UH Manoa names director for new Assessment Office

The UH Mānoa Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Paul Adams as Director of the recently formed Mānoa Assessment Office.



This appointment supports UH Mānoa‘s commitment to the sustained improvement of student learning. Through the appointment of Dr. Adams, the Assessment Office increases its capacity to collaborate with the campus community to establish meaningful, manageable, and sustainable assessment of student learning at the program and institutional levels.



This appointment is also important in light of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) accreditation requirements. Student learning assessment is one of several areas WASC emphasizes when it accredits universities. The Assessment Office plays an important role in leading General Education assessment as well as assisting in program-level assessment. WASC will visit UH Mānoa on December 8-10, 2009 for a Capacity and Preparatory Review and again in March 2011 for the follow up Educational Effectiveness Review. The Assessment Office will play a key role in coordinating and providing evidence of student learning for these visits.



Dr. Adams is Professor at the Myron B. Thompson School of Social Work. In addition to his teaching and research in the areas of social policy and ethics, he has led several self-studies for program reaccreditation at different universities and has published on the use of classroom assessment techniques. Dr. Adams is committed to assessment as a faculty-driven process reflecting faculty responsibility for student learning. It requires, he says, long-term commitment and sustained partnership of faculty and administration. He is excited to have the opportunity to make student learning the focus of assessment and lead the UH Mānoa Assessment Office.

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