We've established a comprehensive and cyclical process that enables faculty and staff to collect and use valuable data, produce evidence, and generate feedback. This helps us to continually advance and refine our curriculum, course offerings, and overall educational and formation experience to better serve our students' unique learning needs. Our approach is faculty-oriented, data-driven, and directly reflects our college's mission to educate missionaries for a diverse and changing world. We're dedicated to knowing how and when our students learn, and we're always looking for ways to enhance their academic and personal growth.
Divine Word College, a Roman Catholic seminary, is dedicated to its mission of educating men and women for missionary service. The college uses institutional effectiveness as a framework to ensure it is meeting its goals, with assessment being a key component. This process helps the college continually improve its curriculum and programs which includes both academic and formation.
Institutional Core Competencies
Through assessment of the Academic and Formation programs at Divine Word College, faculty, staff, and administrators are able to make intentional and data-informed decisions on how to better help students achieve learning outcomes. The Core Competencies represent the five skills of missionary service that students develop in the academic and formation programs of the college, and the measurement of each competency is based on the rubrics developed by the faculty and staff of the college. Each rubric is regularly reviewed for construct validity and scrutinized for reliability. The five Core Competencies are:
CRITICAL THINKING ACUITY: Divine Word College graduates will gain proficiency in the intellectual skills necessary to explore issues, ideas, artifacts, and events, before making a decision, accepting or formulating an opinion, or reaching a conclusion.
COMMUNICATION EFFECTIVENESS: Divine Word College graduates will acquire effective written and oral communication skills to be able to express themselves appropriately while presenting to or interacting with widely diverse audiences.
INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE: Divine Word College graduates will possess the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are necessary to interact effectively with people who are culturally different from themselves.
SOCIAL & GLOBAL RESPONSIBILITY: Divine Word College graduates will be informed about the world’s most pressing issues, especially those affecting the poor and marginalized, applying knowledge and skills to develop solutions in accord with Catholic Social Teaching.
MISSIONARY DISCIPLESHIP: Divine Word College graduates will gain the knowledge, skills, and attitudes for practicing prophetic dialogue in the tradition of SVD missionaries, with faith-seekers, with the poor and marginalized, with people of different cultures, and with followers of other faith traditions.
Academic Assessment
Divine Word College works with faculty to create opportunities for formative and summative assessment across academic programs. Faculty teaching within the core curriculum create signature assignments that meet rubric standards and use assessment data to evaluate the success of their course and its contribution to the curriculum and student-learning experience. Changes to course content or curriculum are based on quality data reviewed by faculty experts in the content area and pedagogy. Additionally, each certificate or program area establishes program learning goals, adopts assessment rubrics, and develops signature assignments related to its specific degree requirements. Specific program learning goals allow the academic programs to help students focus on acquiring specific skills, knowledge, and attitudes for their particular vocation within the mission of the Church.
Formation Assessment
Divine Word College is dedicated to the holistic formation of the human person because learning happens beyond the classroom. Students at DWC are in various stages of their formation, with some just now discerning religious life while others have been ordained priests or have been in final vows for many years. DWC serves the formation needs of all students, regardless of formation experience, through formation groups for those new to religious life or in temporary vows. Further, the college provides spiritual direction for all. The college uses the five Core Competencies to assess the formation program and spiritual direction needs. Unlike academic assessment, which uses things like signature assignments, formation staff develop and implement surveys, reflections, and focus group questions to assess success in formation efforts.
Institutional Assessment Committee
Dr. Mathew Kanjirathinkal (Professor of Sociology & Accreditation Liaison)
Dr. Benjamin Wintress (Assistant Professor of Theology)
Dr. Mark Garton (Associate Professor of ESL)
Dr. Joshua Young (Vice President of Academic Affairs & Assistant Professor Communication & English
Fr. Tuan Hoang, SVD (Dean of Students)
Fr. Benyamin Boro Nama, SVD (Associate Dean of Students)
Sr. Aprilia Untarto, SSpS (Formation Team)
Mr. Kimberly Burnett-Hackbarth (Chair, Institutional Assessment Committee; Director for Institutional Effectiveness; College Registrar)
Director for Institutional Effectiveness
Ms. Kimberly Burnett-Hackbarth
All Program Learning Outcomes at DWC support and reflect the college's mission. Review our Program Learning Outcomes and Signature Assignments by department.
Program Learning Outcomes and Program Descriptions
Core Curriculum
Department of Interdisciplinary Studies
Interdisciplinary Studies
Intercultural Studies
Department of Theology and Philosophy
Core Competencies Rubrics
Core 1 Rubric
Core 2 Rubric - Oral Communication
Core 2 Rubric - Written Communication
Core 3 Rubric
Core 4 Rubric
Core 5 Rubric
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