus events and tours

Advisory committees

Advisory Comm meetings

Meetings Meetings

Com

mun

ity Website, phone and

e-mail Campus events and tours

Community survey

Social media Campus facilities Community conversations

Community sonversations

Figure 3.2-1 Key Access and Support Methods


17

• satisfaction results and analysis indicate different key requirements for a certain group of students; and/or

• services provided differ sufficiently to warrant establishment of a separate segment.

Market segmentation also involves a review of ES data, which provides an assessment of our market area, movement of students within the market, an assessment of the competition, and identification of new educational needs that may be emerging within the community. Based on this information, senior leaders determine if the existing market strategy is still valid, if an adjustment to that strategy is needed to improve education and operational outcomes, and if the market should be segmented differently for data collection and tracking purposes. As part of this process, we evaluate information pertaining to community education needs obtained through a variety of means. These include networking within the communities and participation by senior leaders in local business and civic groups and community-wide coalitions, as well as input from Advisory Committees. Data from these sources are considered during the process to determine how to target the market and determine the need for new or improved services. 3.2.b Student and Other Customer Relationships (1) Relationship Management – We build relationships with students and other customers through highly focused interactions, provision of a variety of personalized and innovative services, and two-way communications both in and out of the classroom. Figure 3.2-2 summarizes the wide variety of relationship building methods we use to acquire new students and other customers and build market share; to retain students and other customers, meet their requirements, exceed their expectations; and to increase engagement. At the core of new student acquisition, and a core competency, is our recruitment process and relationship building with feeder schools and employers. Our intent is to work collaboratively with these customers to engage potential students in the pursuit of higher education and develop systems, processes, and events to support a shared vision of advanced learning. We communicate our expectations for incoming students through recruiting visits to these schools, MOUs, our catalog and other publications, our orientation program, and our website. This college-wide recruitment effort makes it possible to contact prospective students in both public and parochial high schools, business, and industry. Our recruiting strategies have increased our visibility among high schools; with employers though Advisory Committees, meetings and customized training offerings; and with transfer schools via faculty to faculty meetings intended to improve existing transfer agreements and produce new ones. We build relationships with future students and feeder schools through an extensive network of outreach programs. Feeder high schools are located throughout the San Antonio area, and

we participate in the College Connection Program (CCP) in conjunction with all five Alamo Colleges working with select schools in Bexar and surrounding counties. This program consists of six distinct phases seeking to reach 100% of graduating seniors from participating high schools. CCP provides these students support with a variety of onsite services to aid them in college enrollment processes to include assistance with completion of the admissions application, FAFSA financial aid application, college placement exam testing, advising, and registration. Currently, 18 area high schools participate in the CCP. These high schools receive 2-4 scheduled visits from the CCP Team to support students as they transition from high school to college. In addition, our Dual Credit Program (DCP) serves to acquire students and build strong relationships with feeder schools. This program enables students who meet the standards to earn college credits while completing their high school requirements. Dual credit courses are high school courses that adhere to college-level standards and earn the student college credit when successfully completed. The earned credits can also count towards the college core curriculum. The program targets sophomores, juniors, and seniors, and the courses are taught by college certified instructors at the high schools, online, or at the PAC campus. Each participating Dual Credit school is divided by Tiers based on their enrollment. These tiers are used to compare enrollment across school districts within each Tier group (3). Each school year these high schools are recognized for their enrollment in the DCP. Currently, we are engaged with 30 high schools and 1,500 students in the program. Our Early College High School (ECHS) program also serves to acquire students and build relationships with our feeder schools by innovatively blending high school and college education using a dual credit framework. The schools are designed for youth to simultaneously earn a high school diploma and an associate degree (or up to two years of credit toward a bachelor’s degree). We created this innovative approach in the fall of 2014 when we partnered with three public school districts and one charter school to begin enrolling freshman-level students in ECHS. In the Fall of 2015 we added an additional public school partner. All five initiatives have been approved and designated by the Texas Education Agency and there are no costs to students enrolled in the program. Our partnering school districts include: Harlandale, Somerset (Consortium with Lytle and Poteet), South San Antonio, Southside, and New Frontiers Charter School. There are currently a total of 837 students participating in the program with 455 freshmen and 288 sophomores enrolled in at least one college course. Overall, 743 total students (89%) are enrolled in at least one course. Relationship building approaches focused on retention of enrolled students and other existing customers emphasize meeting requirements and exceeding expectations. We build relationships with students through personalized, innovative service offerings


18

such as our efforts to provide assistance in transferring or gaining employment as graduation nears; and a variety of personal communications as illustrated in Figure 3.2-2. An important retention factor for students is the ease of access to a four-year institution, therefore, we place great emphasis on developing relationships with transfer schools and have signed Transfer Articulation MOUs and developed transfer guides with most of the schools in San Antonio as well as additional schools in the state. Students following these transfer guides are provided clear pathways based on their program and institution of choice. For example, a student interested in UTSA’s Mechanical Engineering (M.E.) program would complete the coursework on the M.E. transfer guide, meet the College of Engineering’s minimum GPA requirements (Cumulative and Science), and be eligible for admission.

We provide First Time In College (FTIC) students particular emphasis to help enhance their retention. They are e-mailed and called every week in order to answer any questions they may have and offer advice on which on campus resources are available to them. Students who have completed at least 42 college level hours are sent post cards and called to visit their advisors to determine how soon they can graduate. Students who do not register early are contacted via telephone and e-mail to register for courses. Students who do not return are contacted via telephone and encouraged to reenroll and/or asked why they are taking the semester off or where they transferred. Due to the nature of the community college, most student engagement occurs within the classroom. To that end, our use of interactive learning has been productive in building student engagement. To increase the depth of engagement, faculty employ a variety of strategies including student research projects, student participation in the development of classroom learning events, student involvement in sustainability projects, and actual learning opportunities. In addition, we have focused on engagement outside the classroom with opportunities for social engagement, learning, leadership building, and wellness through various programs and sports activities. We also engage students and the community by providing various cultural and educational events on campus. To enhance both retention of and engagement with students we have adopted 4DX, as explained in Area 1.1b(2). Our College WIG is to increase degrees and certificates earned by our students and we strive to increase the number of graduation applications in the spring and summer terms by reaching out to students, making contact, and setting advising appointments. In Student Success, for example, our supporting WIG is to increase student persistence rates by establishing the following standards for each staff member to follow: • Greet and introduce yourself sincerely; • Use the student’s name at least twice; • Thank the student; and • Ask if additional resources/assistance is needed.

A fifth standard is determined within each Unit. For example, the Advising Center asks their students a “Did you know…” question and informs them of a helpful service, event or piece of information the student may not known. Every day each employee engages with at least one student to provide useful information. We leverage social media to manage and enhance our image through the methods described in Area 3.1a(1). Our image is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) that is a pillar of the South San Antonio community dedicated to providing high quality education that is accessible, and programs and resources that ensure success. Our Value Proposition is: “Distinct Programs, Early Access, with a Focus on the Arts and Sciences.” Our Public Information Officer manages our efforts

Acquire Retain Engage Students

College Connection Advising Interactive learning Dual Credit NSO Intrusive interaction ECHS Course placement Campus events Senior Summer e-mail and calls with

registration reminders Post cards and calls to impending graduates

Off-Campus sites and coordinators

Calls to those who fail to return

FTIC e-mail and phone contacts

TRiO Upward Bound

E-mail to those who withdraw or fail

Campus programs and activities

Website and Social Media

Experiential learning First week experience surveys

Campus tours, brochures, banners

FTIC e-mail and phone contacts

Campus tours

GED/ESL Recruitment

Financial Aid Bashes Campaigning

CTE Initiatives Puente Project 4DX standards Veteran's Facebook page

4DX Standards

Feeder Schools Recruitment Initiatives

MOUs HS recruiting visits

Parent/College Nights

Meetings with HS counselors

Early College High School ECHS Consortium Campus Visits Prof Development Parent Night Mtgs Advising Collaboration

Transfer Schools University Outreach

Joint Admission Agreements

Faculty to Faculty visits

Transfer Guides Advisor visits Employers

Business & Industry Fairs

Advisory Boards Advisory Boards

Business &Industry Recruitment

Customized Training

Community Community Outreach

Community Outreach Community Outreach

PACfest PACfest PACfest Aquatic Center and Facebook page

Aquatic Center and Facebook page

Aquatic Center and Facebook page

Celebración Facebook page



Discover PAC Figure 3.2-2 Relationship Building Methods


19

to enhance our image, build stronger customer engagement, and create stronger appeal for the College. (2) Complaint Management – We use both informal and formal methods to gather and address complaints. Informally, faculty and staff are generally the first-line receivers of complaints and they are empowered to immediately address issues to minimize dissatisfaction and demonstrate our desire to be as responsive as possible to all concerns and to whomever is raising them. Formally, we maintain a traditional academic and student grievance process that allows students to petition for action regarding grades and other academic issues. In addition to this formal process, complaints are managed through our Feedback Management Process (FMP) shown in Figure 3.2-3. This process creates an effective flow of documentation, tracking, and follow-up to ensure issues are promptly and effectively addressed. Follow up communication is completed within 72 hours and includes a resolution, plan of action to resolve, and a dialogue to recover customer confidence. The PAC Feedback Manager (FM) provides compiled reports to Unit managers and the E-Team where trends are further analyzed and integrated with other information to identify organization-wide impacts.

Category 4 Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management 4.1 Measurement, Analysis, and Improvement of Organizational Performance 4.1a Performance Measurement (1) Performance Measures – PAC has a long tradition of data driven decision making in accordance with our Values (Data-informed), and the PSE Leadership Model assures that measurement forms the basis for ensuring effective process performance in daily operations and plays a key role in the achievement of our SDs through development of District and College KPIs. We select daily operations measures to track work system and process performance as processes are designed, and also when processes are modified as a result of process improvement and innovation as needed. The third step of PDM, Analyze Design, and the final step of the FOCUS PDCA Model, Act, both include as one of their objectives the design of a monitoring approach for each process to understand if requirements are being met and to identify when process variations are occurring in an effort to preclude problems from developing. When process measures are selected, data collection methods to support them are identified and collection procedures are established by process owners. These vary depending upon the process and the specific measure selected. For example, student engagement and satisfaction data are collected through the CCSSE survey process, while student performance data are collected by recording course and program outcomes. Unit managers are responsible to identify which processes drive critical outcomes and ensure that appropriate process data and information are identified, collected, and monitored at their level. This permits a drill down from the College level directly to a particular process when performance lags or other issues emerge. Process level data and information are aligned and integrated at the Unit level through aggregation and analysis activities to support higher level monitoring capability. For example, Course Success data are aggregated from across disciplines at the Unit level, and from across Units at the College level. Unit Managers are responsible to ensure that process level measurement is a regular activity throughout PAC and hold faculty and staff accountable to follow prescribed procedures to ensure that daily operations are tracked effectively. Process-level measures are used to make judgments about the effectiveness of daily operations and work processes and include outcome (summative) and in-process (formative) measures (Figure 6.1-2), including actual performance data and perception data in the form of feedback from process customers. This permits faculty and staff to continuously monitor performance, identify improvement actions, and generate innovations to ensure the consistent delivery of high quality services to students and other customers. Overall organizational performance measures are driven by the District KPI and Target selection process and the PAC SPP. College level KPIs are aligned with those of the District and

Accept FM provides monthly report

to UMs and E-Team Grievance form

to FM

Refer

FM tracks form and routes to Unit

Manager (UM) Apply

FOCUS PDCA

Acknowledge

UM advises customer of

receipt

Resolve

UM investigates and resolves in 72 hours

UM communicate resolution to

customer and FM

FM update complaint

log

Report

Analyze

Correct

Implement improvement

Figure 3.2-3 Feedback Management Process


20

are used to monitor overall College performance and progress in pursuit of our SDs. The College Performance Protocol (CPP) identifies the top level student performance KPIs that have been chosen by the District for deployment to all five colleges and serves to align the entire organization in these important areas. These are shown in Figure 4.1-1, which also includes our budgetary and financial KPIs. A broader set of College KPIs provide for strategic alignment, linkage, and synergy across the campus and are selected annually during the SPP so they are linked to the SFAs, SDs, CAPs, and UAPs, thereby permitting an understanding of strategic plan progress throughout the plan cycle. These are shown in Figure 2.2-3. In general, KPIs are chosen to meet any of the following criteria: • align with District, compliance or risk factor requirements

that need to be measured; • allow us to determine progress relative to the strategic

plan; and/or • provide data needed to understand performance in other

areas important to our success, such as financial.

The KPIs align the entire College as they are cascaded to the Vice Presidents, and to each Unit Manager, who incorporates them into their individual measurement selection and tracking methods. Each level of the organization evaluates its KPIs and results from the prior year, defines KPIs and performance projections based on its strategic plan for the current year, ensures alignment with higher level KPIs, adds KPIs that are important to its individual operation, and establishes short- and long-term targets. This process allows for evaluation of the indicators that will drive data collection requirements for the coming year, ensures alignment and integration of the measurement system for the entire organization, and provides a basis for communication of performance issues and challenges. We use the data and information that are produced in support of the measurement system to understand our performance at

any given time through the review process described in Area 4.1b. Priorities are established for: actions to enhance student achievement and success; identifying opportunities for improvement or innovation; identifying changes needed in service delivery to improve customer service; changes needed to address changing market conditions; changes needed to address changing student and other customer requirements; and changes needed to address the longer-term implication of current performance. Results in the KPIs provide for the identification of issues for corrective action, improvement planning, and innovation. A CPP report is created to document and demonstrate the status of the District-driven KPIs. The report provides updated performance levels for each of the indicators, historical data reaching back up to five years, benchmark data, KPI targets, and a trend line display. The report is published in February and October, and is communicated throughout the College in a variety of ways including E-Team meetings, CLT meetings, and Town Hall meetings. (2) Comparative Data – Comparative data to determine relative performance are selected based upon the importance of the KPI and the availability of the data. Generally, if a KPI is selected for District-wide application and/or strategic plan tracking it automatically becomes a candidate for comparative data. These data are included in the Alamo Colleges Benchmarks Executive Summary and are used to identify our performance against national and state averages and the other Alamo Colleges, to establish performance projections, and to establish KPI targets. To obtain comparative data results information we research third-party providers to identify those who have demonstrated an ability to obtain data relative to our KPIs and provide information about competitor or peer group organizations. Based on these criteria, we have chosen those shown in Figure OP-8 as our primary sources. (3) Student and Other Customer Data – VOC System data and information are major components of our measurement system and improvement and innovation initiatives. Item 3.1 outlines the methods we use to listen and learn, determine satisfaction, engagement, comparative satisfaction and dissatisfaction. These methods are determined through ongoing cycles of improvement in our student and other customer data collection approaches. The criteria for selection require that the data pertain to all student groups; provide relevant comparative data if possible; focus on student and other customer key requirements; and address areas of importance to us. VOC data are used at the College level to determine shortfalls and identify opportunities for improvement and innovation in meeting student and other customer needs and expectations; developing relationships; and creating greater engagement. Figure 3.1-1 identifies the ways in which VOC data are used. These data are monitored by the CLT, VPs and Unit managers in academic and student services areas. For example, CCSSE

Work System College Performance Protocol KPIs Student Intake Total Credit Student Headcount Student Learning

Fall to Fall Persistence Course Completion Rate Productive Grade Rate Student Employment 6 Months After Grad CCSSE Results Student Profile Data Number of High Risk Courses

Student Completion

Degrees and Certificates Awarded FTIC 3 -Year Graduation Rate FTIC 4 -Year Graduation Rate FTIC Transfer Rate to Texas Schools

Budgetary and Financial KPIs Operational Support Systems

Revenue Sources Tuition and Fee Comparison % Budget Expensed Labor Expenses as a % of Budget Market Share

Figure 4.1-1 Key Organizational Performance Measures


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and Noel-Levitz provide detailed analyses of student-related data and these are presented to CLT and all academic and student services Units. Areas needing improvement are noted and emphasized to the appropriate Unit or team. For example, when CCSSE scores indicated concerns with Active Learning, a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) team was formed to analyze the problem and propose solutions. The outcome was implementation of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) as an instructional approach, which ultimately increased scores. (4) Measurement Agility – To stay current with educational needs, the performance measurement system is evaluated annually for changes to the KPIs during District and PAC strategic planning. Changes are made as needed based upon changes in SFAs, SDs, CAPs, or other factors such as new measurement methods being introduced by the College. For example, the PACE survey was introduced as a measurement enhancement tool when it became apparent that greater focus on employee engagement was required. Unit level measures are also evaluated as part of the planning system as the KPIs are deployed throughout the College. Periodically, the KPIs are reviewed to determine how the performance in the measured areas compares to target. The KPIs themselves are also discussed during these reviews and changes are made as needed. Process KPIs are also reviewed on a regular basis using FOCUS PDCA as the processes themselves are evaluated. 4.1b Performance Analysis and Review KPI performance is reviewed at both the District and College levels. The PAC President provides progress reports to the Chancellor during PVC meetings where measures are reviewed and acted upon periodically. At PAC, we have implemented the Progress to Plan (PTP) review process and are holding PTP reviews with the CLT at two of their quarterly planning meetings as well as an end-of-year review in the early fall. During these meetings we review the implementation status of the CAPs contained in the strategic plan and the performance of related KPIs. implementation issues and/or results found to be in need of attention due to performance below target are addressed and plans modified as appropriate to allow performance to get back on track. Our review structure is summarized in Figure 4.1-2.

We perform a wide variety of data analysis at the organization level as well as the Unit and process levels to support reviews and turn data into information so that it is easily understood and allows leaders to make judgments and decisions efficiently. The Alamo Colleges Benchmarks Executive Summary provides an analysis and display of our current performance, comparative analysis of our KPIs to national and state averages as well as one another, and change analysis from prior year performance. The District Dashboard and the CPP provide an analysis of current performance; trend analysis comparing current performance to past performance displayed in run charts; use histogram and/or Pareto Chart analysis and provide information in those formats; and display an analysis of performance to current and future targets. To support Unit and process level analysis, staff members are trained on basic analysis tools early in their tenure. We also conduct analysis to support the annual budgeting process to plan the allocation of capital and operating resources for the upcoming year and set College financial goals. The budgeting process uses comparative data to analyze market trends, regulatory changes, and competitive issues. The budget is integrated with the financial statements to allow a monthly comparison of actual and budgeted operating results. District and College leaders regularly compare our financial indicators to the averages of local competitors, sister colleges, and national standards. 4.1c. Performance Improvement (1) Best Practices – On a semi-annual basis, PAC selects a best practice team to present its story to the District Board. This process is designed to showcase outstanding practices that have been implemented by the Alamo Colleges and to allow the District to choose practices that should be replicated throughout the organization. To support this initiative, PAC Units nominate practices that they believe to be worthy to the E-Team for consideration. From those nominations, finalists and the winning entry are selected. For example, the PAC Advising Center concept has been highlighted by the District for implementation at all Alamo Colleges. In addition, PAC and the District utilize Alamo Share, which is a SharePoint server to share data, improvement ideas, and innovations across the College and the District. Further, the College reporting system allows the President, VPs, and administrators to constantly stay abreast of extraordinary accomplishments being made by the faculty and staff, and sharing at Town Hall meetings and Convocations also reveals best practice activities. (2) Future performance – Three factors come into play in projecting future performance: our most current performance, which is displayed during reviews; the anticipated impact of the planning initiatives that are underway and the progress being made, which is provided during the progress to plan reviews; and updated benchmark data that allows us to understand if comparative organizations are making faster or

Team Review Areas Freq

PVC Updates on KPIs and comparisons as data changes occur; MVV; Strategic Direction

Weekly

VP Team

CPP, KPIs and comparisons as data changes occur; MVV; Strategic Direction

Weekly

E-Team CPP, KPIs and comparisons as data changes occur; budget development and status; staff initiatives, proposals and actions

Weekly

CLT Budget status; CPP, KPIs, comparisons; PTP academic initiatives, proposals and actions

Bi- Weekly

PRC Program Review Process Annual

RAC Review, evaluate, prioritize, and allocate resources

Annual

Figure 4.1-2 PAC Performance Review Structure


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slower progress than we had anticipated in our original projections during the SPP. If we determine that our relative performance is still on track as anticipated based on our original projections, then no action need be taken. If we are falling behind or moving at a faster pace than expected, then we attempt to reconcile the differences. If we are moving ahead faster than planned we will explore what we are doing to make the gains sooner than planned; if we are falling behind, we will try to determine if it is because we are lagging in implementation or impact or the comparative organizations are moving forward at a faster pace than expected. In all cases we try to understand the causative factors and then identify what actions we can take to get back on track or maintain the faster progress than was initially anticipated. (3) Continuous Improvement and Innovation – Performance review findings highlight areas of deficiency that need to be addressed by a course of action. The review teams comment on problem areas and make decisions on courses of action that will lead to continuous improvement and opportunities for innovation. They also recommend that Units benchmark high performing activities at other colleges. These initiatives might lead to improvements or innovations that bring Units up to a higher level of performance. Feedback by senior leaders through meetings, e-mails, and the President’s Town Hall Meetings and Convocations, lays out the priorities and opportunities for the faculty, staff, work groups, and functional-level teams to get involved to be part of the solution to problems that have been identified. Improvement priorities are disseminated to our feeder schools through meeting with them on campus and visits to the high school campuses as well. Key suppliers, such as our bookstore leadership, participate in strategic planning and leadership team meetings, and other suppliers, partners, and collaborators are invited to activities like Celebración and Advisory Committee meetings where we also convey this message. In addition, the College Technology Council has included Student Government and the faculty and staff in monthly technology demonstrations by various manufacturers of technology used on campus that showcase technology advances. 4.2 Knowledge Management, Information, and Information Technology 4.2a Organizational Knowledge (1) Knowledge Management – We employ a Knowledge Management Process (KMP) consisting of four steps: • identify knowledge assets; • collect the key knowledge possessed by knowledge assets; • store key knowledge; and • transfer key knowledge to those who have a need.

Our knowledge assets include the workforce; students and other customers; suppliers, partners, and collaborators. The key knowledge possessed by these assets that we need to collect and transfer for storage and future use include:

individual work process knowledge held by the workforce; historical information pertaining to creation of improvements, innovations, and best practices; student and other customer data pertaining to personal information; needs and expectations data and changes that have or are occurring; current and past organizational performance data; and current and past strategic planning data. Methods to obtain needed knowledge are summarized in Figure 4.2-1. In support of this process, technology systems are in place to capture and store the information, and then permit retrieval by those who need access to it and are authorized to obtain the information. These include:

Objective Methods

Collect and Transfer Workforce Knowledge

Work process documentation Exit interviews Daily Check-In Town Hall meetings Suggestions to committees/councils/teams PACE Survey and focus groups Point of Contact Service Satisfaction Surveys E-mail Team to Team sharing Team reporting Presentation of team learning or design PAC Procedures Manual AlamoShare Banner

Blend and Correlate Data to Build New Knowledge

Environmental scan process SWOT Analysis process Voice of Customer (VOC) System Cross-functional collaboration Organizational performance reviews CAP Development and Implementation 4DX Summit Media Site

Transfer Knowledge from & to Students, Other Customers

Admissions process Advisors Staff interaction with student Student Satisfaction Survey Website Social Media - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube Brochures Feedback Management Process AlamoShare Banner

Transfer Knowledge from & to Suppliers, Partners, Collaborators

Negotiations, written agreements, contracts Meetings and phone conversations Training Feedback and post-mortem sessions E-mail Website

Knowledge for Innovation and Strategic Planning

Environmental Scan process SWOT Analysis process VOC process KPI process Radical Innovation Process (RIP) PDM Model and FOCUS PDCA process

Figure 4.2-1 Knowledge Management Methods


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• Shared Drives – all Units have access to Unit-specific storage drives. Supervisors can request that drives be installed on an employee’s computer through an IT work order. Employees can share files and folders needed for daily work or ongoing projects.

• AlamoShare – each Unit has an individual space on the Alamo Colleges’ Sharepoint platform, which serves as a District-wide intranet. Within the custom spaces, each Unit can host public documents available to all AlamoShare users and private documents for approved users. All Alamo Colleges employees have immediate access to view public documents throughout the site.

• Banner – the Banner system is a web-based system used

throughout the Alamo Colleges to monitor student records and fiscal records. o Student Access - prospective users are trained in person

by a campus super-user or certified Banner trainer. Once training is complete, a formal request is submitted by the Unit supervisor to the Dean of Student Success and forwarded to the VP for Student Success for final approval.

o Fiscal Access - prospective users are trained online through the AlamoLearn training portal or in person by special request. Once training is complete, a formal request is submitted through ACES to the campus budget officer, who verifies training and forwards to the Office for Finance and Administration for final approval.

(2) Organizational Learning – we embed learning in the way we operate (referred to as “hardwiring”) through a series of actions. First, we provide structured training to those who are expected to hardwire processes and methods in the way they do their work to ensure that learning occurs. Second, we scenario train so faculty and staff members can run practical exercises and apply procedures in a setting that closely simulates the real world to reinforce what they have learned by practicing the techniques. Third, managers are normally involved in the learning and are responsible to follow up and observe their staff to ensure the new practices are being put into place and sustained. For example, we have "hardwired" the 4DX process by ensuring that all employees have the opportunity to attend the training; followed that up with selection of WIGs and supporting actions at College and VP levels to model the approach; then conducted Unit level discussions to facilitate collaboration on the selection of WIGs and actions to support them within the Units; and finally implemented the actions with mentoring and accountability methods to ensure that the new concepts were being applied by all. 4.2b Data, Information, and Information Technology (1) Data and Information Quality – The accuracy, validity, integrity, reliability, and currency of organization data,

information and knowledge are critical to attaining the IT strategic objectives and are dependent on both the effectiveness of staff and the data management systems. Staff effectiveness is ensured through a detailed recruiting and hiring process, the Employee Performance Evaluation process, and various learning and development initiatives. These establish performance expectations and boundaries and focus on the need for integrity, reliability, accuracy and confidentiality of data, information and knowledge. Similarly, data management systems are selected, developed and maintained to maximize these properties. As technology systems are selected, hardware and software sources are screened. Specifications are defined through the development of definitions, identification of needed data elements, and user requirements. This structure provides for integrity, reliability and accuracy of the data elements. Training is also provided to end-users to access/use data and reports. This training brings security, integrity, and accuracy to the organizational knowledge base. Lastly, the output is validated using data validity checks and statistical analysis to assure reliability and integrity of the reports. The approaches used are summarized in Figure 4.2-2.

Factor Method to Ensure

Accuracy and Validity

Training Audit reports Data field validation Input masks Error reporting Complaint data Vendor monitoring Relational database cross checking

Integrity and Reliability

User authentication Training Audit reports Data validation functions Comparison to standards Hardware and software monitoring

Currency

Computer access and availability Policies, Reports and Procedures Plan and Process Review Structure Work orders Training Help desk Network monitoring Hardware recycle policies Student data update prompts Employee data update prompts

Security, Confidentiality, Cybersecurity

User authentication Usage policies Data encryption Access log monitoring Virus protection User ID requirements Firewall File permissions Data redundancy

Figure 4.2-2 Management of Data and Information Properties


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(2) Data and Information Security – PAC data access is restricted to Alamo Colleges users with a valid Active Directory account. The level of data access depends on the employee’s role. Reports are generated and reviewed monthly by PAC ITS to ensure that security protocols are accurate and enforced. Employee separation notices to remove access are generated by District ITS when employees resign or are terminated from the College. Actions to ensure data and information security include: • access to college servers is restricted to ITS personnel; • District firewalls are used to ensure that data are available

only through network resources; • employees may be granted access to data outside of the

Firewall through Virtual Private Network (VPN) access, which must be approved by Department leads;

• we are 100% compliant with Payment Card Industry (PCI) standards;

• data transmitted to external organizations are encrypted; • College employees are issued and acknowledge the

Computer Users Security agreement to protect data and passwords; and

• for security and cybersecurity, we work with District ITS to maintain intrusion detection and protection systems. Regular Rapid 7 vulnerability scans and penetration tests are conducted on a regular basis. We work in tandem with District ITS, which scans the network for negative occurrences 24/7/365.

(3) Data and Information Availability – PAC uses AlamoShare to provide information internally to the workforce, with access to this information controlled by security groups. The College also uses the ACES portal to provide information to current and former students (alumni). The PAC website provides information to the general public as well as future students. This information is backed up nightly and is also mirrored on redundant servers and storage devices for 24-hour availability.

(4) Hardware and Software Properties – College IT ensures that computer systems are available to students and employees. We address the reliability of IT platforms by utilizing market and industry proven equipment as a basis for computer hardware such as Dell, Hitachi and Alcatel-Lucent for mission critical hardware platforms. Support agreements are maintained with suppliers with defined service-level expectations that limit outage windows. Workstations and Servers are replaced every five years, which is also the manufacturer's end-of-life date. The College has daily backup protocols for critical systems and data storage with a retention period of 30 days. Data security is provided through redundant firewalls with an encrypted, virtual, private network for secure access. Software security is supplied through passwords and intrusion detection. Spam and anti-virus mail filters further ensure data security. The Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) provides one-hour power support to network switches in buildings to sustain phone communications and three-hour

support to sustain power to the core campus network switch and server farm. Temperature control and fire suppression systems also protect vital hardware. Remote access by employees is provided through secure VPN connections. In order to ensure the reliability of the software products used, the District and College use market leaders in the higher education IT industry. These systems are proven for capacity and functionality. Because of the many years they have been available, they provide a high level of user-friendly functionality. Extensive testing and training are conducted prior to gaining user acceptance. The District maintains support agreements with software vendors to receive upgrades and enhancements as well as regulatory updates and code fixes. (5) Emergency Availability – The District-wide Network Assurance Task Force was created to ensure availability of information in the face of a large scale emergency. The task force has members representing the District and each College. Mission critical hardware is connected to UPS equipment that provides temporary power in an outage to each building. The College’s main communications closet and server farm is supported by UPS and generator. In the event of a power outage, power for the server farm comes from the UPS to the generator within 3 seconds, thus providing uninterrupted use of the server farm and outside access. The Disaster Recovery plan ensures IT continuity in restoring operations to an off-site location to maintain mission critical services for the College. Emergency protocols are managed and tested twice a year to ensure seamless implementation if they are needed. Category 5 Workforce 5.1 Workforce Environment 5.1a Workforce Capability and Capacity (1) Capability and Capacity – We assess overall workforce capability and capacity needs as part of the resource allocation step of the SPP. Workforce capability, skills, and knowledge, are assessed for current and planned activities. Assessment begins with an understanding of current capabilities. Job descriptions for all positions outline required skills and characteristics and have recently been updated to reflect current realities. Staff and faculty capabilities are formally assessed relative to these job skills through their employee evaluation reviews which drive creation of their plans for continued development. Organizational learning uses assessment of employees’ capabilities to develop offerings and to determine what new capabilities will be required to be addressed in HR plans. During the SPP, if the CLT determines that a skill or competency is required to deploy the strategic plan, senior leaders determine whether to hire for that skill, develop current personnel, or consult with external experts. We monitor capacity measures, such as projected enrollment, FT/PT faculty ratios, average class size, advising ratios, student services ratios, IT employee to device ratios, among others. These, along with current capabilities, are evaluated


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during planning and used to identify and prioritize HR plans and budget requests. We benchmark staffing levels against the state average, peer institutions, and sister colleges to determine capacity needs. Balancing current needs with longer-term workforce requirements helps senior leaders determine how to best leverage staffing dollars to achieve institutional goals. Capability and capacity are also leveraged through a variety of approaches designed to provide flexibility to extend our capacity including cross-training, use of part-time employees and student workers, and use of adjunct faculty. Discipline leads and their academic chairs work with the VP of Academic Success to examine annual student enrollment and growth in a given discipline to determine the need for full-time faculty and full- and part-time adjunct faculty. As an example, during the most recent recession we experienced rapid growth in enrollment, but we were able to add additional sections of classes utilizing our highly qualified adjunct faculty pool to effectively deal with the situation. Faculty flexibility decisions are made within the SACSCOC guidelines for sufficient full-time faculty support Full-time faculty support is reviewed annually to ensure flexibility while pursuit of excellent student outcomes. We ensure that faculty and staff are appropriately certified, licensed, or meet regulatory criteria through careful evaluation of their educational and career backgrounds during the hiring process. A change in position is treated as a new hire in terms of meeting requirements. Candidates must provide evidence that they meet these requirements to District HR before hiring, and faculty must meet certain requirements based upon SACS criteria for accreditation. (2) New Workforce Members – Workforce members are recruited through HR web job postings and other social media outlets. As positions are needed, unit leads submit their request to their respective Dean or Vice President for approval by the President. When approved, a request is forwarded to District HR including specific skills required beyond the skills specified in the job description. With approval, we advertise in targeted publications to support an increase in diversity of the applicant pool, particularly for faculty and administration positions, in an effort to ensure that our workforce reflects the diverse ideas and cultures of our community and student population. Administrative positions are hired using a search team from the hiring area and others from different areas in order to provide diversity of skills and thought. In hiring of faculty, a disciplinary team is formed to assess content and teaching ability. Required experience, certifications, and skill sets are identified and applicants are screened against these criteria along with alignment with College values, a student-centered approach, a philosophy of service, and a desire and ability to collaborate. All eligible applicants are reviewed by a screening committee of 4-5 members, comprised of employees within the same area

of expertise, to identify a pool of candidates that best meets the requirements for interview. After a first round of interviews, 3-5 finalists are sent forward to the appropriate Dean, Vice President, and President for a second interview. Faculty to be interviewed are asked to give a 15-minute teaching demonstration using a concept to teach. Hiring of adjunct faculty is conducted through an interview with the Chair, Lead instructor, and discipline leaders. In compliance with SACS-COC accreditation regarding faculty credentials, all faculty members must have sufficient academic credentials within the discipline and share the PAC philosophy for student success. Once professional staff and faculty are approved by the President (classified staff approved by the Division Vice President), the new employee’s name is electronically submitted to District HR for recommendation and final clearance approval.

Workforce members are placed based on their knowledge, skills, and abilities and how well they align with the job requirements. We believe that putting the best person in the position is an important key to success. For example, we place the best teacher in the classroom, regardless of race, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information or sexual orientation. Once new employees are on board, including adjunct faculty, they attend new hire orientation provided by District HR followed by more intensive on-the-job training by the Unit manager. We consider the first 90 days on the job as a transition (and a probationary) phase. The Unit orientation begins our efforts to improve long-term retention. On the first day, supervisors discuss expectations using the job description and the contents of the 90-day evaluation. During the 90-day probationary period, individualized job training is provided followed by an evaluation. Retention initiatives include ensuring a good cultural fit when hiring; personal learning and professional development opportunities, a positive working environment, a family-type atmosphere, and highly participative leadership. We have found that faculty and staff place high value on our student-oriented campus and dedication to student success. Adjunct faculty are retained by providing enough teaching sessions at times that are conducive to their availability and being sensitive to their pedagogical needs. (3) Work Accomplishment – We are organized around four major components: President’s Office; Academic Success; Student Success; and College Services. Components are led by three Vice Presidents; Unit level Deans, Directors, Coordinators, and Chairs; and include specific Units with unique functions and responsibilities. Each has a defined purpose, objectives, goals, action plans, and KPIs that are aligned with the College strategic plan. Plans are updated annually through the UPP (Item 2.2) and performance is reviewed frequently to ensure currency with changing needs and expectations (Item 4.1). Leaders stress learning and


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continuous improvement while nurturing an environment of integrity, collaboration, and teamwork. Our decentralized decision-making structure and focus on teamwork promotes empowerment and fosters agility and innovation. Job descriptions for each position reinforce professional skill requirements and our values and are evaluated and updated periodically. To enhance our ability to successfully live our values, jobs are designed with requirements that extend beyond the professional skills to include the ability to apply the values to everyday tasks. To promote Students First and Data-informed, for example, decision-making at the point of service delivery is authorized and encouraged wherever possible, and all faculty and staff are expected to work together in the UPP to develop plans, KPIs and targets as part of their basic professional requirements.

Although organized by function, Collaboration is also a PAC Value and we have a strong team-based culture built around teamwork and cooperation. Work is typically performed in one of the following team environments: Unit Teams, which are generally self-directed and empowered to share responsibilities, initiate cross-training, improve processes, make decisions, and bring in other individuals and teams who might contribute to the success of their work; Cross-Functional Teams, which bring different areas together to communicate across Unit lines and make decisions, solve problems, plan events, design and improve processes, create innovations, and provide feedback; and Ad Hoc Teams, which are formed as needed to collaborate on problem solving activities or address special projects. We emphasize a high-quality, vision-driven learning environment. Every staff

member is expected to participate in the "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" learning and development initiative to increase productivity and reinforce that we all play a key role in each student's future. Figure 5.1-1 lists the methods used to organize and manage the workforce to accomplish key work requirements. (4) Workforce Change Management – Our operational environment constantly changes as a result of enrollment growth or decline, building renovations, budgetary pressures, the changing regulatory environment, and District coordination of campus systems. We prepare our workforce for potential and actual capability and capacity changes through communication, ongoing development, cross-training, involvement, and teamwork. We operate with transparency and ensure that the workforce is aware of and participates in decisions that require change at all levels through the ELI System, Figure 1.1-4. In so doing, we are able to adjust to change in a manner that minimizes rumor, allows for input, results in agility, and maintains high employee morale. We encourage our employees to remain flexible, acknowledge the emotional impact of uncertainty, be proactive in how they incorporate change into their procedures, and stay focused on Students First. We manage our workforce to ensure continuity and prevent/minimize the effect of reductions by proactively evaluating future capability and capacity requirements during strategic planning. As strategies are developed, an assessment is made regarding workforce capability and capacity requirements to support them and plans are established to ensure they are addressed. Since faculty and staff representatives participate in the planning process they have a forecast of what is coming and can begin to prepare for the needed changes. We also integrate capability and capacity requirements with budget and enrollment projections so we can manage fiscal requirements on a conservative basis. For example, knowing that state funding was going to decline and likely to continue to do so, we have relied on a high quality adjunct faculty to adjust the academic workforce as needed so that our quality of education does not decline even in extremely austere times. When the need for workforce reductions occurs we apply the Reallocation of People Process (ROPP) to: identify those who will be impacted; notify those people; meet with them to discuss options; determine what the individual's preferences are; if desired, match their skills to other job opportunities within the District; facilitate placement in a new position where possible; or support their retirement or departure from the organization. We use attrition to the maximum extent possible to minimize the impact on the workforce. We also conduct informal discussions with faculty and staff in the affected areas to identify those who might voluntarily retire or be planning to leave the organization. An HR Champion is available for each campus to ease the impacts when changes

Requirement Method Accomplish Work

PSE Leadership Model/Work culture Job descriptions and requirements Team-based approach Cross training Collaborative work environment Defined work processes Workforce empowerment

Capitalize on Core Competencies

Personal attention to students Multiple community engagement methods Outreach to feeder schools Engagement with underserved communities Instructional and service innovation

Focus on Students, Other Customers, and Student Learning

MVV Unit Planning Process KPI Measurement System and WIGs Leadership reinforcement Employee performance evaluations 4DX standards Gen Ed Learning Outcomes Assessment

Exceed Performance Expectations

PSE Leadership Model KPI Measurement System Performance reviews Employee performance evaluations 4DX standards Culture of continuous improvement/innovation Program Review Process

Figure 5.1-1 Methods to Address Work Accomplishment Requirements


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occur and outplacement services and severance consideration are provided for those who are required to leave in an effort to ease their transition. We prepare and manage for periods of workforce growth through internal promotion and hiring approaches, as well the use of part-time and adjunct employees. We prepare our workforce for changes in organizational structure and work systems by involving them in planning and decisions where possible and educating them on the pending change and the rationale for it. Where employees are impacted we apply the ROPP to manage the transition and provide retraining or movement to other positions. The ROPP was used recently when we redesigned our Continuing Education program. 5.1b Workforce Climate (1) Workplace Environment – As a Data-informed college, we assess our processes and procedures to ensure a healthy and secure workplace environment, especially providing accessibility to all that require it. Our Wellness Committee is responsible to plan health and wellness initiatives and ensure that there is a focus in this area for all employees. To understand needs and develop programs, a Health Risk Assessment is conducted in even-numbered years, and a Wellness Survey in odd-numbered years. Initiatives include: a Campus Environment with a walking trail and exercise stations, fitness center, Olympic sized indoor pool, gymnasium, fitness training and water aerobics classes, and a basketball league that are available to all employees free of cost; Lunch-n-learn, which provides seminars on health and wellness topics twice each semester that are designed to cover the 7 dimensions of wellness - emotional, environmental, intellectual, occupational, physical, social and spiritual wellness; an annual Campus Health Fair where health screenings, including blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose, and BMI are provided and community partners attend to explain programs and offerings, and provide flu shots, prevention instruction, and smoking cessation information. Two noteworthy health and wellness programs of note are Journey to Wellness and the Walking Program, both of which contributed to PAC being chosen to receive the San Antonio Healthy Workplace Gold Level Award in 2014 after winning the Bronze Level Award in 2013. Journey to Wellness is our flagship employee health improvement program that provides participants a personal health history evaluation; health testing with height, weight, and body composition analysis; blood pressure and fitness level tests; a job stratification survey; work/life balance, health, fitness, nutrition, and general illness prevention information; a health risk assessment; health training with goal setting assistance; and an individualized health improvement plan. Originally funded through Participatory Budgeting, it is now funded with institutional funding due to the popularity of the program, and now concludes with participation in a local 5k event together.

The walking program is our flagship wellness program. It began as part of San Antonio Walks, a program provided by the city. When that program ended, the PAC Wellness Committee organized walking groups on campus. When the District purchased a step tracking program called "Walkingspree", we incorporated it to allow employees to use a step tracking devise that tracked their steps online. That since has been replaced by the "Map My Fitness" app that motivates the workforce to track their performance and progress. From a security standpoint, we have 2 to 4 officers from the Alamo Colleges Police Department (ACPD) on campus 24/7 to provide security, escort, and safety services. Parking lot courtesy phones allow a caller to contact ACPD immediately. To improve response times, ACPD officers use bicycles, T-3 (two wheels) motion vehicles, T-4 Electronic Police Cruisers, as well as foot patrols to maneuver around campus. Also, electronic access doors have been installed on campus buildings to control entrance after hours and provide ease of access to those with physical disabilities. Campus facilities are ADA compliant with ramps, bleachers, chairlifts, wheelchair accessible areas, sign language services, and an ADA compliant PAC website. Environment factors and KPIs are shown in Figure 1.2-2. To ensure compliance with all accessibility requirements, we adhere to all ADA standards in new construction projects and when making improvements to existing facilities. All projects costing more than $50K go through a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation review to ensure compliance. For smaller scale in-house projects, we accomplish our own review to ensure that we meet and exceed all standards. For example, we have installed automatic doors across campus in internal hallways; we are continuing to add automatic doors to restrooms across campus; and automatic openers and doors have been added to executive offices. In addition, we provide students with special needs extraordinary assistance to allow them equal access to the educational system. Offered at no charge to the student are services such as interpreting, note-taking, scribes during testing, reading tools during test taking, and use of various technology tools. For example, a blind student seeking his AA in Teaching degree enrolled in his last two teaching courses, both of which required the student to do 16 contact hours of field experience in P-12 classrooms. To ensure success, we hired a temporary employee to meet and assist our student to complete his internship. The student had to deliver 5 lesson plans to the class and observe 11 hours. The temp was responsible for taking notes and describing the actions in the classroom to our student allowing him to successfully complete the requirements and graduate last spring.


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(2) Workforce Benefits and Policies – General HR policies and benefits are determined by the District with our input and that of the Unified Staff Council (USC). The District offers a comprehensive and generous benefits package for all full-time employees (Figure 5.1-2), which is important in attracting and retaining top employees. We train supervisors to apply policies consistently to all employees and employee groups in areas such as ethics, FMLA, sexual harassment, Title IX, and EEOC hiring practices. Employees have access to a District HR Partner and Benefits Coordinator (whose office is on campus) to quickly answer any questions about policies or benefits. The Alamo Colleges Board tailors our policies to best leverage an academic workforce such as implementing four-day workweeks during summer, providing FMLA policies that maximize employee sick leave, and allowing telecommuting under appropriate circumstances. Benefits are also tailored for adjunct faculty including a customized training and certification path and an opportunity to qualify for retirement benefits. The USC evaluates and improves the benefits and services. An example of this approach is the recently gained approval for a new benefit to close the Colleges during spring break so the workforce can spend that time with their families. In addition, our people have access to lectures, cultural activities, and first-rate facilities. Professional Development and Training programs are available for all full-time and adjunct faculty and staff as described in Area 5.2c(1). 5.2 Workforce Engagement and Performance 5.2a Workforce Engagement and Performance (1) Organizational Culture – We foster a culture driven by the PSE Leadership Model and characterized by open communication, high-performance work, and an engaged and empowered workforce, and ensure that it can benefit from the diverse ideas, cultures, and thinking of our people through the methods identified in Figure 5.2-1. (2) Drivers of Engagement – We determine the key factors that affect workforce engagement and satisfaction through a variety of approaches that are used across the Alamo Colleges.

In 2008, we participated in a series of focus groups across the District using a process from the Center for Talent Management. This approach used card sorting to help identify factors that employees considered important to their satisfaction, and the results helped to identify initial factors of engagement. These original factors continue to be tested and revised through approaches such as PACE surveys, on-going focus groups, employee suggestions, and engagement in improvement initiatives. Based on all of this work to date, the key elements that affect workforce engagement for all workforce groups and segments are: • work that contributes to student success; • collaborative work environment; • empowerment - a role in decision-making; and • learning and development opportunities.

(3) Assessment of Engagement – Workforce engagement is assessed formally by means of surveys and workforce performance indicators, and informally by workforce involvement and participation in various activities and feedback from employees obtained through a number of informal approaches. The same methods and measures are used for all workforce groups and segments. The PACE Survey is the key tool used to assess workforce engagement and satisfaction. PACE is administered each year to obtain the perceptions of the workforce concerning the college climate and provide data to assist us in promoting greater engagement and more open and constructive communications among faculty, staff, and administrators. We collaborate with researchers at the National Initiative for Leadership and Institutional Effectiveness (NILIE) to develop and administer the survey. In the PACE model, the leadership of an institution establishes the Institutional Structure, Supervisory Relationships,

Key Services and Benefits Personal Health Insurance (no cost to employee) Life Insurance with AD&D; Long & Short-term Disability Dental Insurance Tuition Reimbursement Program Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Employment Benevolence Fund Workers’ Compensation Benefits TRS or ORP: 6% required of employee and 100% matching 403b and TexSaver Retirement Plans Living Wage for work study employees Personal Leave; up to 10 paid holidays; 10-day winter break; Sick leave and bank; civic; bereavement; military; developmental FMLA; staff vacation time (Faculty on <12 month contracts) Tuition discounts for employee child dependents Health and Wellness Center; Weight Room, Fitness Center Ergonomic Furniture and Tools ACPD & Courtesy Patrol 5-day spring break allowing workforce to share with families Figure 5.1-2 – Key Services and Benefits

Factor Methods Open Communication Deployment of MVV

ELI System Leadership visibility

High Performance Work

PSE Leadership Model Unit Planning Process KPI Measure System and WIGs Focus on continuous improvement/innovation Employee Performance Evaluations

Engaged and Empowered Workforce

Decision-making at the point of impact Collaborative work environment Team-based approach Participation in planning and budgeting Participatory budgeting 4DX Standards Faculty Senate and Staff Council

Diverse Ideas, Cultures, Thinking

Focus on diversity Recruiting and hiring approach Team selection approach Diversity workshops

Figure 5.2-1 Factors Impacting Organizational Culture


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Teamwork, and Student Focus climate factors needed to engage the workforce toward an outcome of student success and institutional effectiveness. NILIE has synthesized four leadership or organizational systems ranging from Coercive to Competitive, to Consultative to Collaborative, with the latter generally producing better results in terms of productivity, job satisfaction, communication, and overall organizational climate. Our objective is to achieve a fully collaborative organizational climate. The survey asks employees to rate 56 separate items on a five-point scale, with a rating of five indicating high satisfaction and a rating of one low satisfaction. The existing climate is determined by these responses and is compared to the range of the four managerial climates and also to a norm base of participating colleges across the country. PACE data are compiled into areas for improvement and strengths based on the highest and lowest rated items in the four climate factors. Leaders focus on the top priority improvement opportunities and employees participate in discussion groups to better define areas of concern, which are then offered to Unit managers for development of UAPs. Based on the survey results and input received through other workforce feedback events, we determine what issues impact workforce engagement and satisfaction, and identify action plans to produce higher performance. Retention rates, exit interviews, learning and development participation and performance evaluation results are also used to indicate workforce engagement and satisfaction. (4) Performance Management – The Employee Performance Evaluation (EPE) process is our method to conduct individual staff performance reviews. We have established several sub-processes to evaluate employee performance, and also to provide recognition when meeting or exceeding performance standards. By District standards, each staff member is evaluated annually by the supervisor using a Performance Appraisal Form (PAF). Staff are rated on Job Specific Duties and General Performance Measures that include: Communication Skills; Customer Service; Initiative; Knowledge; Work Quality and Reliability; Teamwork and Teambuilding; Organization, Planning, and Problem Solving; and Leadership. Particular focus is placed on: intelligent risk-taking and application of RIP (Initiative/Organization, Planning and Problem Solving); students and other customers (Customer Service/Knowledge); and achievement of action plans (Organization, Planning and Problem Solving). The rating period is from September 1 through August 31 and PAFs are due in mid-December. The staff member completes the form and schedules a meeting with the supervisor to receive feedback regarding performance over the course of the year, and works with the supervisor to identify goals and developmental opportunities for the coming year. Those are documented on the PAF, the original of which is sent to District HR, while copies are kept with the supervisor and employee to review during the next evaluation period. Performance Evaluations and Reviews are now available

online to enhance the ease of submission and alleviate paper documentation. Faculty undergo several evaluation methods since they are evaluated by their peers and supervisor. For the rating period September – May, a Classroom Observation Form is completed by the chairperson or Unit designee to evaluate the faculty member on his/her teaching methods and subject matter. After the observation, the original form is given to the chairperson with a copy to the instructor, allowing him/her to acknowledge teaching standards and remedy any deficiencies. Faculty members must also complete a Faculty Self-Evaluation to highlight teaching accomplishments, service to the institution, and any professional growth activities completed in the past year. The instructor then schedules a meeting with his/her chairperson to evaluate these categories and feedback is provided to inform the instructor if job responsibilities are being met using a Faculty Evaluation by Chairperson/Supervisor form. Finally, faculty members are also reviewed by a Peer Review Committee. This committee takes into account the classroom observation and self- evaluation forms to evaluate teaching materials and service/professional growth. This committee will complete a Faculty Evaluation by Peer Review Committee form and forward the original to the chairperson and a copy to the instructor, informing his/her of the strengths and areas of improvement. An innovation, the Faculty 180 evaluation model is being implemented this academic year after a three-year development and pilot effort. Faculty 180 is an online process that supplements the previous paper-based evaluation processes described above and includes a "faculty accomplishments" assessment. This new approach provides faculty an opportunity to give a fair and accurate presentation of their professional activities, teaching effectiveness, and service to the institution, as well as its commitment and that of the institution to student success. Faculty with more than 5 years of service submit a portfolio every two years; those with less than 5 years submit by the end of every spring semester. Rewarding and recognizing employees is regularly practiced at PAC. The Staff Council, a council of elected staff members, recognizes an Employee of the Month based on nominations submitted from employees. The Council votes and awards the employee with a plaque and celebratory gathering. Each is then submitted for the District Employee of the Month, which is bestowed by the USC acknowledging an employee who is then honored at the Board of Trustees meeting the following month. Other forms of recognition include the NISOD (National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development) awards; the Starfish Award; the Minnie Piper Stevens Award for Teaching Excellence; Years of Service awards; and recognition of employees at Convocations who receive Degrees and Certificates. The NISOD awards are presented to staff, faculty, and administration from peer nominations. A


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committee votes on who should receive the honor in each category, final results are announced at the Spring Convocation, and recipients are honored at the annual NISOD Conference. The Starfish Award is presented to an employee who is chosen by students, and the Minnie Piper Stevens Award leads to a statewide competition. 5.2c Workforce and Leader Development (1) Learning and Development System – Learning and development needs of employees are influenced by a variety of sources including the following. • For faculty - evidence-based practices and research

concerning teaching and learning, student focus groups, employer and community needs, and our strategic planning process;

• For staff - evidence-based practices concerning recruitment and retention strategies, student focus groups, needs of the community, and the strategic planning process;

• Each Unit - sets performance goals based on needs identified. Training is accomplished via group trainings, conferences, and other individualized training needs.

Our training model consists of the following categories: • Instructional Innovation - Learning-centered teaching

practices such as problem-based learning, learning communities, teaching with technology, and active and collaborative learning techniques; distance learning education to include the Distance Learning Certification Course, BioSig, and online course design, delivery, and course management techniques.

• Continuous Improvement - Strategic Planning Process; Unit Planning Process; Resource Allocation Process; Project Management; Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes; Baldrige; PDM; and FOCUS PDCA.

• Employee Development - Seven Habits of Highly Effective People; 4DX; Unit Cross Training; Student Success Professional Development programs; Opportunities for Conference Travel; and Employee Development Day.

• Leadership Development - ALAS; Emerging Leaders; Leadership development programs through various Chambers of Commerce and community organizations; and college mentoring programs.

• Required Training - New Employee Orientation; Sexual Harassment Prevention; Ethics; Title IX; General Safety; Emergency Management; Defensive Driving; Drug-Free Workplace; Safe Environment Awareness; and Drug Abuse Prevention.

The training model aligns with the PAC strategic plan and employee performance plans and metrics identified in the EPE and Faculty 180 reviews. For example, to support our SD of empowering students for success the faculty participate in a nine-month cohort model of training with peers to implement Problem-Based Learning (PBL) instructional approaches.

These call for students to examine real world problems to understand disciplinary and interdisciplinary content and apply their learning through assessments which require more employer-desired skills. PAC is one of the first community colleges to dedicate resources to a problem-based learning faculty development program, which was created in response to student focus groups calling for more active learning in the classroom. The training model is also incorporated into AlamoTalent where employees sign up for professional development events, participate and complete session evaluations, record attendance, and provide an employee profile of all enrichment opportunities completed. In this way, we ensure 100% compliance with required training. Special features are also incorporated into our learning and development activities. For example, New Employee Orientation includes assignment of an informal mentor, the Alamo Amigo, to new employees. The goals of this program are to create a welcoming presence for new employees, strengthen partnerships for HR and campus personnel, establish a network for future collaboration, and ensure a sense of belonging for all employees. After 90 days in their new role, employees are invited to meet with the Chancellor and Associate Vice Chancellor of HR in a group setting for a feedback session on their experience as a new hire to continuously improve future new employees’ experiences and processes. Transfer of knowledge from retiring or departing employees is accomplished through network drives housing documents and data, the Alamo Share intranet housing unit-specific information, and the AlamoTalent Knowledge Bank housing key insights and information posted by employees. In addition, this is accomplished through informal exchange of information directly from the individuals leaving to their Unit. Managers and supervisor within Units also create a succession plan to ensure the stability of the Unit, identifying individuals within the organization who may perform the job on an interim basis until the new hire is selected. Reinforcement of new knowledge and skills on the job is accomplished through mentoring and observation by supervisors and other employees. In addition, since learning and development are part of employee development plans, a review of progress occurs to ensure that the new skills and knowledge are being effectively applied. (2) Learning and Development Effectiveness – Participants and trainers evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of our learning and development systems through Kirkpatrick’s four-level training evaluation model. To demonstrate, in order to best serve our students, additional advisers were hired in order to reduce the student to adviser ratio, assign the same advisor to students for their entire time at PAC, and apply intrusive advising skills. The goal is for each adviser to have a caseload of no more than 350 students to serve them during their PAC educational journey. An extensive semester-long Certified


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Advisor Training (CAT) was developed to ensure advisers had the necessary skill set to serve students from entry to completion and provides an excellent example to demonstrate how professional development programs are assessed. At Kirkpatrick Level 1, participants provide their feedback on the quality of the training and the applicability to their job functions. As an example, all 17 participants who attended CAT indicated that the overall quality of the training was either “good” or “excellent.” Moreover, participants rated the level of instruction 4.17 on a 5-point scale. At Kirkpatrick Level 2 the focus is on how much the knowledge of participants increased as a result of the training. Participants rated their understanding of the training components 4.5 out of 5. Also, each participant successfully completed each module assessment required for completion, such as how to conduct drop advising and perform student success management during the first and second week. The third level of Kirkpatrick is behavior, specifically how the participants applied the information they learned. In our example, advisors were assigned a caseload of 350 students and were asked to apply the information from CAT to their job of advising students. In so doing, the advisors effectively performed graduation advising by auditing the student’s Individual Success Plan just as they were trained to do. This is required for each student prior to graduating. The fourth level of Kirkpatrick is the benefit of the training to the organization in terms of the KPIs established. In this case, the number of degrees and certificates awarded increased from 930 to 1,165 and the 3-year graduate rate for full-time and part-time FTIC cohorts increased slightly. Although a third KPI, transfer rates, declined slightly, this has provided an opportunity for refinements to the training to ensure all performance metrics are improved. Another improvement identified through the CAT example is to identify multiple KPIs to assess learning and development effectiveness. Engagement and satisfaction results are correlated with other KPIs and analyzed in relation to other performance results to determine the impact that human resource-related performance has on key organizational results. Where a correlation is established to suggest that faculty and staff performance, perceptions, or views are adversely or positively impacting overall performance, actions are identified and taken to make improvements or to further capitalize on a positive impact. For example, we correlate student satisfaction with PACE results to determine the degree to which workforce engagement impacts student satisfaction and engagement. (3) Career Progression – Organizationally, we manage career progression through the Talent Management System (TMS) that is available to the workforce and facilitates career planning and development. AlamoTalent is the centralized online hub that houses tools and resources for career planning and development and allows the review of workforce capabilities via talent pools, employee profiles, résumés, and additional certifications. This is integrated into learning

modules to ensure top performers are candidates for career progression. AlamoTalent also allows us to create talent strategies and talent pools based on learning and performance measures and results. As part of this evaluation activity, supervisors discuss career progression opportunities with their employees and assist them in creating a development plan to help them achieve their goals. From a workforce perspective, AlamoTalent gives employees a method to access required learning and development (e.g., Ethics Training, Active Shooter) and that which is optional to enhance their job skills, and allows each person to access a personal transcript that keeps track of completed sessions. All training is free and there is no limit as to what an individual can complete. In addition, an employee can post a resume and add career preferences for others to see in creating new career paths. AlamoTalent also provides access to job postings and new career opportunities via Talent Search, a weekly email bulletin of open positions throughout the Alamo Colleges. In addition, we have implemented an innovative Interim Assignments Process that gives employees the opportunity to step into jobs as “interim” assignments. This allows both the employee and manager gain familiarity with new and growing roles. Employees have the opportunity to learn new skills while being compensated for their assignment, and then may apply for the position if they feel it is a good fit. This permits managers the opportunity to see the employee “in action” and gain an understanding of readiness for the position or if further development is needed. Promotion occurs from within our own ranks wherever possible to preserve the resources invested in integrating employees into the culture and to retain the organizational knowledge developed by the workforce. While our regulatory environment places limitations on succession planning and we are not allowed to pre-select individuals for more senior leadership positions, ALAS and ELP described in Item 1.1a(3) provide a strong foundation for leadership development and along with our vibrant learning and development system produce highly qualified individuals ready to compete for and assume positions of greater responsibility in both leadership and management. For example, four college presidents from Alamo Colleges retired in the last four years and national searches were conducted to find the best qualified replacements. Two of the four selected were internal candidates. EGORY 6: OPERATION Category 6 Operations 6.1 Work Processes 6.1a Program, Service and Process Design (1) Program, Service and Process Requirements – We determine key program, service and process requirements by collecting data directly from students and other customers in accordance with the PAC Design Model (PDM) (Figure 6.1-1). The VOC process provides the majority of the data that are


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used by program, service and process design teams to formulate customer-driven requirements, but teams make direct contact with customers themselves to verify needs and expectations. In addition, we recognize that there are operational requirements for programs, services, and processes that may have to be established based on stakeholder needs or concerns including the community, PAC teams, faculty and staff members, suppliers, collaborators, partners, and other interested parties, so we research this area as well. The regulatory and accreditation environment is also a driver of process requirements and it too is evaluated as a step in the requirements definition process. Key work processes and associated requirements are shown in Figure 6.1-2. (2) Design Concepts – We use PDM to design or redesign educational programs, services, work processes and innovations to meet all requirements. This model was created based on the Plan, Do, Check, Act concept to ensure that process teams and owners across the organization would have a consistent and easy approach to use in design and redesign initiatives. Faculty and staff members are provided an introduction in the use of the model early in their employment, and design team members and process owners receive more detailed follow-up training as needed. The need to design or redesign a new educational program, service or work process is often determined during strategic planning based on data compiled from working sessions held during plan development; Advisory Committee, employer, or faculty input; community input; from Voice of the Customer input; or based on technology advances, regulatory and compliance requirements, and/or process performance results. When the need is verified, the PDM is applied using the following seven steps.

Identify Opportunity – form the design team; establish a mission statement to define the need and the outcome expected; identify measures and constraints; establish team structure to include the potential involvement of students and other customers, program, service, and process suppliers, faculty and staff, and community members. Develop Conceptual Design – determine the educational program, service, or process customers; identify student and other customer needs and expectations from the VOC System (Figure 3.1-1), regulatory and accreditation requirements, and organizational needs; translate needs and expectations into key process requirements; develop the ideal process flow to achieve maximum efficiency, effectiveness, and agility; explore technology and benchmarking opportunities; create initial design; evaluate financial impact; confirm targets and timelines; develop outcome statement. Analyze Design – if a new design, present to stakeholders for review and coordination; assess efficiency and effectiveness of design to include cycle time, productivity, and cost controls; confirm KPIs and performance targets; analyze and address potential safety issues; and proactively address potential errors and rework. If an existing process identify problems and solution alternatives; conduct root cause analysis as needed; select best solution; and adjust the program, service, process or innovation accordingly; for all designs assess to ensure agility and customer value. Implement – develop an implementation plan including barriers to implementation; set goals for efficiency and effectiveness; conduct a pilot or test of the program, service, process, or innovation; identify and correct problems to ensure a trouble-free launch; finalize evaluation approach. Measure Results – collect performance data to determine if student and/or other customer needs are being met and requirements are being fulfilled; analyze data to provide a clear understanding of performance; reach conclusions about performance; verify effectiveness of the design. Standardize – hardwire the new program, service, or process in the organization through documentation and education; assign ownership. Develop Future Plans – identify initiatives to improve the process; identify areas for replication; evaluate and improve the design process; share information about the effectiveness of the process; report outcomes as appropriate. PDM has been used to design our Strategic Planning Process and redesign our innovative General Education Assessment and Program Approval processes. In addition, we have designed and implemented innovative instructional methods such as Problem-based Learning, Peer Mentoring, Learning

Identify Opportunity

Develop Conceptual Design

Analyze Design

Implement

Measure Results

Standardize

Develop Future Plans

PAC Design Model

Figure 6.1-1 PAC Design Model (PDM)


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Communities, and the PASS Program to help reduce the number of High Risk Courses using PDM. 6.1b Process Management (1) Process Implementation – We ensure that day-to-day operation of our work processes meets key process requirements by establishing process KPIs that align with the requirements during process design. Student and other customer needs and expectations are originally factored into the design of work processes in the “Conceptual Design” step and again when KPIs are identified to evaluate the performance of those processes. Faculty and staff members monitor in-process and outcome measures on a predetermined schedule to ensure that desired performance levels are being achieved based on the key measures of success that were identified during design in accordance with the “Measure Results” step of PDM. Key process requirements were developed during the design phase and integrated into the measurement system, therefore, the measurement approach allows us to determine if requirements are being met.

Included in the measurement approach is establishment of baseline performance, expected performance, and outcome goals or objectives. This permits faculty and staff members to determine if process performance is meeting expectations. If a process exhibits excessive variability or a problem is identified, process owners analyze their process to determine root cause and generate solutions. Both in-process and outcome achievement measures are used. The use of in-process measures allows for the opportunity to prevent variability in process outcomes. Outcome measures are used to create baselines and track performance over time. Student and other customer satisfaction is a standard measure for PAC processes, and this policy drives collection of feedback from students and other customers on a routine basis. In-process data are collected regularly to ensure the processes are performing effectively and although not all in-process measures are aggregated, some in-process data and many outcomes are aggregated, analyzed, and trended at the Unit and/or College level to allow us to identify ways to improve and innovate at both levels. Key process KPIs are shown in Figure 6.1-2.

(2) Support Processes – We determine our key support processes based upon the needs and expectations of our students, other customers, and the faculty and staff that are responsible for our educational program and service delivery. These processes are identified in Figure 6.1-2 and are components of the Student Support Services and Operational Support Systems Work Systems. We follow the steps described in PDM to ensure that these processes meet key support requirements in the same manner that is explained in Area 6.1b(1). (3) Program, Service and Process Improvement – Work processes are improved using the FOCUS PDCA Improvement Model shown in Figure 6.1-3. This model is used District-wide and is introduced to faculty and staff during orientation with additional training provided periodically. We initiate work process improvement efforts in a number of ways. First, individual process owners may identify excessive variation in the performance of their process and generate a process improvement initiative on their own. Second, we may

Work Systems & Key Processes

Key Requirements

Outcome KPIs In-Process KPIs

Student Intake Recruiting and Admissions Access

• Accuracy • Timeliness • Financial support • Compliance

Total enrollment Overall NSO attendance Financial Aid awards Compliance Service/Process satisfaction indicator

Daily enrollment Recruitment events NSO session attendance # completed FAFSA

Testing and Placement

Financial Aid

New Student Orientation

Student Learning Teaching High quality

instruction Learning Engagement Access Relevance

Persistence Course completion Course success rates (PGR) High risk course rate Tutoring effectiveness Achievement of LOs End-of-course evaluations Service/Process satisfaction

Drop rates Class assessment records # artifacts collected Monthly attendance

Innovative Inst Practices Tutoring

Gen Ed LO Assessment Developmental Education New Program Development Program Review* Curriculum Devel & Review Student Completion Degree/Certificate Completion

• Accuracy • Timeliness

Graduation rate Transfer rate Service/Process satisfaction

# completed degree audits # articulations Transfer

Student Support Services Advising Access

Consistency Timeliness Engagement Support

Persistence Advising visits Service/Process satisfaction

Wait times Disability Support Veteran's Affairs Student Engagement Counseling Operational Support Systems Information Technology Ease of use

Access Accuracy Timeliness Reasonable cost Safety/Security

Help Desk effectiveness Network up time RAC effectiveness Prof Dev effectiveness Injury rate Workmen's Comp costs Crimes on campus

# Help Desk calls RAC participation Prof development Participation Safety assessments Emergency prep Drills

Resource Allocation Professional Development Supplier Management Facilities Management Safety & Emergency Prep

Figure 6.1-2 Work Systems, Key Processes, Key Requirements, KPIs *Program Review applies to Support Services and Systems as well as Academic Programs


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create a process improvement team as a result of underperformance of a process, customer feedback, a review of comparative data, benchmarking, advanced technology opportunities, or some other means of identifying a need for improvement or innovation. Third, an improvement or innovation initiative may result from the PTP and/or CPP Review processes that are conducted by senior leaders. When KPI performance is below expectations, reviews often produce requirements for improvement. These are communicated to teams, Units and process owners as appropriate so actions can be taken. This may involve formation of improvement teams, or action by Unit teams or individuals. The overall results of performance reviews are also shared throughout the organization so key process owners can use the information provided during their regular process evaluation and improvement sessions. FOCUS PDCA is applied as shown in Figure 6.1-4 and we use it routinely to improve processes such as Program Review, Unit Planning, Event Planning, and Flex Sectioning in Developmental Math and a new 3-Course Developmental Math Sequence. 6.1c Innovation Management - We manage innovation from both an organizational perspective and a Unit/process owner perspective. Organizationally, the RIP is integrated with the SPP and its Discovery phase is applied during the SPP producing a list of Key Strategic Opportunities that we might pursue as explained in Area 2.1a(2). The CLT assesses these

opportunities in terms of potential benefits and the risks associated with them. If the outcome of this initial intelligent risk assessment suggests that the opportunity should be pursued, the team then identifies it as a CAP and it is moved to the Incubation phase of the RIP. If the opportunity is deemed viable after this phase is complete it is given priority consideration in the budget allocation process and enters the Acceleration phase. Creating the RAC, developing Participatory Budgeting, and implementation of Early College High School are innovations that emanated from this approach. From a Unit/process owner perspective, individuals are empowered and encouraged to create improvements and innovations and implement them directly if the impact does not go beyond the Unit and the manager concurs. If the impact is more widespread a proposal is submitted to leadership as described in Area 1.1a(3). in either case, the RIP is applied to decide if the proposal should go forward for funding consideration. If yes, the appropriate actions are taken to create a team, design the improvement or innovation, and ultimately implement the change if all goes well in the design effort. The RIP and PDM are integrated to support this approach. Participatory Budgeting was established to promote innovative thinking and provide funding for individual or small group ideas and it has been extremely successful with creation and implementation of innovations such as Journey to Wellness, PAC Chat, and the Virtual Office Environment. 6.2 Operational Effectiveness 6.2a Process Efficiency and Effectiveness In an effort to keep operating costs at the lowest possible level, we have taken a number of steps to focus on this important area. Efficiency and effectiveness factors are integrated into the design of processes in accordance with procedures established by PDM. Process efficiency and effectiveness are initially addressed by eliminating bottlenecks and redundancy in process steps, identifying those responsible for decision points so there is no ambiguity, seeking the shortest possible cycle time for the process, and establishing in-process measures at key points. The process is then assessed to ensure that efficiency and effectiveness are maximized, and goals are established prior to implementation. Measures to track progress and determine if efficiency and effectiveness goals

Step Action F Find a problem before the problem finds you. O Organize a team of experts and process users. C Current process must be clarified and understood. Do not

jump ahead to a solution prematurely. U Understand the root cause of the problem. Why is there

variation? Use the "five whys". S Select the root cause that underlies all or most of the other root

causes. P Plan how to execute the solution. Determine measures of

success. D Do the plan step-by-step C Check the measures to determine progress and success. A Act on the data. Determine cycles of improvement.

Figure 6.1-4 FOCUS PDCA Application

Find

Organize

Clarify

Understand

Select

Plan

Do

Check

Act

FOCUS PDCA Improvement Model

Figure 6.1-3 FOCUS PDCA Model


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are being met are used to monitor the process once implemented. In addition, our procurement practices work to drive costs down through centralized purchasing at the District office as explained in Area 6.2b. A number of techniques are used to prevent rework and errors, and minimize costs, including the costs that might be incurred by students and other customers. Among those are the integration of new technology, automation, procurement partnerships, effective process management, and collaboration across the organization to ensure seamless transitions from one process to another. For example, we incorporated virtual desktops in our labs to lower cost and provide better service to students; established a "one-stop shop" enrollment center to improve efficiency and service to students, and pioneered an eleven-week Open Educational Resources (OER) Summer Workshop in response to the rising cost of textbooks that now benefits hundreds of students each semester saving them more than $100K collectively. 6.2b Supply Chain Management PAC purchasing practices are governed by the provisions of Texas Law, the Alamo Colleges Board Policies Manual, and the District Purchasing Guidelines. Suppliers are selected by the District Purchasing Department using an Informal Competitive Procurement Process with Evaluation for purchases less than $50K in any 12-month period, and a Formal Competitive Procurement Process with Evaluation for purchases greater than $50K. The following criteria are weighted and used in making award determinations: • purchase price; • vendor reputation; • quality of the goods and services; • extent goods and services address our needs; • vendor past relationship with us; • long-term cost to us; • if vendor has a significant presence in Texas; and • any other relevant factor.

Based on these criteria, the District has pre-qualified a list of vendors and contracted with them to supply us as needs arise. We solicit verbal or written bids from several prospective vendors from this list and after evaluation of the quotes, we issue a purchase order to the selected vendor. In some circumstances, if the dollar amount and purchase type is right, we are at liberty to go outside the vendor list and complete the purchase with a unit procurement card (p-card). When we exercise this option we make supplier selection decisions based on our past experience and our satisfaction with the vendors. Potential suppliers may apply online through our website to establish a relationship and get more information about how to do business with the District and all of its affiliated colleges. Our Purchasing Department keeps a current file on prospective vendors, which is continuously updated with new vendors in order to maximize competition in the marketplace.

Suppliers are evaluated based on the criteria used for their selection. We survey customers and stakeholders at least once annually to determine performance; assess billing and payment results, and track attempts by suppliers to change contract terms, such as pricing or service delivery time. The Purchasing Department provides feedback to vendors on the results of the surveys, assessments, and negative experiences that have occurred so that corrective action can be addressed. When vendors are notified of issues they contact the affected College unit directly to mend the situation or provide an explanation to the Purchasing Department. We deal with poorly performing suppliers by withholding payment until specific contract requirements are met, issuing notices of failing service delivery, and negotiating modifications to include the supplier executive’s response to delivery issues. If we cannot remediate performance, we will assess other sources and, on occasion, terminate agreements. The District may continue doing business with the vendor, but ultimately PAC has the option to change to a different supplier of similar products and services if we desire. 6.2c Safety and Emergency Preparedness (1) Safety – We recognize that the safety of our employees and students is critical to the achievement of our Mission and use a variety of approaches to ensure the safety of our workforce. Our Safety Committee oversees all safety activities, recommends improvements to workplace safety, and identifies corrective measures needed to eliminate or control recognized safety and health hazards. The committee is led by the Operations Manager and VP of College Services and is comprised of members from facilities, faculty, staff, the police department, and College Services. Meetings are conducted at least quarterly. We conduct safety assessments to identify and address any recognized hazards using defined criteria to determine how to address hazards including: • Is the process required? If not, eliminate the process; • Automate the process; • Engineer around the hazard; and • If eliminating, automating, or engineering are not feasible,

use personal protective equipment (PPE).

We also provide initial and recurring training to our workforce to identify and address potential hazards in their work areas. For many of our employees, this includes electrical safety, lockout/tagout, ergonomics, welding, chemical safety, PPE, powered industrial trucks, fleet safety, defensive driving, behavior intervention, first aid/CPR, hazardous communications, and emergency planning and training. The District Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) Department is responsible to identify areas in which to focus our safety efforts in coordination with the College Safety Committees. The ERM tracks and reports accident and injury trends to help identify the areas of greatest need and works with the affected


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area(s) to develop a best practice solution and preventive training. Because of the diversity of our workplaces across the District, we develop site-specific solutions to identify conditions and variables to address identified potential hazards. (2) Emergency Preparedness – PAC has adopted the National Incident Management System (NIMS) in accordance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD)-5 to provide a consistent approach to the effective management of situations involving natural or man-made disasters, or terrorism. NIMS allows us to integrate our response activities using a set of standardized organizational structures designed to improve interoperability between all levels of government, private sector, and nongovernmental organizations, and between the District and all the Alamo Colleges. In accordance with our Emergency Operations Plan (EOP), we prepare for three different scenarios with the potential to affect our operations. These are: • incidents occurring within the college where PAC

personnel are expected to take a leadership role in the management of all aspects of the incident including the direction of mutual aid responders;

• incidents outside the college but affecting our operations such that they may influence a decision to suspend some or all campus activities; and

• incidents outside the college not affecting our operations with no impact on our ability to continue but we may be asked to render assistance to one or more local agencies.

The EOP consists of seven major elements and addresses emergency actions that are conducted throughout all four phases of emergency management. Mitigation - we conduct mitigation activities as an integral part of the program to reduce the loss of life and property by lessoning the impact of disasters. Preparedness - we conduct preparedness activities to develop the response capabilities needed in the event of an emergency. These include: • providing emergency equipment and facilities; • emergency planning, including maintaining the EOP and

the SOPs through an annual review; • conducting or arranging appropriate training for

emergency responders, emergency management personnel, other College officials, and volunteer groups who assist during emergencies; and

• conducting annual drills and exercises to test our plans.

Emergency management training involves five different drill or tabletop exercises to include Evacuation, Reverse Evacuation, Lock Down, Shelter-In-Place and Severe Weather events. The drills are conducted in these same five areas on a rotating basis each year and are led by Building Action Teams (BATs) for each building. All drills or live events generate the

completion of an After Action Report to learn and apply corrective actions to our processes. Training is provided for each team up to two weeks in advance of each drill along with a recap after the drill has taken place. Response - the focus of the EOP is on planning for the response to emergencies. Response operations are intended to resolve an emergency situation while minimizing casualties and property damage. Response activities include warning and notification, law enforcement operations, evacuation, sheltering in place, lockdown, and accountability. Recovery - if a disaster occurs, we will carry out a recovery program that involves both short- term and long-term efforts. Short-term operations seek to restore vital services and provide for the basic needs of the PAC community. Long-term recovery focuses on restoring the PAC community to its normal state. The primary focus of recovery is to maintain a reliance that allows us to restore operations such that critical mission components continue with little or no interruption. Our key suppliers are integrated into our recovery approaches with each required to develop an Emergency Service Property Profile or similar document identifying their critical equipment and backup capability and detailing their emergency contact information and procedures. Category 7 Results Throughout the results presentation various comparative data references will be made. Where the term USA is used for performance data, it refers to IPEDS and where the term "Texas" is used, it refers to data compiled by THECB. Both are a representation of the norm for community colleges across the nation and state. No information is presented by either to give clarity to the actual percentile rank one might fall in other than above or below the norm, so it is not possible to ascertain an indication if one might be in the top or bottom quartile, for example. Where the term "Alamo" is used, it refers to the norm for the five Alamo Colleges. For the major comparisons pertaining to engagement and satisfaction data, Noel-Levitz, CCSSE, and PACE, the comparison is generally termed USA or PACE, reflecting the norm for the entire cohort making up the participating colleges. Once again, no additional clarity is available to indicate a specific percentile rank among the participants. 7.1 Student Learning and Process Results 7.1a Student Learning and Customer-Focused Service Results – Figures 7.1-1 thru 4 provide information pertaining to our efforts to prepare transfer students for success. While our transfer rate has improved a modest 1.7% over the five-year period shown, we have closed the gap with the State from 12 to less than 5% and Alamo to approximately 2%. The story is different for disadvantaged students, however, which is an area of emphasis for us. Here, we have continuously improved and exceed the performance of both the State and Alamo Colleges comparisons as shown in 7.1-2. Similarly, Transfer


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Student Performance for all former PAC students at their new college (7.1-3) leads both the State and Alamo norms.

7.1-4 and 5 demonstrate our success in achieving student employment within six months after graduation. After a data reporting correction in F13, PAC Academic Students (7.1-4) have attained a rate on par with the State, while Technical Students have fallen behind as shown in 7.1-5. On the other hand, our three-year graduation rate has soared upward and we lead the nation by more than three percentage points (7.1-6), and the number of awards granted has increased as well (7.1-7).

7.1-8 shows that PAC has a considerably larger percentage of underprepared students than the state norm by more than 10%, which adds to the challenge of achieving positive student outcomes in all performance areas. Despite this added challenge, we are on a par with Alamo in Course Completion and Success Rates (7.1-9), outperform the nation and state in Persistence for all First Time in College (FTIC) students (7.1-10), have improved Persistence by ethnicity (7.1-11), and have had good success for underprepared students (7.1-12). The percentage of our underprepared students completing a college level course also compares favorably to the state (7.1-13)

48.045.4

41.1 40.8

45.8

44.241.4

39.9 40.638.6

44.742.6

43.6 44.344.2

30.0

35.0

40.0

45.0

50.0

55.0

60.0

AY11 AY12 AY13 AY14 AY15

%/of/Transfers

Academic/Year/

Figure/7.1?3/Transfer/Student/Performance/

PAC Alamo Texas

BETTER


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We measure Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) using the results of the CCSSE survey focusing in on specific questions aligned with the learning outcomes we have identified for our coursework. The results are shown in 7.1-14 and indicate that we have had strong and steady success in this regard with all indicators toward the upper end of the 4-point scale. Likewise, our pass rates for licenses are extremely high. (7.1-15).

7.1b Work Process Effectiveness Results (1) Process Effectiveness and Efficiency – 7.1-16 demonstrates the low level of High Risk Courses we have achieved as a result of the numerous Instructional Innovative processes we have put in place. 7.1-17 and 7.1-18 show Noel-Levitz results on a 7-point scale for student satisfaction with various academic and support processes respectively. PAC outperforms the nation in each of the eight areas shown, with Quality of Instruction and Tutoring significantly ahead. 7.1-19 and 20 indicate the degree of learning that has occurred as a


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result of New Student Orientation and New Student Convocation. We assess the student's level of knowledge in specific areas before and after the orientation to ensure that the desired learning outcomes have been achieved, and have seen knowledge growth across the board.

Although the data are limited to Spring and Fall of AY15, the effectiveness of Early College High School is clearly shown in 7.1-21 as ECHS students have considerably better rates of course completion, success, and withdrawal than other PAC students. Similarly, students who have participated in Dual Credit also outperform those who do not have that experience (7.1-22). Similar student success results are observed for math students who have received more than 5 hours of tutoring services, demonstrating the effectiveness of this service (7.1-23). Students see the value of the new Advising Model as well with the number of visits increasing dramatically since this innovative approach was introduced (7.1-24). The positive impact of sports club participation on academics is shown in 7.1-25, and the expansion of the OER program to reduce textbook expenses for students can be seen in 7.1-26. The RAC and PB approaches to budgeting have produced higher satisfaction scores in pertinent questions on the PAC 5-point scale survey where we are far ahead of Alamo and PACE overall (7.1-27), and IT effectiveness in terms of problems resolved by the help desk is very high (7.1-28).


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(2) Emergency Preparedness – Results of After Action Reports on drills and actions taken to correct issues are available for review on site. Performance is at 100%. 7.1c Supply-Chain Management Results – Results for suppliers are managed by the District and are available for review on site. 7.2 Customer-Focused Results 7.2a Student- and Other Customer-Focused Satisfaction (1) Student and Other Customer Satisfaction – As indicated earlier, Noel-Levitz and CCSSE are used to determine student engagement and satisfaction and administer those surveys in alternating years. 7.2-1 and 2 provide the Overall Satisfaction results for each. For Noel-Levitz (7.2-1), PAC results for the last three surveys are shown along with the most recent results for Alamo and the USA. PAC outperforms the nation in all three factors by a considerable margin. For CCSSE (7.2-2), the last three survey results for PAC are shown along with the most recent results for the USA. PAC also outperforms the national norm base in the two overall satisfaction questions. Similarly, for questions pertaining to student key requirements, we outperform the nation in all eight (7.2-3 and 4), and for questions pertaining to academic and support services in four of eight (7.2-5 and6).


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Figures 7.2-7 thru 9 provide overall satisfaction results from the Graduate Survey, the Community Perception Survey, and the Countdown to College Survey, which is an 8:00 a.m. to midnight registration event that is conducted to facilitate student ease of access to PAC. Positive results have been produced in all three. Student dissatisfaction is determined through both the Noel-Levitz and the CCSSE surveys. Each has produced very low dissatisfaction ratings that are

considerably better than the USA norms as shown in Figures 7.2-10 and 11.


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(2) Student and Other Customer Engagement – We determine the level of student engagement primarily by use of the CCSSE survey and the Benchmarks it produces in five areas - Active and Collaborative Learning; Student Effort; Academic Challenge; Student Faculty Interaction; and Support for Learners. Our objective is to exceed the national Benchmark in each which is the USA norm score shown. 7.2-12 thru 16 show our overall results. We exceed national norms in two (SFL, SE) and fall slightly below in three. 7.2-17 break these results down by student gender. Finally, a number of questions from the Noel-Levitz survey are grouped together to give us an indication of student engagement overall. Using this method, we find that our students are highly engaged as results in the six core engagement questions indicate that PAC outperforms the USA norm base across the board (Figure 7.2-18).

7.3 Workforce-Focused Results 7.3a Workforce-Focused Results (1) Workforce Capability and Capacity – As an indicator of workforce capability we have established a group of PACE


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questions that ask the faculty and staff how they feel about different segments of the workforce and their view of how students feel about their educational experience at PAC. 7.3-1 shows the results of this assessment. We have continuously improved in each of these areas and exceed the PACE USA norm base in all four. Therefore, we conclude that the workforce perception of one another's capability is strong. Noel-Levitz and CCSSE also provide us with some questions about how students feel regarding the capability of the workforce. 7.3-2 and 3 provide these results which indicate that there is a strong student view of Administrators, Faculty, Academic Advisors and Staff, with all scores exceeding the USA norm base. The CCSSE results show a very favorable view of Instructors, although Administrators did not as well. A list of PAC's innovations and best practices are shown in 7.3-4, some of which have been adopted District-wide, and all of which have been acclaimed in one way or another, providing more evidence of the high capability and capacity of our workforce. Figure 7.3-5 shows our high retention levels, another strong indicator of capability and capacity.

Key Innovations and Best Practices Generated at PAC

Cosmetology Program - the only public option of this kind in the area.

Participatory Budgeting - an innovative way to manage public funds and engage employees and students.

Advising Model - a breakthrough method that includes a case management plan for students; peer advisors; student learning outcomes; an advising syllabus; an advising center; and priority registrations.

PUENTE Learning Community - for first generation students who take a rigorous two-course English class sequence and a personal development class with a focus on multicultural and Latino literature.

Early College High School - innovative partnerships with five area school districts for students to learn through curriculum that has been specially designed to blend secondary and the first two years of post-secondary education

Emerging Leaders - prepares high potential employees by giving them the necessary mindset, skill sets, and tools to prepare them for future supervisor roles and positions of greater responsibility. End in Mind Goal: To have a leader in every seat at PAC.

Student Development Course Early College High School

Learning Communities Open Educational Resources

New Student Orientation Model Library a la Carte

New Student Convocation Center for Mexican-American Studies

Employee Development Day Maymester Term

Veteran’s Services PASS Program

Figure 7.3-4 PAC Workforce Capability

(2) Workforce Climate – Figures 7.3-5 through 10 show the results of KPIs associated with the work climate. A District-wide survey indicates that the workforce perception of the climate from a safety, security, crime prevention, and overall perspective is better at PAC than the Alamo Colleges (7.3-6). A customized question on the PACE survey is also used to determine workforce perceptions about the campus environment and the results by workforce category show strong improvement and positive indicators across the board (7.3-7). Injury Rate and Worker's Compensation Costs are both moving in the right direction and beat industry standards (7.3-8 and 9). The District security survey indicates that PAC faculty and staff feel secure on campus in various time periods. (7.3-10), and Crimes on Campus at have steadily been reduced and we now have the fewest of any of the Alamo Colleges (7.3-11).


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(3) Workforce Engagement – As explained in Item 5.2 we determine workforce engagement mainly through the PACE survey where a mean score of 4.0 indicates achievement of a collaborative environment, the highest of the four climate levels in the PACE assessment. 7.3-12 shows that PAC has achieved that level overall and in three of the four Climate Factors. These results show that we are far ahead of the PACE USA norm base. 7.3-13 displays the mean scores by workforce category with similar results, and 7.3-14 demonstrates results relative to the elements of engagement that we have determined to be of greatest importance to our workforce. Again, improvement and high mean scores have been produced that exceed the USA norm base. PACE scores indicating high Engagement and Overall Satisfaction by workforce category are shown in Figures 7.3-15 and 16


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(4) Workforce Development – 7.3-17 shows the views of the faculty and staff regarding professional development opportunities. Once again, good improvement and high scores are evident. Progress to goal in completion of our key professional development programs, 4DX and Covey, and our key leadership development programs, ALAS and Emerging Leaders, are shown in 7.3-17.

7.4 Leadership and Governance Results 7.4a. Leadership, Governance, and Societal Responsibility Results (1) Leadership – we measure senior leader two-way communications effectiveness based on the perception of the workforce relative to four communication-related questions on the PACE survey. 7.4-1 indicates that perception consistently improved from 2011 through 2015 and exceeds the performance of the PACE USA norm base. We measure leadership engagement with the workforce and ability to create a focus on action by the number of key and direct interactions senior leaders have with the faculty and staff during which time they reinforce the Guiding Principles, discuss the PSE, share performance results, and disseminate decisions, among other things. These are summarized in 7.4-2. The Employee Engagement measure is determined by the percentage of the workforce who complete the EPE process during the year. Standards for the year have been met in all areas. 7.4-3 demonstrates the effectiveness of senior leader efforts to deploy the values based on PACE results. Four questions related directly to our Values are used as indicated in the figure. PAC has improved in all four areas from 2011 through 2015 and exceeds the performance of the PACE USA norm base. An area of growing leadership emphasis to achieve the PSE is innovation. 7.4-4 demonstrates the effectiveness of this effort based on responses to a statement we customized on the PACE survey. This statement, "Innovation is encouraged at this institution", has produced results that indicate growing recognition of the importance of innovation amongst all workforce categories. Since this is a customized statement, no comparative results are available.


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Engagement Method Goal Result

EPE Engagement 100% 100% Convocation 2 2

Town Hall Meetings 4 4

Employee Development Day 1 1

CLT Meetings 24 24

Staff Council Meetings 8 8

Faculty Senate Meetings 12 12

New Employee Hiring Process 100% 100%

OnCampus 52 52

Figure 7.4-2 Communication/Engagement Results

(2) Governance – 7.4-5 indicates the number and results of external financial audits that have been conducted over the last five years. We have had no significant findings during this timeframe. 7.4-6 displays the ACCD bond ratings over the last five years. The District has maintained bond ratings for tax

supported bonds of Aaa by Moody’s Investor Services, the highest rating possible, and AA+ by Standard & Poor’s over the last six years. The reasons cited by the rating agencies include a diverse tax base, stable enrollment growth, solid reserves and sound financial position. These high bond ratings ensure Alamo Colleges pays the lowest interest expense for debt (beneficial to Bexar County taxpayers) and the creditworthiness is highly attractive to investors.

11 12 13 14 15 FM External Audits 1 1 1 1 1

FM Significant Findings 0 0 0 0 0

Figure 7.4-5 Financial Management

Bond Type Rating

Agency 10 11 12 13 14

General Obligation

S&P AA + AA+ AA+ AA+ AA+

Moody Aaa Aaa Aaa Aaa Aaa

Revenue S&P AA- AA - AA - AA - AA -

Moody Aa2 Aa2 Aa2 Aa2 Aa2

Figure 7.4-6 ACCD Bond Ratings

(3) Law, Regulation, and Accreditation – Accreditation is a major requirement for PAC and we have a number of accrediting bodies that ensure we are in full compliance on a scheduled basis as indicated in the OP. Full accreditation has been achieved in all areas as shown in 7.4-7. A number of other compliance indicators are tracked by PAC and these are shown in 7.4-8. We have experienced one compliance violation over the last five years, but we determined that it was unnecessary to terminate anyone.

Accrediting Body Timeline Results

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS-COC)

10 Years with 5 Year Review

Full Accreditation

American Veterinary Medical Association

6 Years Full Accreditation

Professional Landcare Network (PLANET)

7 Years with Annual Review

Full Accreditation

National Association for the Education of Young Children

5 Years Full Accreditation

Figure 7.4-7 Accreditation Results

Factors 11 12 13 14 15

Licensure % 100 100 100 100 100

Compliance Training %

100 100 100 100 100

Compliance Violations 0 0 1 0 0

Compliance Terminations

0 0 0 0 0

Figure 7.4-8 Compliance Results


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(4) Ethics – We determine how the workforce feels about our emphasis on ethics through a series of questions on the PACE survey (7.4-9). Similarly, we track how well students feel their experience at PAC has prepared them to develop a personal code of ethics and social responsibility through the CCSSE survey (7.4-10). Employees have recognized an increasing emphasis on ethics from a variety of perspectives and report a stronger ethical climate at PAC than that achieved by the PACE U.S. norm base. Students also reflect a stronger focus at PAC that exceeds USA norm base. 7.4-11 shows the results of our emphasis on ethical behavior from the standpoint of training, number of ethics hotline calls, and breaches of ethical behavior. All calls have been followed up on and all breaches thoroughly investigated and appropriate action taken.

Year Training Hotline Calls Breaches

PAC Alamo PAC Alamo PAC Alamo

2011 100% 100% 4 42 2 24

2012 100% 100% 2 29 1 17

2013 100% 100% 1 32 1 15

2014 100% 100% 3 40 2 16 2015 100% 100% 6 57 1 19

Figure 7.4-11 Ethics Results

(5) Society – The workforce participates in an annual giving campaign, in which they can donate to a variety of scholarships and programs; results show a steady stream of community

support in 7.4-12. The Early College High School program, 7.4-13, has had very good success in its first two years with more than 700 people participating and at least 120 receiving their GED. Since self-reporting is the method to determine that figure and also how many go on to college, the actual numbers are considerably larger but we are not able to calculate them. The Aquatic Center continues to receive rave reviews from the community members who make use of the facility, and both PACfest and Celebración have generated significant levels of funds for student activities and scholarships respectively (7.4-14 thru 16), with the latter taking advantage of a federal grant providing for up to $100K each year in matching funds beyond what is raised on campus. 7.4-17 thru 19 indicate the significant number of students and community members taking advantage of the VITA Center, and the number who have received Earned Income Tax Credit as a result of the support that has been provided, and the levels of recycling and utility cost savings that we have achieved through our environmental initiatives.


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7.4b. Strategy Implementation Results Figure 7.4-20 shows the results of our strategy implementation in terms of KPI outcomes. The change in performance for each of the KPIs has been generally calculated based upon the two most recent years or cycles of performance for which we have collected data. As can be seen, 11 KPIs have improved or been sustained at a high level over this recent time span, while only three show some decline. We believe this is a good indicator of the success of our strategy implementation.

Key Performance Indicators Results

Transfer Rate -1.4%

Acad Employment @ 6 Months +1.2%

Tech Employment @ 6 Months -6.4%

3 Year Graduation Rate +6.1%

Degrees/Certificates Awarded +15.7%

Course Completion Rate +.2%

Course Success Rate +1.2%

Fall to Fall Persistence Rate +3.6%

ECHS Growth +710

Noel-Levitz Overall Satisfaction +2%

CCSSE Overall Satisfaction -.2%

PACE Overall Climate +.04

Headcount +8.4%

Net Revenue +$3.6M

Figure 7.4-20 Strategy Implementation Results

7.5 Budgetary, Financial, and Market Results 7.5a Budgetary, Financial, and Market Results (1) Budgetary and Financial Performance – Total revenue (7.5-1) has increased over the last four years with state allocations for PAC and all Alamo Colleges leveling off after several years of decline (7.5-2 and 3). Sources include state appropriations; local property taxes; student tuition and fees; and other revenue, including auxiliary enterprise and investment income. While all Texas community colleges have received reduced state funding in recent years, our tuition remains considerably less than local public and private universities, providing an excellent higher education option for those in our service area (7.5-4). We have operated as


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efficiently as possible and increased other revenue sources in order to keep tuition rates and tax increases as low as possible. Grants awarded have been substantial in recent years, for example, although there was a drop off in 2014 due to the expiration of a large multi-year grant (7.5-5).

In our efforts to operate with the greatest of efficiency, we have been able to keep our expenditures under budget allocations over the last five years with the percentage of the budget expensed ranging from 90.6 to to 99.6 over this timeframe (7.5-6). Further, we have been able to reduce our labor costs so that they are now below the District target of 78% of overall expenditures (7.5-7). These efforts have allowed us to produce net revenue in each of the last five years totaling $7M (7.5-8).


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(2) Market Performance – Enrollment is a critical factor for PAC as it drives tuition and fees and our ability to meet budgeted obligations. Community colleges in general have been experiencing a time of declining enrollment as the economy improves and people return to work or are able to afford four year colleges sooner rather than later. The Alamo Colleges are no exception to this trend. 7.5-9 shows that PAC's total enrollment dropped in recent years but has rebounded nicely in AY 16 with an increase of more than 8% in the fall and spring semesters and we have increased our share of the Alamo market as well (7.5-10). Finally, 7.5-11 shows the enormous success of our new Early College High School program with significant enrollment growth, and the continuing strength of our Dual Credit program in terms of enrollment and credit hours where we try to achieve in the range of five per student (7.5-12 and 13).

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