WEAVE is an online institutional assessment and planning system that is used by academic institutions for accreditation, assessment, curriculum management and strategic planning. IU Northwest obtained the product this year to provide a mechanism for documenting campus Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) processes and projects as required by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) for our Academic Quality Improvement Pathway (AQIP) accreditation. WEAVE will be used to document the AQIP Action Projects that are required by the HLC, and will also be used to document and manage CQI projects across the campus in both academic and non-academic units. It also has additional uses, such as strategic planning, curriculum management and assessment, and accreditation. For now we will focus on managing and documenting campus CQI projects for IU Northwest’s April 2016 AQIP Accreditation Visit.
In November of 2013, IU Northwest completed and submitted its AQIP Systems Portfolio to the Higher Learning Commission to meet accreditation requirements and expectations. In January of 2014, HLC issued its Systems Appraisal Feedback Report, and outlined a number of opportunities for improvement that IU Northwest could implement and document more effectively to illustrate the principles and practices of Continuous Quality Improvement. WEAVE was specifically mentioned as a viable vehicle for responding to the System Appraisal’s call for better documentation of our efforts, and it provides a systematic structure for ensuring that the projects that we document can lead to continuous quality improvements.
Because the emphasis of CQI is quality, and the structure of WEAVE requires substantive documentation, you should initially develop no more than two goals for your unit or department. Through the planning cycle, once goals have been accomplished, new goals can be added to document quality improvements. Additionally, WEAVE can also be used for accreditation, curriculum development, and assessment of learning and programmatic objectives. For the purpose of the AQIP visit, and as a way of becoming familiar with the various elements of continuous quality improvement, it is best to focus on one, and not more than two goals, during this first assessment cycle.
Monitoring and evaluation of the WEAVE process happens at several levels: by the WEAVE administrator designated to document CQI initiatives (i.e. Department Chair, Dean, Unit Director, etc.), that individual’s supervisor, by the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Institutional Effectiveness, and finally by the Chancellor. Throughout the process, documents can be reviewed or changed, and feedback will be provided by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness if requested during the input process. The Office of the Chancellor will have the opportunity to review all CQI projects and initiatives before the yearly cycle is completed. At the beginning of the next cycle, existing projects can be updated and assessed, and when initiatives have achieved their projected goals, new ones can be added.
All institutions following the Higher Learning Commission’s AQIP Accreditation Pathway are required to provide evidence of Continuous Quality Improvement. WEAVE offers a mechanism for systematically documenting CQI across the institution, and can be utilized by all academic and administrative units on campus. Also, for those units that have accreditation requirements, WEAVE can assist with the reporting and documentation processes required by accreditation agencies. Finally, WEAVE can assist in the development and planning of curricular, extra-curricular, and co-curricular projects. In short, every unit or department at IU Northwest will contribute to the university’s accreditation efforts and our successful completion of the AQIP accreditation review.
Implementation of WEAVE on campus has already begun in anticipation of the April 2016 Higher Learning Commission visit. Since the process was only recently initiated, we anticipate modest but sustained progress for documenting CQI projects by the time of the accreditation visit. The required AQIP action projects will be fully documented by April, and individual Continuous Quality Improvement projects that have been initiated should have Mission, Goals, and Objectives input into the system by February 20th, 2016, with Measures, Findings, and Action plans completed by March 25th, 2016. Analysis and reporting will be completed by the end of the academic year, but it is important that evidence of substantive progress be available at the time of the AQIP accreditation visit, therefore unit and departmental WEAVE administrators should begin working with the system immediately. Training has been scheduled on January 28th, February 11th, and March 17th for individuals who will be working with the WEAVE system, complemented by hands-on workshops that will take place in LCC 230 on the following dates:
Tues., Feb. 2nd; Wed., Feb. 3rd
Tues., Feb. 16th; Wed., Feb. 17th
Tues., Mar. 22nd; Wed., Mar. 23rd
In addition to on-campus training, WEAVE provides extensive documentation within the system, as well as a number of online resources on their website.
In anticipation of the April 2016 visit of the HLC accreditation team, the information that will be put into WEAVE will be any departmental, unit, or institutional initiative or project that illustrates Continuous Quality Improvement on campus. Examples include departmental or divisional projects designed to achieve University or Campus strategic priorities; efforts aimed at addressing opportunities outlined by the Systems Appraisal Feedback Report; initiatives focused on student success, inclusive excellence, enrollment and retention, etc. The structure of WEAVE facilitates documenting existing efforts and establishing planning cycles for assessing and improving those efforts through the integration and inclusion of data and evidence.
1. Log onto One.IUand input WEAVE in the Search Bar
2. Select WEAVE Online (All IU Campuses). You will be directed to IU Northwest’s WEAVE Page. If this does not happen, then input into your web browser this address: https://app.weaveonline.com/IUN/login.aspx. Since IU Northwest uses Central Authentication Service (CAS) to provide access to applications and services, your WEAVE username will be the same as your CAS username. If all goes well, you will see a page that looks like this.
On this page, select “Assessment” on the blue menu bar. This is where you will document your action projects.
