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Standard 3: Institutional Resources

 

The human, financial, technical, facilities, and other resources necessary to achieve an institution’s mission and goals are available and accessible. In the context of the institution’s mission, the effective and efficient uses of the institution’s resources are analyzed as part of ongoing outcomes assessment.

 

Rutgers, like public universities across the nation, is faced with severe constraints on state dollars for higher education as well as increasing concerns about affordability that place real as well as political limits on increases in tuition and fees.  While many states have seen economic upturns that have resulted in new investments in higher education, New Jersey’s structural budget deficits are likely to mean continuing pressure on state support for Rutgers and the other New Jersey colleges and universities.  Given this fiscal reality, the university’s regular assessment of the level and efficient utilization of its resources becomes all the more critical.  The need to

 

·          invest in current and new academic programs that will promote academic distinction,

 

·          maintain reasonable costs to students consistent with the university’s mission,

 

·          increase the effectiveness and efficiency of administrative operations,

 

·          integrate costly but essential technology into academic and administrative operations,

 

·          fund critical capital needs within a state system that provides only episodic capital funding, and

 

·          ensure that all revenue sources are being considered, maximized and leveraged

 

are all components of annual budget considerations.

 

The university’s recent introduction of an All Funds Budgeting (AFB) system provides a comprehensive framework to identify academic goals and a concomitant fiscal strategy for accomplishing those that advance the university’s overall vision.  AFB is designed to promote greater understanding of all revenue sources that support unit budgets and to encourage more attention to increasing revenue sources that units have more control over.  With a more transparent allocation of revenues (for example, a direct allocation of tuition revenues to generating units) and greater incentives to increase certain revenues by an equitable and more aggressive allocation to the generating units (for example, an increased F&A return to units), AFB seeks to foster a clearer understanding of the effects of unit actions on revenues and the trade-offs involved in expenditure decisions.  AFB stresses making priority decisions within available resources and leveraging multiple revenues to advance strategic objectives.  In addition, AFB provides units with more flexibility in the use of limited resources to encourage the best possible use of them.  For example, revised budget rules that permit the carryover of unexpended funds with a plan for the use of those funds encourage more careful and more strategic planning for the longer term use of funds.  And AFB provides for a clear process for making budget choices among all needs rather than a first come, first funded or the squeaky wheel gets the dollars approach to allocating scarce funds.

 

A critical component of the AFB process are annual budget meetings that the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Budget Officer have with all deans and the provosts of the Newark and Camden campuses.  These meetings focus on academic plans for the coming years, successes and challenges of the past year, as well as strategies to generate the resources needed to achieve mutually agreed upon goals. This linking of setting academic priorities and laying out plans to generate resources necessary for their accomplishment is critical to ensuring that there is a match between aspirations and the resources to support them.

 

To inform its planning and resource decisions the university regularly considers comparative data that benchmarks its standing relative to the other American Association of Universities public universities or other appropriate peers. (see standard 7, element 1)  For example, staffing, tuition/fee, and grant comparisons are important measures in assessing both the outcomes of university expenditures and the university’s relative reliance on particular revenues.

 

In addition, the university submits outcomes data to the Commission on Higher Education to demonstrate its progress in advancing state goals within, or despite, the constraints of limited and unpredictable state resources.  These data are also measures of the effectiveness of the university’s resource allocation decisions and provide a public accountability component to the university’s own internal assessments. 

 

 

An accredited institution is expected to possess or demonstrate the following attributes or activities:

 

  1. strategies to measure and assess the level of, and efficient utilization of,

institutional resources required to support the institution’s mission and goals;

 

The university sets its operating budget for the following fiscal year by estimating expected changes in mandatory expenditures (e.g., salary increases) and any newly expected spending additions and matches it to expected revenues from all sources.  Because Rutgers is a public institution, a critical revenue source is state appropriations.  Through the Office of the University Vice President for Budgeting, the university develops an asking budget that is provided to the governor’s office, the state legislature and the Commission on Higher Education (CHE).

 

The New Jersey budget process timeline involves the governor presenting his proposed budget to the state legislature, the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education developing a coordinated policy statement on funding for higher education in New Jersey, and the state legislature holding public hearings that include testimony from college and university presidents.  Once the budget is approved by the state legislature, the university sets tuition and fee schedules, which are formally approved by the Board of Governors.  The Board of Governors’ authority to set tuition and fees is derived from the “Rutgers, The State University Law” and the “Higher Education Restructuring Act of 1994” (at NJSA 18A:3B-6).  As part of the process, the Board of Governors holds an open public hearing on budget, tuition, fees, and housing and dining charges. 

 

The resulting operating budget does not necessarily provide the level of support that the university deems critical to adequately pursue its goals and objectives - in recent years state funding, at best, has been unstable, with some years reflecting severe reductions in state aid.  However, the final university operating budget in any one year reflects the annual institutional resources available to support its mission and goals.

 

Given the state’s inconsistent and insufficient funding patterns, the university has been actively looking for innovative strategies to make better use of resources, improve the management of debt, and enhance revenues.  The university created a Budget Advisory Committee to plan for the budgetary shortfall that was the direct result of the state slashing $66 million from the university’s budget for the 2007 fiscal year.  In addition to guiding the university in making difficult budget decisions during FY 2007, the work of the budget advisory group also led to the formation of the Committee on Efficiency and Entrepreneurship Initiative (CEEI).  The CEEI is comprised of a standing universitywide committee and subcommittees that have been involved in developing strategies for improving the efficiency of university operations and expanding revenue streams.  Areas that the committee has already identified since its inception in September 2006 for short-term savings include energy and information technology.  Recent efforts to conserve energy will save $30 million over 10 years and a new site license agreement with Microsoft will save departments money.

 

The Academic Excellence Fund is a component of the University’s budget designed to fund special initiatives including: (1) responding to significant opportunities for Rutgers based on existing academic strengths, comparative advantages, the needs of undergraduate or graduate students, or the needs and interests of the citizens of the state; (2) cutting across the boundaries of schools, colleges, and disciplines and advancing novel multidisciplinary interactions and ways of thinking; and (3) leveraging other resources committed to furthering academic excellence at Rutgers.  In 2004, the university awarded more than $3million in grants to sponsors of 37 original academic initiatives selected for the university’s first Academic Excellence Funds awards.  The initiatives selected for funding represent a broad array of academic disciplines on all three campuses at the university.  The program has finished its fourth year in 2006-07, by awarding $1.5 million in grants.  For 2007-08, a grants budget of another $1.5 million is planned.  The maximum that may be requested from the Academic Excellence Fund for any one project is $250,000.

 

In June 2006, the Board of Governors and Board of Trustees of the university approved a comprehensive debt policy for the university.  The Debt Management Policy is intended to provide an internal tactical framework for capital planning and overall debt management.  The Boards of Governors and Trustees approved the Commercial Paper program, which is anticipated to be used with respect to the financing of capital projects, implementation of cash optimization strategies and to provide financing for the costs of the acquisition and/or leasing of equipment. 

 

Recognizing the constraints on both state funding and student tuition and fees, the university is also planning for a major capital campaign to generate additional resources to advance its overall mission and goals. Planning for the capital campaign has also entailed the process of measuring and assessing the level of institutional resources required to support the mission and goals of the institution.

 

 

2.   rational and consistent policies and procedures in place to determine allocation of assets;

 

As noted in the prior item, the university recently introduced an All Funds Budgeting (AFB) system.  AFB includes an allocation of tuition to generating units in recognition of both the responsibilities of the school of matriculation and also the unit providing instruction.  The allocation of tuition also recognizes the administrative and support costs that are funded with tuition revenues.

 

In addition, returns to the generating units for F&A, summer and winter session profits and continuing education profits are all clearly delineated.  To encourage greater focus on these revenue streams in a period of extremely volatile state support, the returns have been increased significantly.

 

Similarly, increases in state appropriations are allocated both to foster universitywide strategic objectives and to units in accordance with principles to advance the university’s overall goals.

 

This transparent allocation of resources and a clear explication of the costs that must be covered is designed to promote greater understanding of resource choices and to facilitate more strategic thinking.

 

On the capital side, the choice of capital projects for inclusion in the university’s capital program was made only after discussion among the Chief Academic Officer, the campus provosts, and the Vice President for Administration and Finance so that all campus and administrative needs were fully vetted and the allocation of scarce capital resources was fair and equitable.

 

The university relies on a variety of policies and procedures to aid in the allocation of institutional assets.  These include the following:

 

·          Responsibilities and duties for universitywide budget planning and implementation procedures are clearly stated in the Rutgers University Policy Library

 

·          Procedures for the disbursement of extramural awards are documented by the Division of Grant and Cost Accounting.  These documents include policies and procedures on cost sharing, facilities and administrative costs, fringe benefit rates, human subject rates, etc.

 

·          Policies of the Office of Continuous Education ensure the proper distribution of assets derived from Summer and Winter sessions.  The Office of Continuous Education also has established requirements regarding its operation within individual units of the university

 

·          Policies are in place to distribute endowments held by each academic unit of the university (e.g., how much is available each year and how much is reinvested against inflation) (Rutgers Policy 40.2.14.C)

 

·          The negotiation of contracts with unions that represent various groupings of faculty and staff.  The labor bargaining process results in collective bargaining agreements that determine how a substantial portion of the university’s operational budget is distributed

 

 

·          The process for distributing merit pay awards among faculty and staff, as stipulated in Faculty Academic Increment Service Program (FASIP) and Pay for Performance guidelines

 

·          The use of information technology resources in support of the university’s mission of research, teaching and service.  The IT Project Governance Committee is a universitywide group of faculty and staff that is charged with establishing priorities for allocating central administrative computing resources

 

·          The Rutgers University Libraries allocates its budgeted resources in accordance with its strategic plan (at pages 1 and 7) and the academic priorities of its constituents

 

 

3.   an allocation approach that ensures adequate faculty, staff, and administration to support the institution’s mission and outcomes expectations;

 

One of the key attributes of All Funds Budgeting is that it clearly links planning and budgeting.  Through All Funds Budgeting, academic units set annual operational budgets that determine levels of faculty, staff and administrative support needed are carefully considered.  AFB requires that choices be made within existing or planned for resources.  This focuses planning on the trade offs of various ambitions and needs and encourages strategic and long range thinking but with a clear knowledge of the likely resources that will be available.

 

Faculty Utilization Reports are produced every year to assist deans and senior administrators in the planning for and process of hiring faculty.

 

The hiring of faculty and staff is strongly influenced by Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Guidelines for Recruitment and Selection (Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Guidelines for Recruitment and Selection of Faculty and Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Guidelines for Recruitment and Selection of Staff), and by the university’s firm commitment to diversity.  Various university studies and initiatives reflect this support for pursuing diversity and excellence in the workforce:

 

·          A Study of Gender Equity in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University-New Brunswick  (Report Summary; Full Report)

 

·          Actions Taken to Implement the Gender Equity Report

 

·          As the Workplace Turns: Affirmative Action in Employment

 

·          Office of Faculty Diversity

 

·          President’s Report on Progress Toward 2006-2007 Strategic Goals (at pages 5, 6, and 13)

 

·          President’s Report On Progress Toward 2005–06 Strategic Goals (at pages 3, 12, and 13)

 

·          Office for the Promotion of Women in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics website

 

In addition, the most recent agreement between the university and the AAUP-AFT includes a provision for the establishment of a Faculty Development Fund which will assist in the hiring of additional full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty.

 

 

4.   a financial planning and budgeting process aligned with the institution’s mission, goals, and plan that provides for an annual budget and multi-year budget projections, both institution-wide and among departments; utilizes planning and assessment documents; and addresses resource acquisition and allocation for the institution and any subsidiary, affiliated, or contracted educational organizations as well as for institutional systems as appropriate;

 

As noted in the prior items, the university’s All Funds Budgeting system is designed to align the goals of the university with budget planning.  While one of the goals of AFB is to promote longer term planning and budgeting, the extreme volatility of state funding, especially in recent years, coupled with several years of legislative tuition caps has made long term budgeting difficult.  Indeed, the pattern of recent state support has been described as a roller coaster, encompassing the largest shortfall in state funding in the university’s history amidst a pattern of ups and downs.  While this instability of a major revenue stream has made planning difficult, it has also emphasized the importance of the AFB system with its attention on aligning plans with resources and on increasing other sources of funds to reduce the university’s reliance on state appropriation.

 

The university is also highly unionized being one of the few AAU publics with a faculty union.  The university’s preparation for negotiations with the various bargaining units representing faculty and staff at Rutgers is illustrative of the multi-year financial planning and budgeting that occurs.  These bargaining efforts involve the designation of a group of senior administrators that comprise a universitywide advisory group that engages in a planning process that entails the multi-year allocation of resources such as salaries, salary increases, benefits, etc.  The financial modeling done in preparation for negotiations is critical not only to the success of the negotiating process, but also to the success of the university in meeting its mission and goals.

 

Recent agreements with faculty unions show how these negotiations are closely aligned with broader institutional goals by example of agreement to establish a multi-year fund for recruitment and hire of new faculty that will enable Rutgers to pursue excellence while being fiscally responsible.

 

In order to provide guidance in the area of debt management, the Board of Governors adopted a debt management policy in June 2006.  The debt policy formalizes the link between the university’s strategic planning process and the issuance and management of debt, and relates to all forms of debt financing including long-term, short-term, fixed rate, and variable rate debt. The policy relates to other forms of financing including both on-balance and off-balance sheet structures such as leases, and other structured products that impact the credit of the university.  The policy also contemplates the use of financial derivatives that may be used in managing the university’s debt portfolio and in structuring transactions to best meet the university’s financial objectives within an acceptable risk tolerance.

 

Although it is a public institution, Rutgers manages and is responsible for its own debt, and therefore must make decisions about debt capacity in light of real market pressures.  The institution’s bond rating is monitored carefully and is higher than that of the state of New Jersey.  The university has a well-developed internal capacity to manage debt, as well as professional financial advisors who also advise other leading research universities. The existence of a debt policy, coupled with the realities of the market pressures described above, serve as strong checks on excessive institutional leveraging. 

 

 

5.   a comprehensive infrastructure or facilities master plan and facilities/infrastructure life-cycle management plan, as appropriate to mission, and evidence of implementation;

 

Unlike in many other states where capital funding is provided on a regular basis, New Jersey’s public colleges have been forced to borrow for most capital projects.  This funding situation recently led Moody’s to report that “the most significant financial challenge facing Rutgers will be managing its growing capital needs with limited state capital funding.”  While none of its policy recommendations have been adopted by the state, CHE has issued a set of principles to help guide state support for the capital needs of institutions of higher education in the state.  In the effort to provide adequate funding for capital projects, the higher education sector has developed aProposal for Capital Bond Projects.”  This proposal, seen as critical to the university’s ability to undertake future capital development projects, has been on the drawing board for many years and remains a top priority for Rutgers.

 

Though direct state support for capital development projects in the higher education sector has been limited, the university does submit an annual request for funding of capital projects to the New Jersey Commission on Capital Budgeting and Planning, the statewide agency charged with capital planning.  This annual request is developed through the Rutgers Capital Planning Program, which enables the university to plan, prioritize and organize future capital expenditures.  A record of physical planning activities over the last ten years is presented here.  In addition, the university uses the facility condition analysis system to help guide the process of life cycle management.  Guiding all of the university planning for capital projects is its Facilities Master Plan.

 

And the university has developed a list of highest need capital projects that will be funded with university bonding.  The first phase of this plan calls for $350m in projects including $75m in deferred maintenance to offset at least some of the backlog of maintenance.  Planning for the use of university funds for capital is being done within the debt policy that was recently adopted by the Board of Governors.

 

 

6.   recognition in the comprehensive plan that facilities, such as learning resources fundamental to all educational and research programs and the library, are adequately supported and staffed to accomplish the institution’s objectives for student learning, both on campuses and at a distance;

 

As noted above, All Funds Budgeting is designed to align the university’s goals with its resources. Plans must demonstrate that adequate support is available in order to be approved.  In addition, the university regularly reviews its standing relative to its AAU public peers on such measures as library collections.  These analyses help to shape the relative priorities of various needs.  It is important to note that both the allocation of resources and the significant cuts that the university absorbed in FY2006-07 placed highest priority on instructional units in recognition of the university’s primary academic mission.  Academic support units like the library and research centers are in a second priority tier with administrative units bearing larger proportional cuts and smaller proportional allocation of funds.

 

Comprehensive plans for universitywide support and staffing, undertaken by central divisions, such as the Office of Informational Technology and University Libraries are complemented at the decanal level through various funding and planning mechanisms including all funds budgeting, capital campaign planning and individual unit planning and allocation processes.

 

 

7.   an educational and other equipment acquisition and replacement process and plan, including provision for current and future technology, as appropriate to the educational programs and support services, and evidence of implementation;

 

 

Educational and other acquisition and replacement processes operate on two levels:  a central process of acquisition and replacement occurs through the Office of Institutional Technology, and units and departments pursue their respective processes as needed.  Information on these central activities since the last decennial middle states self-study is found in the report titled Information Technology Support for Activities Examined as Part of the 2008 Middle States Commission Accreditation at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.  The report presents a breakdown of central Educational Technology (ET) funding sources and describes various replacement strategies and budgeting maneuvers that have occurred during this period.  The following annual reports provide evidence of implementing upgrades and improvements to the university’s ET infrastructure: New Brunswick Computing Services, 2005-2006 Annual Report and Newark Computing Services - Annual Report - Fiscal Year 2005/2006.

 

Rutgers also has a strong decentralized culture for equipment acquisition and replacement practiced by its many units and departments.  Through the all funds budgeting process, units are able to assess the revenues it has to purchase and replace educational and other equipment. Through all funds budgeting, central funds such as computing fees are now part of funds local units receive and allocate for their educational technology inventory.  Other resources that assist units and departments in this process include internal grant programs, the Academic Excellence Fund, and external grants.  A breakdown of costs associated with educational technology acquisitions by educational units is listed in the following table. 

 

Under the direction of interim Vice President for Information Technology and interim Chief Information Officer, Donald Smith, the university is presently conducting a comprehensive self-study of the university's IT resources, services, and working relationships, building on the university-wide IT Strategic Plan completed in August 2006.  The goal of the self-study is to ensure that Rutgers' IT resources are used to their full potential in serving administrative, instructional, and research needs across the university.

 

The state has in place a revolving fund for the replacement of academic equipment called the Equipment Leasing Fund.  This has provided critically needed support for equipment at colleges and universities across the state.  Recent difficult budget years in New Jersey have prevented this fund from being increased enough to recognize the escalating costs of essential education equipment or to revolve frequently enough.

 

 

  1. adequate institutional controls to deal with financial, administrative and auxiliary operations, and rational and consistent policies and procedures in place to determine allocation of assets;

 

Having reviewed the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act to assess its own controls and to determine if there were additional best practices the university should adopt, the university operates under what might be termed a SOX model adapted for public higher education and its mission.  For example, the university created a Committee on Audit several decades ago.  The committee, whose membership is drawn from Rutgers’ Boards of Governors and Trustees, contains no members of the administration—thereby ensuring its objective oversight of university operations.  The committee meets several times a year to review the scope and outcomes of the external audit firm’s and internal audit department’s work, as well as management’s actions on pending issues.  The committee holds executive sessions with the external and internal auditors to invite the auditors into a private, open and direct dialogue without members of management present.  The committee operates under a formal charter which was enacted in 2001 and reviewed and updated in March 2007 to incorporate additional best practices implemented in response to SOX.

 

The university’s internal audit department reports functionally to the Audit Committee.  This reporting line ensures a high degree of auditor independence and authority.

 

In addition to the Audit Committee, the university also has several other committees with substantial oversight responsibilities in areas related to finance (e.g., Budget and Finance, Buildings and Grounds, Executive Compensation and Nominations, and Investments.)

 

An overview of some of the institutional controls that deal with financial, administrative and auxiliary operations is found in President McCormick’s testimony to the New Jersey Legislative Task Force on Higher Education and the Economy.  In addition, President McCormick recently expressed the university’s commitment to responsible business practices in a letter to the Rutgers faculty and staff.

 

The Office of the Controller plays a major role in ensuring that adequate financial controls are in place.  Some of these controls or processes overseen by the controller’s office include:

 

·          Financial Audit statements for the University.

o         2006

o         2005

o         2004

 

·          Audit Reports for post-awards federal grants

 

·          Audit Reports for post-awards state grants

 

Oversight of controls on purchasing – Rutgers Integrated Administrative System (RIAS), which is Rutgers’ online purchasing system (RIAS Training Manual) and the Rutgers University Purchasing Policy.

 

Because the research enterprise is a critical component of the university’s identity and mission, it is paramount that Rutgers has in place specific controls for grants and contracts won by its faculty.  Some of these controls include:

 

·                      Policies and Procedures Concerning Grant and Contract Accounting

 

·                      Policies and Procedures for Cost Sharing on Sponsored Programs

 

·                      Travel, Travel Incidentals, and Meal Expense Policy

 

·                      Consulting or Other Personal Services, Intellectual Property, Honoraria and Other Miscellaneous activities – Policies and Procedures for Payment

 

·                      Equipment Inventory and Property Management

 

The Internal Audit Department provides another layer of oversight to university operations through promoting modern internal control concepts for departments and offices to use.  Internal Audit serves as the arm of the Board of Governors so its audits are independent of the Office of the Senior Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer, to which it reports only for administration oversight.  Internal audit provides services that include system assessment, departmental audits and follow-ups, audit investigations, advisory services, etc.

 

 

  1. an annual independent audit confirming financial responsibility, with evidence of follow-up on any concerns cited in the audit’s accompanying management letter; and

 

·          Rutgers University Financial Report 2005-2006

 

·          Rutgers University Financial Report 2004-2005

 

·          Rutgers University Financial Report 2003-2004

 

 

10. periodic assessment of the effective and efficient use of institutional resources.

 

As described in the prior items, one of the critical components of the AFB system is the annual meetings between the Executive Vice President and Chief Budget Officer and the campus provosts and deans.  These meetings not only review plans and associated budgets but they also consider the effective use of resources previously allocated.  This continuous loop between planning, budgeting and accountability for the use of resources is at the heart of AFB.

 

Assessment of institutional resources at Rutgers occurs on many levels, beginning with state oversight.  As indicated above, the state annually reviews the university’s budget request and seeks to determine if the university is efficiently and effectively utilizing its resources in the context of its mission of teaching, research and service.

 

Through the New Jersey President’s Council and the state’s program approval process, requests for new programs must not only meet criteria for need, but must also demonstrate that they are not duplicative of other existing academic programs and are not unduly expensive.

 

Beyond the budget review process, the state legislature through the Task Force on Higher Education and the Economy has been actively involved in evaluating how state colleges and universities can contribute to state economic development.  A particular concern of the Task Force has been over how the research sector of the state’s higher education system is currently structured.  It has continued to examine if and how Rutgers along with the other public research institutions in the state should be merged or reorganized.

 

State assessment of institutional resources also occurs through the New Jersey Commission of Higher Education (CHE).  CHE reviews budget requests from individual state public colleges and universities and approves capital projects financed by various higher education bond acts.  In addition, the Commission on Higher Education annually reviews the university’s progress relative to statewide goals, thereby providing a public accounting for its use of its funds.

 

As noted in standard 1, element 1(d) the President of the university regularly reports to the Board of Governors and the Board of Trustees on progress made in achieving university goals and objectives, which necessarily includes the effective and efficient use of institutional resources.

 

The University Senate also plays an important role in ensuring that the university successfully exploits its institutional resources.   While advisory, the senate undertakes many important studies that help guide the university administration in making policy that affect how institutional resources are used.  A selection of these studies include:

 

·          Report and Recommendations on the Status of Full-time, Non-tenure-track, Non-clinical Faculty

 

·          Report on the Use of Course Management Systems

 

·          Report and Recommendations in Response to Charge S-0311, Electronic Applications for Admission

 

·          Report and Resolution on Proposed Reduction in State Funding

 

·          Report of the Senate Equal Opportunity Committee on Charge S-0209, Status of Hispanic/Latino Faculty and Administrators

 

Over the last few years, the university moved from perfunctory reviews of individual departments and/or programs to more strategic reviews of either specific areas of study or interdisciplinary clusters.  Through the Committee on Academic Planning and Review, the aim of these evaluations is to determine how University resources can be most effectively used in supporting a specific disciplinary area and in the case of a cluster review to consider how the contribution of related units taken together can be greater than the sum of their individual contributions.  Beginning in 2007-2008, CAPR will also assess policies and practices connected with Rutgers broad array of centers, bureaus and institutes.

 

The Center for Organizational Development and Leadership seeks to advance organizational effectiveness through assessment, planning, and service improvement.  As part of this effort, the office often undertakes studies that contribute to the university’s utilization of institutional resources.  These evaluations have included assessments of the university’s progress in reducing “red tape ten years after an initial university study and of the university’s continuing effort to improve student services.

 

Another important source of review of the effectiveness of administrative structures and services occurs through the Center for Organizational Development and Leadership (ODL) at Rutgers. ODL has been active in the development and implementation of a self-assessment and improvement program based on the Malcolm Baldrige framework.  See standard 2, element 6.

 

The Committee on Efficiency and Entrepreneurship is a universitywide committee that has been actively engaged in the review of all university processes in the effort to make the best use of Rutgers’ resources and take a proactive, long-term approach to expanding revenues.

 

The Task Force on Transforming Undergraduate Education and subsequent implementation process is an effort that is geared not only to enhancing the academic and student life experience of undergraduates at Rutgers-New Brunswick but to improve how the university uses its resources in delivering a high quality undergraduate education to its students.

 

A Matrix of Education Support Technology provides an overview of goals for education support technology at Rutgers and a summary of assessment methods and plans across the university community.

 

 

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