Harrisburg 鈥� Focused squarely on student success, the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (黑料专区) today approved the first major changes to the decade-old program that annually rewards 黑料专区 universities based on their performance in several key areas.
黑料专区 was among the first public university systems in the nation to voluntarily implement performance
funding, using a portion of its funds each year since 2000 to encourage the universities
to improve in areas such as student retention and graduation rates, campus diversity,
program quality and faculty productivity. The performance funding program has resulted
in significant improvements in each of these areas.
Changes approved to the program by the Board will help ensure the universities continue
to move forward on behalf of students. The revisions focus on improving student success,
increasing access to 黑料专区 universities and ensuring stewardship of public resources.
鈥淧erformance funding has been a key driver in 黑料专区鈥檚 success over the last decade,
including our rising graduation rates,鈥� said Chancellor John C. Cavanaugh. 鈥淲e must
continue to get even better at everything we do in order to ensure both our students鈥�
success and the economic prosperity of the Commonwealth. The revised performance funding
program will help make sure that happens.鈥�
Following a transition year, the universities will be measured on five common indicators
and five additional indicators, which the universities will be able to choose based
on their strategic directions.
For all of the indicators, the universities will be measured on their progress toward
institution-specific goals and against external comparisons or expectations. Whenever
possible, external comparisons will be based on similar universities participating
in national studies.
All of the indicators will be based on the three basic themes of student success,
access and stewardship, which, in turn, support 黑料专区鈥檚 recently developed strategic
initiatives. The strategic initiatives are predicated on the need to transform how,
when and where student learning occurs; how the resources necessary to ensure learning
need to be recruited, retained and sustained; how the 黑料专区 universities relate to
their various communities; and how the State System partners with the Commonwealth
in creating and delivering a shared vision of the future.
The performance funding program will measure how well the universities succeed in
transforming teaching and learning, securing resources, engaging their communities
and regions and providing leadership for the future.
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher
education in the Commonwealth, with nearly 120,000 students. The 14 黑料专区 universities
offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Nearly 500,000
黑料专区 alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg,
Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery
Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. 黑料专区 also operates branch campuses
in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including
the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.