The Center for Assessment & Research Studies

The mission of the Center for Assessment and Research Studies (CARS) at James Madison University is to provide quality assessment service to the university, to provide applied graduate training in both assessment and measurement, to increase the use of innovative technology in assessment practice, to increase the rigor of measurement and statistical techniques used in assessment practice, and to produce quality scholarship in assessment and measurement.

To improve higher education by inspiring and empowering faculty and staff to make evidence-based decisions to enhance student learning and development.

Quality: We value quality in all of our endeavors.

Innovation: We value the use of innovative technology and the use of more rigorous measurement and statistical techniques in assessment and measurement. 

Appropriateness: We value a match between the technologies or measurement/statistical techniques being used and the assessment-related questions being asked. 

Research: We value rigorous study of the instruments, technologies and measurement/statistical techniques used to answer assessment-related questions. 

Accuracy: We value accuracy in all assessment endeavors, including: the collection of data, the reporting of assessment results and in the application of measurement and statistical techniques. 

Multiple Roles: We value our faculty and students having multiple roles and desire both faculty and students to simultaneously be practitioners, teachers, scholars and learners. 

Communication: We value open and clear communication with each other and the people we serve. 

Diversity of Interests: We are a diverse learning community that promotes mutual respect. We value the variety of faculty and student interests and competencies in assessment, measurement and statistics as well as the various paths and related academic fields that have attracted them to CARS.

Outreach: 

• Engagement: We value reciprocal partnerships with each other, other programs on campus, other institutions of higher education, and international and national communities in assessment, measurement, and statistics.
• Visibility: We value active participation in the scholarly communities associated with both practice and research in assessment, measurement, and educational statistics.