Quality Enhancement Plan

About

Quality Enhancement Plan

UNCSA is pleased to announce that its next QEP Theme will be Advising for Student Success. Selection of this theme is the culmination of a comprehensive ideation and selection process involving UNCSA stakeholders throughout academic year (AY) 2023-24.

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What is a QEP?

A QEP is a Quality Enhancement Plan. The QEP is one of many requirements for UNCSA’s accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). Institutions must identify a key issue for improvement that is focused on specific student learning outcomes and/or student success and accomplishes the mission of the school. The QEP must identify clear goals and a plan to assess their achievement. Institutions must also demonstrate that they have the capacity to initiate, implement, and complete the plan. In general, there must be broad-based involvement from an institution’s campus community in the identification, development, and execution of the QEP.


QEP Theme

The UNCSA QEP Theme is Advising for Student Success. Selection of this theme is the culmination of a comprehensive ideation and selection process throughout 2023 and 2024 involving UNCSA stakeholders. 

QEP Theme Selection Process

The Office of Academic Planning and Institutional Research (APIR) began soliciting ideas for QEP themes from faculty at the faculty meetings for each area in spring 2023. In summer and fall 2023, APIR solicited themes from individual faculty, staff, and administrators. In spring 2024, APIR visited all the councils on campus to gather ideas for QEP themes from key stakeholders: [Undergraduate] Student Government Association, Faculty Council, Leadership Council, Administrative Council, Staff Council and Graduate Student Council.

The QEP Selection Committee was formed in spring 2024 to consider the themes that had been collected and continue the ideation process. The committee comprised 23 members selected from across the campus organization chart. The committee analyzed the initial pool of ideas using a detailed rubric and through additional discussion, identified five finalist themes to bring to the wider campus community. The five themes were Advising and Student Success, Building Community to Impact Belonging, Career Readiness, Centralized Internship Coordination, and Courses for Non-Majors.

The five ideas identified by the QEP Selection Committee were presented in a survey to faculty, staff, students, alumni and Board of Trustee members. These constituents were asked to give each idea a rating, and also to rank the ideas from most to least preferred. The survey remained open for respondents for three weeks. Once the survey closed, results were analyzed by APIR.

APIR also discussed the finalist themes with the previous QEP Director and a SACSCOC accreditation consultant. With this additional insight in mind, APIR evaluated the five themes using a modified rubric based on the one developed for the QEP Selection Committee. Using the results of the rubric, APIR identified two QEP themes to recommend for consideration by the Provost and Chancellor. On June 24, 2024, The Chancellor and Provost selected the theme Advising and Student Success.


Meet the QEP Team

QEP Team Captains

The QEP team will be led by three captains: two faculty captains and one administrative captain.

The faculty co-captains will create and articulate a unified, consistent vision of advising for student success throughout the student life cycle across UNCSA. They will lead a committee of faculty, staff and students to bring this vision of advising for student success to life at UNCSA. The faculty co-captains are Anson Koch-Rein from the Division of Liberal Arts and Ksenija Komljenović from the School of Music.

Sarah Iler from Academic Planning and Institutional Research will be the administrative co-captain who provides guidance on research methods and supports the administrative aspects of the QEP.

Anson Koch-Rein

Anson Koch-Rein

Anson teaches Humanities and Literature courses in the DLA and holds a Graduate Certificate in Higher Education Leadership. He is always happy to talk about photography or dogs (in English or German) and cannot wait to collaborate on the topic of advising across UNCSA.

Ksenija Komljenović

Ksenija Komljenović

Ksenija, the first woman from Serbia with a doctorate in Percussion, teaches Percussion, Chamber Music and Professional Pathways for Musicians. When she’s not in the classroom, Ksenija is traveling the world, performing and mentoring aspiring artists. She is happiest when she helps students chase their dreams — no matter how wild or ambitious.

Sarah Ilher

Sarah Iler

Sarah holds a Ph.D. in Educational Policy and Leadership from The Ohio State University where she developed a passion for nerd work in higher education data and academic research. She loves the beach, crossword puzzles and cheese, and is excited to support the fabulous, meaningful work of the QEP team and knock UNCSA’s decennial accreditation out of the park.  

 

QEP Team Members & Working Groups

Stay tuned for updates about members of the QEP Team and working groups!


Get Involved

The QEP team is always looking for volunteers and feedback from the UNCSA community. Fill out the form below or email us at qep@uncsa.edu to get involved. 

QEP Timeline

Below is a timeline of the Quality Enhancement Plan.

 

Summer '24

Announce QEP Theme and Team Captains

Fall '24

Identify QEP Team Members

Spring '25

Announce QEP Project

Fall '25

Submit QEP Project Proposal to SACSCOC

Spring '26

Launch QEP Project Pilot

Summer '26

Refine QEP Project Based on Pilot Data

Fall '26

Full Implementation of QEP Project