Mission fulfillment
The Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) requires a model of mission fulfillment, as described in the following accreditation standard:
1.A.2 The institution defines mission fulfillment in the context of its purpose, characteristics, and expectations. Guided by that definition, it articulates institutional accomplishments or outcomes that represent an acceptable threshold or extent of mission fulfillment.
In response, the university's President's Council and Academic Leadership Council have approved the following definition of mission fulfillment and the assessment thereof:
As described in this Strategic Plan, the University's mission statement is founded upon three core themes (Learning, Discovery, and Engagement), each of which features a set of goals. Each goal is measured by various metrics, or performance indicators, for which data are collected and reviewed annually. Core Theme Committees, composed of faculty, students and community members, have established for each metric performance targets that align with the final year of the institution's Strategic Plan (currently 2021) and have prioritized metrics for the core themes and their goals as being of primary, secondary, or tertiary importance to the university's mission fulfillment.
Each spring the Core Theme Committees assess institutional performance on all metrics as being exceptional, adequate, or unacceptable. A weighted average is then calculated for each goal of each core theme, and fulfillment of these goals is thereby deemed exceptional, adequate or unacceptable as well. In order for a core theme to be considered fulfilled in a given year, the average assessment of the fulfillment of its goals must be determined to be adequate or exceptional. If the final assessment of the fulfillment of all three core themes is adequate or exceptional, then the university will consider its mission to be fulfilled.