Engagement Requires the Institution Too: A Case Study of a California Community College Using Assessment Data to Improve Student Success Practices

While the collection of assessment data by educational institutions is important, these activities are not sufficient to create an institution that is fully “engaged” with not only the data, but also in using data to improve decision making and student success practices within the institution. The institution must be ready to use the data for action and improvement. Understanding the process that transforms data into institutionalized knowledge is an important component of what institutional engagement looks like. This qualitative single case study explored the scope and nature of institutional engagement in the case of one California community college by examining how institutional agents undertake improvement of success practices through use of assessment data. This study sought to understand how those institutional agents interact with data, and what data-based decision making “looks like” within the institution by examining the institution’s assessment activities and data use systems. This study was guided by the following research questions: (1) How is assessment data used within a California community college to improve student success practices? (2) How is the institution facilitating data-based decision making