Infusing Equitable Perspectives Into Measuring Institutional Outcomes

• In Event: Tests as Predictive Tools in Career/College Success

Abstract

Institutional practices need to be evaluated and critiqued to effectively move towards more equitable policies and practices (Pattern, Shahjahan, & Osei-Kofi, 2010). Relying on graduation rates to determine success fails to capture the diversity of students, institution-types, and needs associated with an increasingly diverse student body. Utilizing institutional data from a mid-sized teaching institution, this paper challenges traditional measurements of graduation rates to include a time-independent measure of active terms to degree. This approach more accurately reflects student achievement and accounts for swirling enrollment behavior. By reconstructing success beyond time boundaries, we begin to see greater levels of achievement for Black, Hispanic, low-income students (PELL eligible students), first-generation college students, and male students.

Author

• Fanny P. Yeung, California State University - East Bay