REVIEW FOR ACCREDITATION OF THE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO

Transcription

1 Council on Education for Public Health Adopted on June 14, 2014 REVIEW FOR ACCREDITATION OF THE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO COUNCIL ON EDUCATION FOR PUBLIC HEALTH SITE VISIT DATES: January 27-28, 2014 SITE VISIT TEAM: John O. Davies-Cole, PhD, MPH, Chair Carl Hanson, PhD, MS SITE VISIT COORDINATOR: Mollie Mulvanity, MPH OBSERVER: Nannette Reynolds, EdD

2 Table of Contents Introduction... 1 Characteristics of a Public Health Program THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM Mission Evaluation and Planning Institutional Environment Organization and Administration Governance Fiscal Resources Faculty and Other Resources Diversity INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMS Degree Offerings Program Length Public Health Core Knowledge Practical Skills Culminating Experience Required Competencies Assessment Procedures Bachelor s Degrees in Public Health Academic Degrees Doctoral Degrees Joint Degrees Distance Education or Executive Degree Programs CREATION, APPLICATION AND ADVANCEMENT OF KNOWLEDGE Research Service Workforce Development FACULTY, STAFF AND STUDENTS Faculty Qualifications Faculty Policies and Procedures Student Recruitment and Admissions Advising and Career Counseling AGENDA... 25

3 Introduction This report presents the findings of the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) regarding the MPH Program at the University of San Francisco (USF). The report assesses the program s compliance with the Accreditation Criteria for Public Health Programs, amended June This accreditation review included the conduct of a self-study process by program constituents, the preparation of a document describing the program and its features in relation to the criteria for accreditation, and a visit in January 2014 by a team of external peer reviewers. During the visit, the team had an opportunity to interview program and university officials, administrators, teaching faculty, students, alumni and community representatives and to verify information in the self-study document by reviewing materials provided in a resource file. The team was afforded full cooperation in its efforts to assess the program and verify the self-study document. USF was founded in 1855 as Saint Ignatius Academy, a Jesuit institution. In 1930, the university assumed its current name. USF includes five colleges and schools: College of Arts and Sciences, School of Law, School of Management, School of Education and the School of Nursing and Health Professions (SONHP), which houses the MPH program. As of fall 2012, USF enrolled approximately 6,300 undergraduate and 3,700 graduate students. The university maintains a strong commitment to social justice and community engagement. The SONHP enrolls approximately 1,200 students, 500 of whom are graduate students. The SONHP is led by a dean and two associate deans and offers degree programs in three areas: nursing, behavioral health and public health. The school is divided into five departments, each named for one of the degrees it includes: Bachelor of Science in Nursing Department, Master of Science in Nursing Department, Doctor of Nursing Practice Department, Behavioral Health Programs Department and Master of Public Health Department. The MPH program and the department that houses it are one and the same; the department chair serves as program director, and the program s faculty and staff report to the chair. The MPH program was established in 2010 after the university president led a needs assessment effort to identify the ways in which the university could best serve its communities, particularly underserved communities in the Bay Area and California s Central Coast. Establishment of an MPH program emerged as a means to address community needs, and the university prioritized the MPH program s development. The program enrolled its first students in the fall of 2011 and graduated its first students in June This is the program s first review for accreditation. 1

4 Characteristics of a Public Health Program To be considered eligible for accreditation review by CEPH, a public health program shall demonstrate the following characteristics: a. The program shall be a part of an institution of higher education that is accredited by a regional accrediting body recognized by the US Department of Education or its equivalent in other countries. b. The program and its faculty and students shall have the same rights, privileges and status as other professional preparation programs that are components of its parent institution. c. The program shall function as a collaboration of disciplines, addressing the health of populations and the community through instruction, research and service. Using an ecological perspective, the public health program should provide a special learning environment that supports interdisciplinary communication, promotes a broad intellectual framework for problem solving and fosters the development of professional public health values. d. The public health program shall maintain an organizational culture that embraces the vision, goals and values common to public health. The program shall maintain this organizational culture through leadership, institutional rewards and dedication of resources in order to infuse public health values and goals into all aspects of the program s activities. e. The program shall have faculty and other human, physical, financial and learning resources to provide both breadth and depth of educational opportunity in the areas of knowledge basic to public health. At a minimum, the program shall offer the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree, or an equivalent professional degree. f. The program shall plan, develop and evaluate its instructional, research and service activities in ways that assure sensitivity to the perceptions and needs of its students and that combines educational excellence with applicability to the world of public health practice. These characteristics are evident in the USF MPH program. The university is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, and the program and its faculty have the same rights, privileges and status associated with the other professional preparation programs housed in the university s SONHP. Though the program is relatively small, with five full-time faculty, faculty members disciplinary training and public health experience foster interdisciplinary collaboration and learning, and the program s curriculum is framed in an ecological perspective. The program maintains strong ties to the local public health practice community, particularly to the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and public health values and goals are evident in the program s instructional, research and service activities. The program has sufficient resources to offer its generalist MPH program, and it has developed and implemented ongoing methods to monitor its success with students and community stakeholders. 2

5 1.0 THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM. 1.1 Mission. The program shall have a clearly formulated and publicly stated mission with supporting goals, objectives and values. This criterion is met. The program has a clear and concise mission statement with supporting goals and objectives. The mission statement is as follows: The mission of the MPH program is to develop a cadre of public health leaders and generalists who will advance public health, social justice, and well-being in the city of San Francisco, the state of California, the United States, and the world; and to create an educational public health presence that promotes community engagement, professional collaboration, evidence-based practice, and public health advocacy. The program has identified a set of goals, measureable objectives and quantifiable indicators to support the mission. The mission, goals, and objectives are made available on the university s website. The USF Office of Institutional Research conducted a needs assessment in 2010 with the San Francisco community, current students, faculty and USF alumni that focused on the university s role in the community s health. This needs assessment provided the basis for the program s mission and structure. The MPH department chair, who also assumes the role of MPH program director, led the development of the guiding statements, based on the needs assessment process findings. The process of drafting the initial mission, goals and objectives included faculty, administrators, students and professional and community partners in the San Francisco Bay Area. The MPH program is committed to upholding the core values of the university: social justice, leadership, compassion, and humanity and the development of a moral and spiritual compass. These values, along with those of SONHP, are woven into the MPH curriculum and program outcomes. The initial mission has only been in place for three years, but the program plans to conduct continuous reviews as professional standards change and as various stakeholders make recommendations. Specifically, the program will review the guiding statements annually at a mid-fall faculty meeting and modifications will be made as appropriate. The program has also incorporated a review of the mission, goals and objectives into its student evaluation process. During the site visit the dean clarified that faculty have the opportunity to make comments and recommend changes during the fall faculty retreat, while students can do so during their orientation, fieldwork and culminating experience. All students are required to review the program s mission, values, goals, and objectives to assess their relevance and implementation as a component of the culminating experience. 3

6 1.2 Evaluation and Planning. The program shall have an explicit process for monitoring and evaluating its overall efforts against its mission, goals and objectives; for assessing the program s effectiveness in serving its various constituencies; and for using evaluation results in ongoing planning and decision making to achieve its mission. As part of the evaluation process, the program must conduct an analytical self-study that analyzes performance against the accreditation criteria. This criterion is met. The MPH program has established a process for monitoring and evaluating progress toward the mission, goals, and objectives. Four broad goals (education, discovery/research, service, and workforce development) with three to six objectives for each have been established. Evaluation activities and tools are in place for each objective, and the program director has assigned responsibilities to various individuals and groups. Each MPH program objective has between two and eight outcomes. Data for outcomes are presented for three complete academic years. Clear target measures for each of the outcomes have been established, and the self-study presented data that indicated appropriate attainment of or progress toward target levels; however, data for at least one of the three years are missing for 19 of the 56 outcome measures. In most cases, this absence reflects the gradual implementation of some of the evaluation tools, since the program has only been operating for the three years included in the self-study. The review team noted some potential irregularities in the definition of target levels. For example, one objective targets that 90% of students will be placed in public health settings for the practice experience, while reviewers expected the target for such a measure to be 100%. The chair indicated that this is because some MPH students are placed in public health roles in industry settings (eg, Pacific Gas and Electric) that are not typically considered public health. Activities and tools for monitoring progress toward the MPH program mission, goals, and objectives include course evaluations, teaching evaluations, faculty performance reviews, exit and alumni surveys, employer surveys and faculty and preceptor evaluations of student work. A support staff member tracks all of the data and shares them with faculty for review, which typically occurs annually, during faculty retreats. Students also participate in the retreats, and recommendations and modifications are based on the findings. The evaluation process is comprehensive and involves a number of committees including the Self-Study committee, Evaluation Committee and Advisory Committee. The chair indicated that, while the Evaluation Committee and Self-Study committee have been separately named, committee members are generally the same five full-time faculty, and committee work has been accomplished primarily through MPH department meetings. The chair is responsible for coordination and analysis of data and facilitates the distribution of findings to MPH faculty, the dean, students, the Advisory Committee and key university offices. 4

7 Faculty, students, and advisory committee members have been involved in the self-study process by attending various meetings. The Self-Study Committee met on at least a monthly basis throughout the process. 1.3 Institutional Environment. The program shall be an integral part of an accredited institution of higher education. This criterion is met. USF is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The last accreditation review, in 2010, reaffirmed the university s accreditation for 10 years. The School of Nursing and Health Professions (SONHP), which houses the program, has a number of programs that hold accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. Other university programs in management, public administration, law, etc. hold specialized and professional accreditation. USF was founded in 1855 as Saint Ignatius Academy, a Jesuit institution. In 1930, the university assumed its current name. USF includes five colleges and schools: College of Arts and Sciences, School of Law, School of Management, School of Education and SONHP. As of fall 2012, the university enrolled approximately 6,300 undergraduate and 3,700 graduate students. Education and management enroll the largest numbers of graduate students; the SONHP enrolls approximately 1,200 students, 500 of whom are graduate students. The SONHP is led by a dean and two associate deans and offers degree programs in three areas: nursing, behavioral health and public health. The school is divided into five departments, each named for one of the degrees it includes: Bachelor of Science in Nursing Department, Master of Science in Nursing Department, Doctor of Nursing Practice Department, Behavioral Health Programs Department and Master of Public Health Department. Deans work collaboratively with the provost and vice provost for planning and evaluation to decide annual budgets. The five deans also work collaboratively to decide on faculty lines. Ninety-eight percent of the budget is tuition dependent. All faculty and most staff are part of collective bargaining units. Authority for hiring program faculty and staff follows a process that includes the MPH faculty, the department chair, the dean and the provost, but the dean indicated that the program s needs and the position of the search committee is given great deference. The department may set its own academic policies and curricula. The program reports all changes to the SONHP Curriculum Committee, but this discussion is mostly focused on identifying any obvious problems and ensuring that all operational needs can be handled. The chair and dean indicated that there is a strong value on vesting the faculty who are most knowledgeable about the curriculum with the ability to make changes as they need. All academic policies must also comply with those set by the SONHP s Academic Standards Committee. 5

8 1.4 Organization and Administration. The program shall provide an organizational setting conducive to public health learning, research and service. The organizational setting shall facilitate interdisciplinary communication, cooperation and collaboration that contribute to achieving the program s public health mission. The organizational structure shall effectively support the work of the program s constituents. This criterion is met. The MPH program and the department are one and the same, and the organizational structure is simple. The department chair serves as program director and reports to the SONHP dean. The full-time faculty report to the chair, as does the program s staff person. The chair and faculty work with other SONHP faculty and staff, including the recruiter, who is shared among programs, and the SONHP s associate dean for graduate programs and community partnerships. The program s small size and location facilitate creation of an environment that fosters interdisciplinary work. SONHP faculty are committed to interdisciplinary and interprofessional education, and several courses are cross-listed between public health and nursing. Several MPH courses attract graduate students from throughout the university. One of the program s primary faculty members established a conference that brings together nursing and public health students, as well as local professionals, around the topic of environmental health. Another primary faculty member has created a forum for students throughout SONHP who are interested in gender and health. Several of the school s new and developing degree programs, such as the Master of Science in Behavioral Health and the Master of Health Informatics, draw on public health courses for required or elective classes. Public health faculty are actively engaged in departmental activities with their nursing and health professions colleagues. 1.5 Governance. The program administration and faculty shall have clearly defined rights and responsibilities concerning program governance and academic policies. Students shall, where appropriate, have participatory roles in the conduct of program evaluation procedures, policy setting and decision making. This criterion is met. The program is structured around six program-level committees, which provide venues for decision making and policy setting. All five primary faculty serve on the Curriculum Committee, Evaluation Committee and Self-Study Steering Committee. Three of the five faculty serve on the Admissions Committee. Each of these committees supplements its membership with two to six other individuals (in addition to the primary faculty) who hold appropriate roles. For instance, the SONHP admissions coordinator joins the Admissions Committee, and the program assistant and school administrators join other committees. The Evaluation Committee provides much of the structure for the program s evaluation and assessment plan. It meets once a semester and conducts additional work by . This committee plays an 6

9 important role in defining the program s research and service expectations by defining outcome measures and targets, though all faculty expectations must align with the collective bargaining agreement. The Admissions Committee meets once or twice a semester to make the program s admissions decisions and to consider changes to admissions and recruitment practices and policies. The Curriculum Committee meets at least monthly and conducts additional business by . The committee chair interfaces with the school s Academic Standards Committee on matters that require additional levels of approval. The program also has a Workforce Development Task Group, which has included one faculty member, the department chair, the dean and the director of the San Francisco Health Department. This committee is responsible for needs assessment, planning and implementation of professional development activities for the local workforce In the first three years of program operations, because of the small size and need for consistency in decision making, the MPH primary faculty has met at least monthly as a group (often more frequently) to perform the work of the five committees mentioned above, pulling in additional participants as needed. Site visitors review of the agendas and minutes for department meetings show a range of discussion topics that encompass all of the areas mentioned above. The sixth program committee is the MPH Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee includes faculty, school leaders, a student and seven community-based public health leaders and/or practitioners. Members include the director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health and staff from Kaiser Permanente and the Skoll Global Threats Fund, among others. The committee meets annually, though a 2013 meeting was not held due to scheduling conflicts. This group serves in an advisory and consultative role, focusing primarily on the program s ability to prepare students for public health practice. The program director and dean indicated that, while formal, in-person meetings have been rare, Advisory Committee members have been consulted regularly by and phone and have provided input on a number of programmatic issues as they develop. The program conducts an annual planning retreat that involves all faculty, and all of the program s committees contribute to policy development. New or revised program policies must be approved by a majority vote of the full-time faculty members and are subject to final review by school or university committees, when applicable. The SONHP dean recommends the awarding of degrees based on information provided by the chair. 7

10 Decision making in faculty recruitment involves program faculty on a specially-convened search committee. Search committees also include other school faculty and representatives of the university s Office of Diversity. The search committee makes a recommendation to the dean. After gaining the provost s approval, the dean is responsible for negotiating salary and other hiring terms. Promotion and tenure follows the formats outlined in the collective bargaining agreement. Promotion and tenure reviews draw on the academic career prospectus (ACP), which the dean reviews annually with the faculty member. The process also considers recommendations from the SONHP and university-wide Peer Review Committees. The president ultimately makes tenure and promotion decisions. All five primary faculty hold membership on at least two school- or university-level committees, including the University Curriculum Committee and the President s Advisory Council on the Status of Women. Students have representation on all program committees except the Admissions Committee, and student members have voting rights, except in rare circumstances. The program also uses a variety of methods to gain student input: regular, informal discussions with graduate assistants, course evaluations, student surveys and the exit survey. Finally, the Master of Public Health Student Association (MPHSA) was founded in The MPHSA brings in guest speakers and organizes fundraising and community service projects. In its first year of operations, the group participated in fundraising for Philippine hurricane relief. The group had several social events and mixers and sponsored sessions with guest speakers from local non-profit agencies involved in public health work. The association has sponsored Public Health Day activities and has been involved in orientation of new students. 1.6 Fiscal Resources. The program shall have financial resources adequate to fulfill its stated mission and goals, and its instructional, research and service objectives. This criterion is met. The university has a yearly budgetary planning process through which fiscal and physical resources are allocated. The SONHP receives an operating budget from central administration, largely (95%) based on tuition and fees, and meeting pre-defined enrollment targets is a component of the budget allocation process. The program s budget is allocated by the SONHP dean to the MPH department chair. Table 1 presents the program s budget. As a private university with limited endowment funding, tuition has been the university s primary revenue stream. The president indicated a commitment to resource development, academic niche programming, online education and the cohort model. He identifies each of these components as methods to expand 8

11 the university s resource base, with the goal of building future resources that may reduce the reliance on annual tuition generation. The MPH program budget is centralized and resides at the school level. Budgetary authority resides with the dean. The program s budget includes full-time faculty lines, part-time faculty, operating expenses, student financial aid, faculty development funds and funds from the dean s discretionary account. Faculty salaries are established through the collective bargaining process between USF and the University of San Francisco Faculty Association (USFFA). The MPH program receives financial aid monies for students at the rate of 25% of tuition costs not covered by direct federal loans. Student financial aid has steadily increased since program inception. MPH program faculty report that the university administration has been very responsive to the program s needs, and the chair indicates that financial resources are adequate. Table 1. Sources of Funds and Expenditures by Major Category, 2011 to 2016 Year 1: Year 2: Year 3: Year 4: Year 5: Source of Funds Tuition & Fees $570, $1,309, $1,552, $1,629, $1,711, Grants/Contracts $5, University Student Financial Aid $5, $8, $10, $10, $11, Total $575, $1,322, $1,562, $1,640, $1,722, Expenditures Faculty Salaries & Benefits Staff Salaries & $190, $444, $634, $666, $699, $162, $264, $366, $384, $403, Benefits Operations* $75, $78, $82, $86, $91, Travel $20, $21, $22, $23, $24, Student Support $0.00 $9, $12, $12, $13, University Required Contribution** $112, $489, $432, $454, $477, Total $575, $1,317, $1,562, $1,640, $1,722, Year 5: This budget is not yet approved. *Operations or operating costs include: office supplies, instructional/computer supplies, copying, postage, phones, travel, lodging, meals, accreditation fees, maintenance contracts, rental expenses, professional/consultation services, and event charges. **The University Required Contribution is the amount of tuition revenue generated by the MPH program that is not allocated towards salary or operating costs. This amount is returned to the University s central budget. 9

12 1.7 Faculty and Other Resources. The program shall have personnel and other resources adequate to fulfill its stated mission and goals, and its instructional, research and service objectives. This criterion is met. The MPH program, with its single concentration, is supported by five full-time faculty, one of whom serves as the department chair. All five of these faculty members are fully dedicated to the MPH program. In each of the program s three years of operations, three to eight part-time and secondary faculty have also supported the program. The student-faculty ratio has varied between 8:1 and 11:1, by total faculty, over the past three years. The student headcount has steadily increased from 32 to 69 over this period, and the program has steadily added full-time and secondary faculty Faculty responsibilities are governed and outlined by the USFFA collective bargaining agreement. Fulltime faculty are responsible for 15 units of effort per semester. These units are delineated as follows: teaching--nine to twelve units (60% - 80% of load), research zero to three units (0-20% of load) and service three units (20% of load). The chair is supported by a full-time program assistant who supports program operations and provides faculty and student support. This model is consistent with other departments in the SONHP. The SONHP s assistant dean and associate dean and a number of central SONHP staff provide important administrative support to the program in areas including recruitment, admissions and student financial aid. As of the current academic year, the MPH program is located at the university s Presidio campus, a move that allowed the program to co-locate the faculty and program assistant and have easier access to classrooms. The newly-renovated Presidio facility includes three technology-equipped classrooms, faculty offices, a student lounge area, student lockers, two computers, a small library and a kitchen. The layout of the building provides a warm and welcoming environment for students and faculty to interact both in and outside of class. Students reported initial challenges with the move to the Presidio campus, since its location is not as convenient to public transportation as other USF campus locations, but they have grown to enjoy the unique location and identity it provides to the MPH program. The program has added computers and printers to the location in response to student feedback in a survey that specifically targeted MPH students satisfaction with information technology resources. The university has a comprehensive and well-stocked library on the main campus, which includes appropriate journal and database access to support public health scholarship. Most students access library resources through online portals, and students report high satisfaction with these resources. 10

13 1.8 Diversity. The program shall demonstrate a commitment to diversity and shall evidence an ongoing practice of cultural competence in learning, research and service practices. This criterion is met with commentary. The university has created and published an inclusion statement that acknowledges a commitment to maintain cultural diversity and cultural competence. The university and the MPH program s expanded definition of diversity is as follows: Diversity is expressed in people of different abilities ages, colors, creeds, cultures, races, ethnicities, family models, gender identities, gender expressions, health statuses, nationalities, political views, religious, spiritual and philosophical beliefs, sexual orientation, socioeconomic statuses, educational backgrounds and veteran statuses. Based on the university s definition, which the program has adopted, there are many ways to measure the program s diversity. However, the self-study notes the program s recognition that diversity has often been defined based on race/ethnicity, so the program uses the US Department of Education s seven race and ethnicity categories to describe and analyze underrepresented populations. The university has been making progress in increasing diversity. In 2011, the USF Office of Diversity Engagement and Community Outreach was established and a vice provost was assigned to lead the initiative. According to the self-study, USF was recently ranked first among non-hbcus as having excellent programs in place for minority students by the publication Diverse Education. The university s vice provost for diversity engagement and community outreach is responsible for developing institutional plans and policies related to diversity. The program also involves its own faculty, community members, students, alumni and the MPH Advisory Committee in planning and formulating policies around diversity. The self-study identifies numerous ways in which the program s objectives and curriculum support an emphasis on diversity. The program, like the university, maintains a strong foundation in social justice and community engagement, and both policy and curriculum reflect this focus. In spring 2013, 60% of the students admitted to the MPH program were racial or ethnic minorities; in fall 2013, 40% were minorities; and, based on January 2014 total enrollment figures, 57% of current program students are minorities. Data for the most recent entering cohort of 34 students indicates that 35% identified as African American, Hispanic, Native American or multiracial. The commentary relates to the lack of ethnic/racial diversity in the MPH program s faculty. Though the university has been able to recruit a very diverse student population, all primary full time faculty are Caucasians, except two Hispanic part-time instructors. Site visitors noted the progress already made by the program such as the policies that support a climate for working and learning in a diverse setting, the culturally competent mentorship program and the use of culturally diverse mentors for Caucasian faculty 11

14 members. Site visitors were also encouraged by the dean s emphatic comments that faculty diversity is a priority area for her office. She spoke of her plans to develop academic partnerships in the Central Valley, which is an ethnically and socioeconomically diverse area, and to encourage minority MPH graduates to attain terminal degrees so they can potentially become faculty. Site visitors discussed the university s efforts with the president and vice provost for diversity engagement and community outreach, and they reinforced the commitment to implementing and prioritizing specific steps to build and maintain partnerships with diverse communities. The university, school and program recognize that these efforts may not pay immediate dividends in terms of faculty recruitment, but community collaboration is central to the university, school and program missions. 2.0 INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMS. 2.1 Degree Offerings. The program shall offer instructional programs reflecting its stated mission and goals, leading to the Master of Public Health (MPH) or equivalent professional master s degree. The program may offer a generalist MPH degree and/or an MPH with areas of specialization. The program, depending on how it defines the unit of accreditation, may offer other degrees, if consistent with its mission and resources. This criterion is met. Table 2 presents the program s degree offering. In addition to coursework in core public health knowledge areas, the program s generalist MPH degree offers a defined curriculum that includes coursework in program planning, health communication and law and ethics, among other areas. The program also allows eight elective credits, which are typically completed through four, two-credit courses. Table 2. Instructional Matrix Master s Degree Generalist Academic Professional MPH 2.2 Program Length. An MPH degree program or equivalent professional public health master s degree must be at least 42 semester-credit units in length. This criterion is met. The degree requires 45 semester credits for completion, and the program has not granted degrees for fewer credits. The university defines a semester credit as 15, 50-minute in-class sessions. Most of the program s courses are four-credit offerings. 12

15 2.3 Public Health Core Knowledge. All graduate professional public health degree students must complete sufficient coursework to attain depth and breadth in the five core areas of public health knowledge. This criterion is met. The five public health core areas are addressed through five separate courses, listed in Table 3. Site visitors reviewed the syllabi for all core courses and verified that they provide an appropriate scope and depth of coverage. Table 3. Core Knowledge Areas Area Course Credits Biostatistics MPH 612: Biostatistics in Public Health 4 Epidemiology MPH 621: Epidemiology 4 Environmental Health MPH 632: Environmental & Occupational Public Health Issues 4 Sciences Social & Behavioral Health MPH 622: Communicating for Healthy Behavior & Social 4 Health Services Administration Change MPH 631: Public Health Systems Leadership and Administration Practical Skills. All graduate professional public health degree students must develop skills in basic public health concepts and demonstrate the application of these concepts through a practice experience that is relevant to students areas of specialization. This criterion is met. All students are required to complete a minimum of 300 hours of fieldwork experience in an approved public health setting after successfully completing all required courses. The selection of a fieldwork site is the responsibility of the student and the fieldwork coordinator. The MPH Fieldwork Experience Handbook describes the program s policies and procedures. Students can select from among a wide range of fieldwork sites bases on experience and interest. Typically, a student meets with her fieldwork supervisor to discuss interests and identify an appropriate range of options. Students also have the opportunity to review the program s online directory of available fieldwork sites. Finally, guest speakers in courses have highlighted fieldwork opportunities at their organizations and have recruited students directly in these settings. Students have conducted fieldwork in health departments and non-profit organizations like the San Francisco Department of Public Health, Alameda County Health Department, Planned Parenthood, Salt Spring Centers Farm, World Health Organization, UNICEF and in public health functions at companies such as Pacific Gas and Electric. 13

16 Potential preceptors must have an MPH degree or five years of full-time experience in public health. The Faculty Fieldwork Coordinator reviews preceptors qualifications. Once the student has identified a potential preceptor, he or she submits a fieldwork organizational profile form that includes the web address of the organization, the name of the preceptor, CV and contact information for an organizational USF Memorandum of Agreement, which is signed by the student, preceptor and faculty fieldwork supervisor. At the end of the experience, students evaluate the practicum site, their fieldwork experiences and their preceptors. The fieldwork course instructor then reviews students evaluations of the practice sites, experiences, and preceptors and prepares a summary report for review by the MPH Evaluation Committee and the MPH Advisory Council. Each student creates a fieldwork summary report, which is presented at the program s Public Health Day. A final oral presentation of the written field experience report is also required during a final Public Health Day. Presenters take 15 minutes to present their experiences to faculty, administrators, preceptors, family members and other students. A self-evaluation of the fieldwork and reviews from the preceptor are submitted to the faculty fieldwork course instructor, who assigns a grade. 2.5 Culminating Experience. All graduate professional degree programs identified in the instructional matrix shall assure that each student demonstrates skills and integration of knowledge through a culminating experience. This criterion is met. The culminating experience consists of two courses: MPH 641 Fieldwork and MPH 642 Capstone. Students must complete all required courses prior to completing the culminating experience but can continue to complete elective courses. The fieldwork is experiential, and the capstone is a cumulative process of reflection and synthesis. During the field experience, students document their hours and how their work helped them exhibit public health competency. Through the capstone, students critically evaluate the field experience. This is done through an in-depth review of each of the program s defined competencies in a small group format through discussion and oral presentations. Students also create an e-portfolio during the capstone course. The e-portfolio is a digital space for students to reflect on their knowledge and skills and present themselves in a culminating display of ability and achievements. The e-portfolio includes a personal mission statement, evidence of achievement of competencies and reflections on the fieldwork experience. Faculty evaluate the e-portfolio as pass or fail using a grading rubric. 14

17 2.6 Required Competencies. For each degree program and area of specialization within each program identified in the instructional matrix, there shall be clearly stated competencies that guide the development of degree programs. The program must identify competencies for graduate professional, academic and baccalaureate public health degree programs. Additionally, the program must identify competencies for specializations within the degree program at all levels (bachelor s, master s and doctoral). This criterion is met. The program defines 12 competencies that encompass core public health knowledge and skills associated with the program s required coursework. The self-study also presents the program s defined core knowledge areas and interdisciplinary, cross-cutting values. These statements are not phrased in terms of what a student will know or do they are intended to complement the defined competencies and provide additional organizational structure for the program s curriculum. The self-study provides a table that maps the 12 competencies to required courses, and all competencies are addressed in at least four required courses. Site visitors verified that all syllabi for required courses list measurable learning objectives that can be mapped to competencies, though the exact mapping is implicit, rather than explicit. Faculty performed the initial competency mapping as a group, and they will revisit syllabi and competencies at annual retreats when appropriate. The program developed an initial set of competencies during a series of meetings in 2011 before the first students enrolled. Faculty and the program director met in 2012 to substantially revise the initial set, and the Advisory Committee also reviewed the competency set in In the spring of 2013, the full faculty met and refined the list of competencies, producing the current set. They also worked on determining where primary and secondary coverage of each competency occurs in the curriculum. This discussion produced several curricular changes. For example, faculty added reinforcements of literature search and review skills to several classes where they were not present. The program plans to continually monitor the need for updates to competencies through the following mechanisms: faculty members attendance at conferences and participation in organizations such as the Northern California Public Health Association; discussions with the Advisory Committee; periodic review of syllabi and observation of classes by the program director; and analysis of course evaluations, which ask students to assess the extent to which the course addressed the designated competencies. 2.7 Assessment Procedures. There shall be procedures for assessing and documenting the extent to which each student has demonstrated achievement of the competencies defined for his or her degree program and area of concentration. This criterion is partially met. The program has mapped required and elective courses to its defined competencies, so successful course completion is the first level of competency assessment. The required 15

18 fieldwork concludes with a report. In the report, students must discuss their own project-specific learning objectives as well as which programmatic competencies they addressed. They must reflect on the extent to which they demonstrated the competencies successfully. The capstone, taken concurrently with the fieldwork, includes group discussions of each of the program s competencies, with opportunities for students to critically analyze their own challenges and performance. The capstone also requires creation of an e-portfolio, which provides documentary evidence of students attainment of competencies. The program designates a series of measures as indicators of student success. Graduation rates are one of the designated indicators. The program targets 80% graduation within eight semesters. The first students enrolled in the program in fall 2011, and 27 of the 32 students (84%) who enrolled in fall 2011 or spring 2012 had gradated by the time of the site visit. Other cohorts have not yet reached their expected time to graduation, but available data suggests that these cohorts will also surpass the program s target. The program also tracks graduates employment. The self-study presents data for the 19 individuals who graduated in June This group has not yet reached the one-year mark post-graduation, which is the typical time period for tracking employment. The data indicates that 17 of the 19 students are employed or enrolled in additional education graduate-level nursing or dietetics. The employed students report a range of positions and sectors. Three are employed as health educators, one is a policy analyst and one is a health informaticist. The majority of positions held by graduates are clearly related to public health. Additional measures of student success include grade point average (the program exceeded its target of 3.2 throughout the program), passing scores on the e-portfolio (100% attained) and fieldwork preceptors ratings of student preparation for practice (the program exceeded its target of 80%). The final group of measures of student achievement relate to responses to program-administered surveys: the exit survey (given to graduating students), the alumni survey (administered one year after graduation) and the employer survey (administered concurrently with the alumni survey). Because the first cohort graduated in August 2013, the program administered the survey early so that some results would be available for site visitors review. The survey had nine respondents out of the initial group of 19 students. The survey asked graduates to self-assess their preparation on each of the programmatic competencies. Site visitors reviewed full survey results, which indicated that two of the 12 competency areas showed at least some dissatisfaction with coverage, but overall, the exit survey indicated that graduates felt quite well-prepared for public health practice. Respondents also provided narrative comments with suggestions for program improvement. Faculty indicated that they hope to improve response rates during future survey deployments. Faculty indicate that the survey response rate is not indicative of their level of contact with alumni. Faculty are in 16

19 touch with nearly all of the program s graduates, and know where they are employed and how they are doing. Some have already agreed to provide guest lectures or other service to the program. Faculty indicate that the response rate is solely indicative of the challenge of getting graduates to fill out an online survey. The concern relates to the fact that the program has not yet collected data from employers on graduates ability to perform competencies in an employment setting. The program has designed questionnaires and has a planned implementation schedule, but the program cannot yet present this required data element. 2.8 Bachelor s Degrees in Public Health. If the program offers baccalaureate public health degrees, they shall include the following elements: Required Coursework in Public Health Core Knowledge: students must complete courses that provide a basic understanding of the five core public health knowledge areas defined in Criterion 2.1, including one course that focuses on epidemiology. Collectively, this coursework should be at least the equivalent of 12 semester-credit hours. Elective Public Health Coursework: in addition to the required public health core knowledge courses, students must complete additional public health-related courses. Public health-related courses may include those addressing social, economic, quantitative, geographic, educational and other issues that impact the health of populations and health disparities within and across populations. Capstone Experience: students must complete an experience that provides opportunities to apply public health principles outside of a typical classroom setting and builds on public health coursework. This experience should be at least equivalent to three semester-credit hours or sufficient to satisfy the typical capstone requirement for a bachelor s degree at the parent university. The experience may be tailored to students expected post-baccalaureate goals (eg, graduate and/or professional school, entry-level employment), and a variety of experiences that meet university requirements may be appropriate. Acceptable capstone experiences might include one or more of the following: internship, service-learning project, senior seminar, portfolio project, research paper or honors thesis. The required public health core coursework and capstone experience must be taught (in the case of coursework) and supervised (in the case of capstone experiences) by faculty documented in Criteria 4.1.a and 4.1.b. This criterion is not applicable. 2.9 Academic Degrees. If the program also offers curricula for graduate academic degrees, students pursuing them shall obtain a broad introduction to public health, as well as an understanding about how their discipline-based specialization contributes to achieving the goals of public health. This criterion is not applicable. 17

20 2.10 Doctoral Degrees. The program may offer doctoral degree programs, if consistent with its mission and resources. This criterion is not applicable Joint Degrees. If the program offers joint degree programs, the required curriculum for the professional public health degree shall be equivalent to that required for a separate public health degree. This criterion is not applicable 2.12 Distance Education or Executive Degree Programs. If the program offers degree programs using formats or methods other than students attending regular on-site course sessions spread over a standard term, these degree programs must a) be consistent with the mission of the program and within the program s established areas of expertise; b) be guided by clearly articulated student learning outcomes that are rigorously evaluated; c) be subject to the same quality control processes that other degree programs in the university are; and d) provide planned and evaluated learning experiences that take into consideration and are responsive to the characteristics and needs of adult learners. If the program offers distance education or executive degree programs, it must provide needed support for these programs, including administrative, travel, communication and student services. The program must have an ongoing program to evaluate the academic effectiveness of the format, to assess learning methods and to systematically use this information to stimulate program improvements. The program must have processes in place through which it establishes that the student who registers in a distance education or correspondence education course or degree is the same student who participates in and completes the course and degree and receives academic credit. This criterion is not applicable. 3.0 CREATION, APPLICATION AND ADVANCEMENT OF KNOWLEDGE. 3.1 Research. The program shall pursue an active research program, consistent with its mission, through which its faculty and students contribute to the knowledge base of the public health disciplines, including research directed at improving the practice of public health. This criterion is met with commentary. Faculty in the MPH program are engaged in public health research that includes the areas of environmental health, maternal health, sexually transmitted disease and substance abuse. The program has established a robust list of outcome measures related to research activities. While the MPH program has achieved five of its eight targeted outcomes, it is still working to achieve desired targets for important components such as funding, peer reviewed manuscript submissions and peer reviewed journal publications. The university provides over one million dollars each year for faculty research and development. These internal dollars are distributed to schools based on the number of faculty, and school committees award the dollars among departments and individuals. 18