Auburn University issued the following announcement on Sept. 1.

The Office of Academic Assessment recently honored the Food Science Bachelor of Science Program for its selection as the 2019 Provost’s Program Assessment Excellence Awardee. The award is given annually to one program that exemplifies a positive culture of assessment by engaging in thoughtful and well-aligned assessment practices.

In a typical year, the program is celebrated with an award luncheon hosted by the provost during the spring. This year, due to COVID-19, the celebration was postponed and rescheduled, and the award ceremony was held outside with just a small group of representatives from the Food Science Program.

“Though the event looked a little bit different, the congratulations are no less,” said Katie Boyd, director of academic assessment.

The Food Science Bachelor of Science Program is one of only three programs across campus that has been eligible for the award since its inception four years ago. The program’s annual assessment work, led by retired Food Science Program Coordinator Leonard Bell, was conducted at the highest level, earning a perfect score from Auburn University peers and unanimous selection by the University Assessment Council.

The curriculum is driven by a set of thoughtful outcomes which convey specific knowledge, skills and abilities for the students pursuing a food science degree, Boyd said. The faculty’s intentional use of strong rubrics, and other direct tools, to measure student learning outcomes is a specific strength and very representative of the quality of assessment practices implemented by the Food Science Program.

“Together, the University Assessment Council and Office of Academic Assessment were especially impressed with the way the program has dedicated time to use the results of their assessment and improve the student experience and student learning, which is quite rare and exemplifies meaningful assessment,” Boyd said.

The Provost’s Award for Program Assessment Excellence has been awarded to three other programs since the Office of Academic Assessment was established in 2015. The 2016 and 2017 awardees were the Master of Building Construction and the Building Science bachelor’s degree, respectively. The 2018 awardee was the Nutrition Science Bachelor of Science program.

“Congratulations and thanks go out to the Food Science Program faculty for their hard work,” Boyd added.

Link to Image 1Pictured, from left, are Katie Boyd, director of academic assessment; William Dozier, department head and professor, Poultry Science; Leonard Bell, retired professor and Food Science Program coordinator; Amy Wright, associate dean for instruction and professor, Horticulture; and Provost Bill Hardgrave.

The Office of Academic Assessment recently honored the Food Science Bachelor of Science Program for its selection as the 2019 Provost’s Program Assessment Excellence Awardee. Pictured, from left, are Katie Boyd, director of academic assessment; William Dozier, department head and professor, Poultry Science; Leonard Bell, retired professor and Food Science Program coordinator; Amy Wright, associate dean for instruction and professor, Horticulture; and Provost Bill Hardgrave.

Original source: https://ocm.auburn.edu/newsroom/news_articles/2020/09/011022-food-science-provost-award.php?auhphdln