The SVCC Learning College Model


Synergy: The phenomenon of two or more discrete influences or agents acting in common to create an effect which is greater than the sum of the effects each is able to create independently.

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As Sauk Valley Community College responded to the two separate HLC concerns regarding strategic planning and academic assessment that precipitated this focused visit, we were repeatedly reminded of how interrelated all of the College's processes and functions are. Each approach we explored for one concern intersected with some aspect of the other concern. The potential for synergy we saw in these connections motivated us to address both concerns by creating a planning structure that formally links them, along with many other institutional activities and processes. Based on principles of learning organization theory, we have used a systems approach to design a comprehensive planning cycle that relies on input from all levels of staff from all areas of the College. The most significant change that has occurred at SVCC as a result of the HLC recommendations lies in the structural realignments and cultural shifts.

We believe that just as the daily practices of assessment and strategic planning cannot occur in isolation from one another, our Focused Visit Report can not adequately address the two topics in isolation. To do so would invalidate the comprehensive system we created. As a result, both focused visit concerns are addressed in this single report.

Because of this interconnectedness, we encourage the reader to read the entire report in order to gain a comprehensive perspective on our planning and assessment journey. Because the process by which we addressed the HLC concerns became a transformational event in the life of the College, we have documented much of it in the report, along with the specific evidence that we have addressed the HLC directive to make specific changes. Because we have achieved the synergy we sought, transforming the institution beyond the separate scope of the HLC directives, we have appended a reflection on that transformation. (See Appendix A.)