This content was written prior to the renaming of Watermark products in July 2021, and refers to an old product name. To learn more about the new names for Watermark products, read our press release here.
NEW YORK— July 28, 2020 –Watermark, a pioneer in educational intelligence, is pleased to welcome one of its latest partners, the University of Michigan-Flint. Accredited the Higher Learning Commission, UM-Flint has selected to use the direct connection between Watermark’s next-generation assessment planning and outcomes measurement solutions in order to more easily leverage its student learning outcomes data to inform institutional planning efforts. With this innovative data integration, the University will be able to automatically surface assessment data results to demonstrate evidence of learning in plans and identify improvement actions.
Focused on supporting student success and using data to drive meaningful improvements, UM-Flint is implementing Watermark for its abilities to increase efficiencies and create an even more holistic integration of institutional effectiveness processes on campus, including: assessment planning, program review, learning outcomes assessment, and accreditation reporting. The institution plans to leverage Watermark to break down data silos at the institution, reduce redundancy and time spent on manual processes, and provide more longitudinal transparency around plans, goals, outcomes, and results.
In addition to centralizing assessment planning, the University will use Watermark to support course-based assessment and ePortfolios in its School of Education & Human Services. By implementing Via by Watermark, UM-Flint can:
University-wide, students will have the additional opportunity to curate and manage multiple portfolios that include a variety of sample works, which serve to demonstrate progress toward goals and skill acquisition. Students can receive real-time feedback and easily showcase their learning journeys well beyond the limits of a traditional resume and transcript, demonstrating both their academic growth and future professional potential.
Because UM-Flint is using Watermark Planning & Self-Study, the company’s next-gen assessment and accreditation management solution — which features a powerful data architecture that allows an institution to leverage its data from across the platform — the University can leverage a direct data integration with Via by Watermark to surface rubric-based assessment data results in Watermark Planning & Self-Study — now easily demonstrating evidence of learning in plans. UM-Flint can more easily track where and how outcomes are being assessed, pinpoint gaps in curriculum, and identify and monitor the effectiveness of improvement actions — all while being able to generate an accreditation report from this work within a single, centralized system.
By being able to pull in assessment results collected through rubrics and align them to different planning measures, UM-Flint will harness data that is based on the assessment of actual student work — a direct measure of learning that captures levels of achievement on specific learning outcomes. Program administrators can more quickly drill into and aggregate this data for reflection, analysis, and action planning each cycle. These assessment results are now stored directly within the assessment plan, eliminating any duplicate or manual data entry and facilitating up-to-date evidence of student learning and institutional effectiveness for accreditation.
“Reflection and assessment are hugely important here at UM-Flint. We understand the interconnectedness of assessment, teaching, and learning, and with Watermark, we’ll be able to streamline those processes further so that we can answer essential questions about the success of our programs and courses. Through the use of Watermark products, we’ll be expanding our abilities to assess student learning and gather meaningful data on outcomes, while also giving our students an opportunity to better track their learning growth. We look forward to having the centralized educational intelligence needed to make informed decisions that improve student outcomes in university-wide programs, such as our General Education program,” said Shelby Newport, Associate Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Studies at UM-Flint.
Founded in 1956 on a commitment to bring a quality Michigan education to Flint and the surrounding area, UM-Flint has done exactly that. The institution has welcomed a record number of students into its classrooms, equipping them with the knowledge, experiences, and skills to make lasting contributions to the businesses, organizations, and communities they help shape. Ranked by U.S. News and World Report as a “Best in the Midwest,” UM-Flint offers over 100 undergraduate programs and more than 35 master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs. From international business to local public health issues, UM-Flint faculty develop curricula with industry professionals to ensure students gain the experiences and skills they’ll need to succeed.