Student Affairs Assessment at James Madison University 

As stated by JMU’s Student Affairs Assessment Advisory Council: “We envision Student Affairs becoming a culture that embraces evidence-based programming where the assessment of student learning and development is pervasive throughout its departments.” Thus, the effectiveness of programming developed and offered via the Division of Student Affairs must be assessed in order to improve programming and promote effective programming. 

The Student Affairs Assessment Support Services (SASS) aims to enhance the assessment capacity of student affairs professionals who coordinate programs with student learning and development outcomes. Fulfillment of this mission occurs via direct consultation, educational activities, and the dissemination of scholarly work relevant to assessment practices. The SASS website features numerous resources for each step of the assessment process including resources for developing student learning outcome statements (SLOS), assessment instrument selection and design, program creation and mapping which follows a program theory approach, and program implementation and fidelity to ensure your program is implemented as intended. Website visitors can also find information on professional standards for assessment, JMU’s guide to reporting assessment results, and learning improvement initiatives.