Review Assessment Report

In my sixth years as Program Director, by far this has been the most challenging year for our program. Due to Covid-19 we were forced to structure our classes and entire program online during the entire Summer and Fall of 2020 and entire 2021 year. This has been incredibly challenging for our students and faculty as many of our fitness classes had to be cancelled and redesigned to be taught online. Prior to the pandemic our program was 95% structured face-to-face and a very "hands on" learning environment with many lab classes offered. I am incredibly proud of our part-time faculty to confront this change and there willingness to become certified to teach online and help to redesign our classes so students could continue to progress through the program. There has been a decrease in the C-Pass Rate in 2019-2020 from 76% to 72% to date. Average class size has dropped from 23.2 in 2019-2020 to 22.4 to date. Annual number of graduate awards has gone up from 5 students in 2019-2020 to 7 students to date.

The Exercise Science AAS program failed to meet the target measure of 10 graduate awards with 7 graduates this 2020-2021 FY. This number is up from the prior FY however, was most likely affected by the pandemic this year and our program forced to move online. It is my observation that students struggled with this transition to online learning and did not progress with classes in order to graduate. The average class size dropped a little from 23.2 students in 2019-2020 to 22.4 students to date. Average class size has remained steady given the pandemic this past year. However, the program did meet and exceed target measures of 70% or above on Annual C-Pass rate for coursework with 72% to date. Average class fill rate was well above the target of 60% with 80% this fiscal year. Our program exceeded Annual Average withdrawal rates of only 12% which is well below the 30% target.

During the last assessment report the following questions were asked and some answers were revealed: 1) In the PHED 1460 Personal Fitness class we essentially measured if our students improve there fitness while enrolled in the class. There was a 27% increase in fitness levels from the beginning (pre-fitness test) vs. end-of-term post test. 2) Are our students demonstrating a high level of readiness to take and pass the ACSM-CPT, ACE-CPT, NSCA-CPT, AFAA Primary Group Exercise and/or ACE Group Fitness Instructor certification exams by successfully completing them? This info was examined and 5 of 5 students passed national certification the first time. This is a 100% pass rate above our target rate of 82% and a direct reflection on how our program is preparing students to pass the exam and be knowledgeable and confident in the fitness field. Therefore no major curriculum changes will be done in our program at this time especially to EXSC 2990. One thing that was revealing was all tests were ACE-CPT taken.

1. In the PHED 1460: Personal Fitness class it would be interesting to understanding how much fitness knowledge students are learning in this class. This could be evaluated by using a few quizzes throughout the term. 2. Emphasis on students taking other national certifications other than the ACE-CPT Exam. Our program will emphasize the importance of group exercise and yoga certifications. Also, our program will build-in opportunities for group certification into our curriculum.

1. In PHED 1460: Personal Fitness class the amount of student fitness was measured but that is only one outcome for this class. Fitness knowledge as a whole is the other major outcome which would need to be assessed. This class is particularly important as it provides the framework for others. Also, this class is required by all our AAS degree, Fitness Certificate, Criminal Justice, and Fire Science students. 2. Every student taking national certification at the end of the program took it with ACE (American Council on Exercise )