Executive Strategy and Planning
Online Programs, Online Learning, and Curriculum Development Stewardship
Review
Date Here
Stewardship Overview and Outcome
The following should be used to guide your efforts as you work to prepare for the 2018 Budget
and Department Stewardship Review:
As a university leadership, we believe we all have a stewardship to look for ways to continue to
serve more students while working within the very real constraints of maintaining costs and
remaining committed to a quality student experience. As President Hinckley has stated, “[I]f we
cannot give to all, let us give to as many as we can.”
BYU-Idaho Mission Statement
Brigham Young University-Idaho is affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. Its mission is to:
1. Build testimonies of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and encourage living its principles.
2. Provide a quality education for students of diverse interests and abilities.
3. Prepare students for lifelong learning, for employment, and for their roles as citizens and
parents.
4. Maintain a wholesome academic, cultural, social, and spiritual environment.
Vision of BYU-Idaho within the CES System
As President Hinckley has taught in the announcement of BYU-Idaho, “The school will have a
unique role in and be distinctive from the other institutions of higher education within the
Church Educational System.” Elements of this unique role include a requirement to be a
Church-wide educational resource and to find innovative ways to achieve this without increasing
the total cost to the Church. President Kim B. Clark previously summarized this distinction with
a vision around the Three Imperatives of BYU-Idaho: Raise Quality, Reach More Students, and
Lower Relative Costs. The challenge before us is to find ways that all of our programs can meet
the intersection of these three imperatives—both a constraint and an opportunity for this unique
university.
Departmental Strategy Statement
In three to five sentences, please describe the key areas of your departmental strategy and how it
strengthens the overall mission and vision of BYU-Idaho, including the Three Imperatives.
[Insert Your Departmental Strategy]
Outcome Measures: General Information
Instructions: Below, please provide specific measures for each of the three imperatives where
applicable across areas. A department should start by reporting on those measures requested by
its supervisor but may also add additional measures.
Outcome Measures: Plan to Improve Quality
1. The ultimate outcome measure for the quality of experience of BYU-Idaho is manifest in our
shared mission to develop Disciple Leaders. Each department has ways of contributing to
this and measures its impact on quality in ways that are unique to the area. Please review the
key metrics you use in your department to measure quality and strengthen the mission of the
university.
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Show online course data in the following areas:
o Gospel Values
o Perceived Learning
o Course Evaluations
Show online program (certificates and degrees) data in the following areas:
o Per cent same major
o Per cent job at graduate
Please give an account of your progress on those measures for 2016.
[Insert Outcome Progress]
2. Plan to improve efforts for 2017: Please also provide your plan to further strengthen the
quality of your area for 2018.
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How are we measuring learning outcomes? What evidence do we have that students are
achieving learning outcomes? How are we comparing outcomes measurements with
course evaluations, perceived learning, grades, etc.?
How do we improve the student transition from Pathway to online programs?
How do we promote the virtual gathering of all online students and physical gatherings in
centers of strength?
Outcome Measures: Plan to Reach more Students
1. Please review the key metrics you use in your department to measure student reach.
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What was the total Online student enrollment for last year? Show both SCH and
headcount. Show breakdown by online degree seeking, campus mixed, on-track online,
and off-track online.
What is the number of students enrolled in certificates, associate degrees, and bachelor
degrees? What is the number of students that graduated from each category?
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What percent, by department, of campus courses are taught online?
How many courses and programs are included in our online portfolio? Breakdown by
courses for online programs, bottleneck and degree completion courses, courses for other
CES institutions.
How many new courses were developed last year? How many redeveloped?
Please give an account of your progress on those measures for 2016.
[Insert Outcome Progress]
2. Plan to improve efforts for 2017: Please also provide your plan to further expand the reach
of your area for 2018.
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How do we improve advising in our online programs?
How do we encourage face-to-face students to take more online courses?
What is the right selection of online programs and courses in our online portfolio?
How do we improve efficiency in processes and priorities for development and
redevelopment of courses?
Outcome Measures: Plan to Lower Relative Costs
1. Please review the key metrics you use in your department to measure costs. Recognize that
one of those metrics is total cost for your area and whether that was an increase from the
previous year.
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What is the current section size for online courses?
What is our current fill rate for online courses?
What is our cost per online SCH?
What are our current textbook costs for online students?
Please give an account of your progress on those measures expected for 2017.
[Insert Outcome Progress]
2. Plan to improve efforts for 2018: Please also provide your plan to be a steward of the costs
of your area for 2018. Recognize that as a university we have a shared goal to maintain the
total Church appropriation across the university at a constant, other than ordinary increases
that are tied to all CES institutions. If we continue to grow, there will be some additional
resources tied to variable increases in tuition. Requests for expanded resources will of
necessity be tied to those constraints.
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Describe measures that may bring down the cost per online SCH.
Describe measures that may bring down the cost of textbooks for online students.
3. Specific requests for the 2018 Budget: Please attach your FTE and Budget Requests for
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2018.
Note: At a university aggregate level, it appears that BYU-Idaho has sufficient capacity in
terms of both space and FTE for 2018s forecasted student growth. While situations will vary
by department, FTE and other budget requests will be evaluated based on the strength of the
outcome measures included in the stewardship review materials. Also, departments are
encouraged to look at increased efficiencies and student employment options before making
FTE requests.
[Attach Budget Request Table and Item Justifications as Needed]
Additional Counsel
Are there additional initiatives in your department that you believe will strengthen the university
and its mission? Please include specific initiatives that you think should be highlighted and
better understood.
[Attach any additional information you feel is important to include.]
Note: Include item justification sheet for all FTE requests and for other budget requests that are
not self-explanatory.
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Tips for preparing effective stewardship review materials
1. Keep it simple.
2. Back up your claims.
3. Make meaningful comparisons
a. Last year to this year.
b. Industry standards, etc.
4. Think multiple perspectives and triangulate in on your targets.
5. Be improvement-minded.
6. No surprise. Surface concerns. If you have important issues, deficits, etc., make sure you
discuss them.
7. Identify your action plan.
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