AALHE 2018 Annual Conference

As institutions work to improve their assessment processes and structures, our roles as assessment professionals evolve to meet new challenges. Assessment professionals are uniquely positioned to forward institutional culture and processes regarding the assessment of student learning. Our field has experienced significant change in the past two decades, responding to accreditation and accountability demands and to internal critique from our peers in the assessment community and from faculty. Suskie (2009) discusses critical characteristics for assessment coordinators. We revisit her framework, presenting an analysis of career trajectories of assessment leaders, an analysis of current assessment job descriptions, and compare this to a participant-generated listed of key assessment professional skills and dispositions. Participants reflect on their own skills and dispositions, practicing how to articulate each to various audiences. Finally, we provide resources for professional development. Our continued improvement as assessment professionals positions us to "focus but adapt" our skills toward increasingly effective assessment leadership in our spheres of influence (Kuh et al, 2015).