Institutional Profile
The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) strives to provide high quality education in the liberal arts and sciences and public service programs to the state, region, and the nation. The institution maintains the legacy of historical black institutions emphasizing a commitment to equal educational opportunity for all students. The distinctiveness of UMES is most evident in the offerings of instruction, research, and service programs in major academic clusters including the liberal arts and sciences, agriculture, business, technology, education, environmental and marine sciences, allied health, hospitality, and special academic services.
Mission
The Mission of Decision Science & Visualization is to provide, promptly and in clear format, accurate and consistent data/information needed by UMES to support its efforts for the continuous improvement of its programs and services. It supports wide-ranging initiatives including the University’s strategic planning process, student access and retention efforts and the overall institutional environment by assessing and evaluating its strategic initiatives and providing assessment of institutional effectiveness and student learning outcomes data/information. In addition, it conducts focused studies to inform university policy. The office also provides data/information to meet institutional accountability and informational needs of individuals and offices within the institution, the University System of Maryland, Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC), Federal, State, private and accreditation agencies.
Goals
- Collect, analyze and disseminate college-wide school and departmental data in support of accreditation, ongoing academic and administrative assessment, strategic planning initiatives, and program review processes.
- Meet the University’s reporting obligations to Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC), University System of Maryland, Department of Education and other internal offices in a timely manner.
- Enhance administrative reporting practices.
- Monitor national trends in higher education.
- Respond to questionnaires and other non-routine requests for information from federal, state and other external agencies.
- Provide technological assistance to the university and surrounding communities in the area of data mining, qualitative and quantitative research methods tasks and measurement, survey instrument development and related technologies (statistical and qualitative programs).
- Increase opportunities for faculty and staff to attend professional conferences, training sessions and workshops.
- Coordinate the assessment of institutional effectiveness and assessment of student learning activities.
Peer Institutions
- Alcorn State University
- Central State University
- Coppin State University
- Elizabeth City State University
- Fort Valley State University
- Kentucky State University
- Langston University
- Savannah State University
- South Carolina State University
- University of Alaska Fairbanks*
- University of Arkansas at Little Rock*
- University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
- University of Hawaii at Hilo^
- University of Houston-Clear LakeŦ
- University of Michigan-Flint*
- University of the District of Columbia
- University of the Virgin Islands
Aspirational Peer Institutions
- Alabama State University
- Albany State University
- Delaware State University
- Lamar University
- Norfolk State University
- Rutgers University^
- Texas A&M University – Kingsville Ŧ
- University of Arkansas at Little Rock
- University of Houston-Clear LakeŦ
- Virginia State University
* Non-HBCU (Historically Black College and University)
^ Minority Serving Institution- Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions and Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian (AANAPISI & ANNH)
Ŧ Minority Serving Institution – Hispanic Serving Institutions
