The Preparatory Review examines the extent to which the institution meets Core Commitment One: "The institution functions with clear purposes, high levels of institutional integrity, fiscal stability, and organizational structures and processes to fulfill its purposes." This review is sometimes referred to as the “capacity review,” since it examines the resources that would make it possible for the institution to provide a stable, responsible, and educationally effective education for all its students. The Educational Effectiveness Review, which follows the Preparatory Review by one year, will be responsive to Core Commitment Two. In the present document, all four standards supporting these two commitments are selectively referenced via pertinent Criteria for Review (CFR); Standards 1 and 3, however, relate most directly to institutional capacity. Many of the Standard 2 and Standard 4 CFR refer to the substance of what the institution is engaged in and will be examining in the Educational Effectiveness Review.

Organization of the Review

The Preparatory Review consists of four sections: Introduction, Institutional Context, Thematic Features, and Conclusion.

The Introduction will present the themes which formed the background of our examination of institutional capacity, relate those themes to the institutional purposes and strategic priorities, and introduce six representative features of university activity for capacity analysis in the Thematic Features section.
The Institutional Context section will describe the organization, governance, and setting of California State University, Fresno, the characteristics of its service area and its students, and the major goals and recent campus thrusts that have engaged the university since its last WASC review.
The Thematic Features section, which forms the heart of the review, will analyze the six representative features of university activity (two for each theme), determining what structures, processes, policies, and resources exist or are needed to better support the selected activities. The features selected were chosen to be significant, representative, and revealing of both strengths and weaknesses.
The Summary and Conclusions will review and summarize the university’s capacity strengths and weaknesses as presented in the earlier sections, relate those to the four WASC Standards, and discuss prospects for enhancing that capacity. The institution's plans for the Educational Effectiveness Review will also be addressed.

The printed version of the Review is supplemented by appendices, accessible by links in the Web version, which include an Evidentiary Report on each of the three themes; the Exemplars; the Strategic Plan Goals and Priorities; a listing of the membership of the WASC Self-Study Steering Committee; and the Required Displays.

Grounding Documents

At the basis of the university's structure and function lie two critical documents: the university Mission Statement and the university Vision. The Vision for California State University, Fresno developed in 1993 and modified in the most recent strategic plan, Vision for the 21st Century: Plan for Excellence II: 2001-2006,reads:

Our vision is to be one of the nation’s premier interactive universities, recognized for quality teaching, transformational scholarship, and cultural leadership for the benefit of society.

The university Mission Statement has effectively guided the university since 1993, having been developed by the Academic Senate and approved by the president in May of that year:

The university offers a high-quality educational opportunity to qualified students at the bachelor’s and master’s levels, as well as in joint doctoral programs in selected professional areas.

To carry out this mission, the university provides a General Education program and other opportunities, to expand students’ intellectual horizons, foster lifelong learning, prepare them for future professional study and instill within them an appreciation of cultures other than their own.

The university offers undergraduate degrees and programs in the liberal arts and sciences as well as in a variety of professional disciplines emphasizing agriculture, business, engineering and technology, health and human services, and education, preparing students for productive careers and responsible world citizenship.

Building upon the strength of these undergraduate programs, graduate programs provide opportunities for personal and career enhancement through advanced study, preparing students for positions of leadership in the arts, sciences, and professions.

The university encourages and protects free inquiry and statement, ensuring a forum for the generation, discussion and critical examination of ideas. By emphasizing the primacy of quality teaching and the close interaction between faculty and students, the university seeks to stimulate scholarly inquiry and discourse, inspire creative technical competencies, encourage and support research and its dissemination, and recruit and develop outstanding teacher-scholars/artists.

The university fosters an environment in which students learn to live in a culturally diverse and changing society. Within that environment, it strives to develop a community founded upon mutual respect and shared efforts, in which individuals can communicate openly and work together to enrich the lives of all and to further the growth and excellence of the university. The university seeks and encourages historically under-represented students to embark upon and complete a university education.

The university serves the San Joaquin Valley while interacting with the state, nation, and world. The university is a center of intellectual, artistic and professional activity. Through applied research, technical assistance, training and other related public service activities, the university anticipates continuing and expanding partnership and linkages with business, education, industry, and government.

Strategic Planning Goals and Priorities

In the university’s most recent strategic plan, Plan for the 21st Century: Plan for Excellence II, the university identified thirty-eight strategic goals and twelve priorities. In this essay, reference will be provided to the Strategic Plan Goals (SPG), as well as the WASC Criteria for Review (CFR) via links to the right of the relevant text, and priorities will be included in the essay text where appropriate.

Institutional Purposes and Educational Goals

In order to facilitate the analysis of capacity and effectiveness, the campus WASC Steering Committee has drawn upon the grounding documents discussed above, as well as numerous other campus policies and documents, to derive a set of Institutional Purposes and accompanying Educational Goals.

Institutional Purposes

Offer quality academic degree and continuing education programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels that are fully accredited and/or known for their excellence.
Provide educational access to qualified students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds and underrepresented populations, through various modalities on and off campus.
Promote and support outstanding scholarly/creative activity and pure/applied research by faculty, particularly the generation and extension of knowledge benefiting the region.
Be a leading partner in education/training, research and cultural affairs with industry, government, school districts and community groups for economic development and improved quality of life.
Establish an environment reflecting and encouraging integrity and ethical standards in individual behavior and organizational conduct.

Educational Goals

Ensure a positive campus atmosphere that promotes inclusiveness and understanding of others and prepares graduates for life and work in a multicultural society.
Foster a learning community on campus that is actively engaged in discovery of knowledge, development of skills, and acquisition of experience.
Instill a culture of continual learning and improvement for all educational endeavors and the systems that support them.
Recruit, mentor and support faculty as productive scholars and effective teachers.
Encourage and support leadership development, civic involvement and on-going service to the community.

Preparation of the Review

The campus WASC Steering Committee is highly representative of the campus, with faculty from all eight colleges and schools; representatives of Academic Enhancement Services, Admissions and Records, the Associated Students, Athletics, the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, Continuing and Global Education, Graduate Studies, Human Resources, Institutional Research, the Provost's Office, the Senate Executive Committee, the Smittcamp Honors Program, the university Advisory Council, and the University Budget Committee; and a college development officer.

Subgroups of the campus WASC Steering Committee explored each of the three thematic areas and developed extensive reviews of the many features of university activity appropriate to their theme. Those reviews are provided outside of this essay as further evidentiary support. It is from those reviews that the six features analyzed in this essay were chosen. As might be expected, because the subgroups each had their own concerns, backgrounds, and emphases, the styles and treatments of the six features reflect the styles of the groups which gave them birth.

The university's Reaccreditation Proposal, approved by WASC in 2001, identifies five institutional goals and associated outcomes expected from the self-study and review processes. These involve outcomes assessment, strategic planning, institutional decision making, and vision/mission awareness; all are addressed by this Preparatory Review, to varying degrees.

The Themes: Opportunity, Exploration, Interaction

OPPORTUNITY – "Access to Quality Programs for Diverse Populations"

The theme opportunity is meant to communicate the idea that a quality education should be available to all eligible students. This is evidenced by a strong commitment to equity that ensures the lowering of barriers to entry and retention for all groups of learners—be they low-income and migrant students, community college transfers and first-generation college attendees, immigrant and international students, reentry adults and returning professionals, or distance and Web-based learners. The Opportunity theme is therefore dual-faceted, stressing both a strong commitment to equity and diversity and a purposeful dedication to the provision of a quality education for all concerned. It is important to note that the opportunity discussed here is thus not limited to students; it also refers to the chance afforded to faculty, staff, and administrators for involvement in this critical endeavor, as teachers, advisers, supporters, and enablers of students. These faculty, staff, and administrators—as diverse learners themselves—require access to excellent training and development programs for professional advancement and for the improvement of the university. And overall, the assurance of quality creates as well the need for structures and processes of vigilant, ongoing oversight and accountability.

This theme is closely aligned with the university's Vision and, particularly, the first, third, and sixth paragraph of the Mission Statement, above; the first two Institutional Purposes; and the first and fourth Educational Goals. Two representative features of university activity, dealing directly with access and quality, will be examined in detail in the Thematic Features section of this essay: Outreach and Academic Support Services, and Student Learning Outcomes Assessment.

EXPLORATION – "Discovery of Knowledge, Self, and Society Through Expanding Horizons"

The theme exploration is intended to convey the concept of acquiring a deeper understanding of the individual and society by pushing out the boundaries of awareness. For students, this means becoming conscious of new ideas and possibilities. For faculty, it involves extending the frontiers of knowledge and creating new expressions of culture as scholars and artists. For staff and administrators, exploration includes mastering and improving organizational support systems that contribute to educational effectiveness of the university. In each instance, both effort and results are stimulating and meaningful.

The alignment of this theme with the university Vision and, particularly, paragraphs two and five of the Mission Statement, is evident. It is most strongly reflected in the fifth Institutional Purpose and the second and third Educational Goals. The two features of university activity targeted in this particular Thematic Features section are Service-Learning and Research.

INTERACTION – "Transformation through Integration of Knowledge and Experience"

The theme interaction connotes empowerment to transform oneself and be changed by the surrounding world. It involves the acquisition and application of knowledge and skill through experience with students, faculty, staff, administrators, colleagues, and constituents of the university. Interaction extends outward from classroom dialog among students and between faculty and students to involvement of the entire university with cultural organizations, industry associations, community groups, government bodies, and educational institutions through its many and varied outreach programs, educational centers and research institutes. The reciprocal impact of experiential learning via student internships, professional collaborations, institutional partnerships, service-learning, and other interactions can be enriching intellectually, spiritually, financially, and otherwise.

The alignment of this theme with the Vision of a “…premier interactive university …” and the fifth and final paragraphs of the university's Mission Statement could not be more clear. The theme aligns most closely with the third and fourth Institutional Purposes and the fifth Educational Goal. Representative features selected for examination in the Interaction Thematic Features section are: Institutional Partnerships and Professional Engagement, and Community Service and Social Enrichment.

Together, these three thematic essays with their selected feature analyses present a significant cross- section of the complex educational arena that forms California State University, Fresno.

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