NSA Assessment Documents
1. Plan for Evaluating Institutional Effectiveness
2. Trinity & Institutional Effectiveness, Part I: Assessment as a Watershed Worldview Issue
3. Trinity & Institutional Effectiveness, Part II: A Trinitarian Framework for Assessment (Below)
4. Assessment at Small Christian Colleges: Five Principles & Anathemas for Assessment
3. Trinity & Institutional Effectiveness, Part II:
A Trinitarian Framework for Assessment
The Trinity provides the ultimate model for understanding and evaluating the individual roles and responsibilities of all persons and creaturely institutions, and for understanding and evaluating how they relate (or should relate) to one another in unity. Failure to live concretely as Trinitarians, neglecting the practical implications of being made in the image of our Triune God, threatens to make us functional Unitarians or polytheists. The assessment process should not just be comprehensive, covering all facets of our institutions, but constructed in such a way so as to identify how these facets reflect and express the Trinitarian character of our Creator. Learning to see this unity-in-diversity and oneness-in-many revealed in our Triune God is crucial for seeing how we as imagebearers are to live and work within a confessionally Trinitarian academy. We can only begin to explore these mysteries and their implications for our institutions and the assessment process, but as Trinitarians, it is our duty and delight, filled with fruitful promise
The very first tenet all TRACS institutions must affirm in their Biblical Foundation Statements is “1.1.1. the Trinitarian nature of God” (Accreditation Manual, Rev. Ed., 2001, p. 18). The primacy and importance of this doctrine cannot be overstated. All Christians who embrace the historic, biblical faith confess the truth of this doctrine. However, the implications of the Trinity for Christian life and work are rarely discussed or acknowledged and even more rarely practiced self-consciously. In an age dominated by Unitarian liberalism and polytheistic multiculturalism, failure to stress the triune nature of the living God risks confusing the Christian faith with heretical forms of monotheism or equally heretical Tritheism—or worse. Failure to live concretely as Trinitarians, neglecting the practical implications of being made in the image of our Triune God, threatens to make us functional Unitarians or polytheists. For these reasons, even our assessment plans should be designed to help us see our institutions and all our academic labors from a thoroughgoing, self-consciously Trinitarian perspective.
A. The Importance of the Trinity for Education and Assessment
The assessment process described here assumes that the Trinity provides the ultimate model for understanding and evaluating the individual roles and responsibilities of all persons and creaturely institutions, and for understanding and evaluating how they relate (or should relate) to one another in unity. The mystery of the Trinity is profound and beyond our understanding, but God has revealed Himself in His Word as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with sufficient clarity so that we may truly know His attributes, character, and work and receive direction and understanding of what we should be and do as imagebearers.
From Scripture we know that the attributes of one Person are distinguishable, yet never separable from the other Two. For example, Christ is often described as our Prophet, Priest and King, yet the Father and the Spirit also share prophetic, priestly, and regal roles. The Persons of the Trinity are the incarnation of truth-beauty-goodness, and faith-hope-love in distinct ways, yet they are never separable or mutually exclusive. As Dr. Peter Leithart has written, “We ‘indwell’ one another in a way that palely reflects the reality of the full indwelling of the divine Persons with each other. The Father and the Son are ‘mutually constitutive’: there is no Father except that He has a Son, and no Son except that He has a Father.”[1] Learning to see this unity-in-diversity and oneness-in-many revealed foremost in our Triune God is crucial for seeing how we as imagebearers are to live and work, particularly within a confessionally Trinitarian academy. We can only begin to explore these mysteries and their implications, but as Trinitarians, it is our duty and delight, filled with fruitful promise.
B. A Trinitarian Model for Evaluating Institutional Effectiveness
The following model for evaluating its institutional effectiveness is designed to review and improve all facets of an institution and its operations. The model is comprehensive, evaluating institutional effectiveness through a regular and systematic review of personnel, operations, and publics. The model provides the necessary information and insights for institutions to take stock of their strengths, weaknesses, and overall effectiveness, and to take appropriate actions to improve where necessary. The faculty, administration, and the Board can glean information from the various areas reviewed and evaluate them regularly. Together, these points of assessment and evaluation provide an institution with a method of continuous self-review and evaluation, and a venue for making ongoing institutional improvements.
This evaluation process gathers information about personnel, operations, and publics using a self-consciously Trinitarian framework. The process is not just comprehensive, covering all facets of the institution, but it is constructed to identify how these facets reflect and express the Trinitarian character of our Creator. For example, all personnel, operations, and publics are evaluated on how well they reveal or express some of the following attributes of the Trinity. All facets of an institution can also be evaluated on how well their various roles and responsibilities reflect or embody the Trinitarian characteristics of Father-Priest-Goodness-Love, Son-King-Beauty-Hope, and Spirit-Prophet-Truth-Faith. These Trinitarian characteristics highlighted in this model should be considered distinct, but not mutually exclusive, stressing both unity and diversity simultaneously. They are best understood as generally flexible conceptual guides for reviving a Trinitarian sensibility in our academic pursuits as confessionally Trinitarian institutions. Moreover, these characteristics should be understood and conveyed poetically[2] so as to reflect their beauty and goodness, and not describe them in the sterile and lifeless prose of social science. Any assessment report that is more crassly functionalistic than rhetorically beautiful, coldly rational than poetically spiritual undermines the character of what is being described.
What follows are several graphic summaries of an institutional evaluation process based on this Trinitarian perspective. The first describes how the roles, attributes and actions of the Trinity are tangibly reflected in Christian education. The next two sets identify the various areas or aspects of a Christian institution, which have been grouped under three general headings—Personnel, Operations, and Publics—and how they reflect or fulfill the Trinitarian roles and responsibilities of Father-Priest-Goodness-Love, Son-King-Beauty-Hope, and Spirit-Prophet-Truth-Faith. The second of these two sets provide a framework for collecting information based on these Trinitarian roles and responsibilities. The final three graphs show how the three major institutional areas can be mutually accountable, reviewed and evaluated to improve overall institutional effectiveness.
The Trinity and Education in Trinitarian Perspective
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God, the Son (Christ)
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God, the Father
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God, the Holy Spirit
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The Trinity’s
A. Personal Roles
B. Attributes
C. Actions & Responsibilities
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King: Christ is King over all things; all things under his feet
Beauty: He is the incarnation of the beauty of holiness
Hope: Christ is the hope of the world; God’s promises are sure and unfailing
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Priest: Self-sacrifice (gave His only Son); He provides the Lamb to redeem His people
Goodness: Morally upright, blameless and pure
Love: God so loved the world; the greatest commandment is to love God & our neighbors as ourselves
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Prophet: Declares the Truth of God in Christ; inspires the Scriptures
Truth: Spirit leads us into all truth; He is our Comforter in truth
Faith: The Spirit’s action to turn dead bones into living saints, equipped for every good work
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C1. Actions & Responsibilities
B1. Educational Values & Abilities
A1. Purpose & Objectives
reflect the Trinity in Christian education
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Acquire skills to serve Christ and his Kingdom (Hope)
Know how, knowing poetically, creatively, making beautiful what was not (Beauty)
Take dominion creatively, culturally in Christ’s name (Kingly dominion)
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Joyfully obey the Word of God; “if you love me, keep my commandments” (Love)
Know where-when to act with wisdom, love & moral virtue (Goodness)
Learn wisdom, moral inclination, self-sacrifice, service to others, giving oneself away for sake of others (Priestly self-sacrifice)
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Know and believe the truth with confidence; “study to show yourself approved . . .” (Faith)
Know what-why, knowing the truth, and the way God made the universe (Truth)
Speak the truth in love with integrity, authority, humility (Prophetic voice)
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A Trinitarian Perspective on Institutional Roles and Responsibilities
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Personnel
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Operations
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Students
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Faculty/Staff
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Administration/
Governance
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Library, Resources & Facilities
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Academic Programs & Curriculum
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Christ/King/ Beauty/Hope
Knowing How, Skill, Kingdom-Cultural Dominion
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• Learn skills
• Develop effective reasoning
• Strengthen hope, vocation
• Develop eye for life, beauty, Christ’s Kingdom
• Learn to serve Christ as Lord of all life and culture
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• Skilled personnel
• Teaching, nurturing
• Academic vision, leadership
• Show beauty of subjects taught, joy of learning, faithful labor
• Demonstrate cultural leadership
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• Skilled administrators
• Articulating institutional goals
• Promoting faithful institutional culture
• Providing godly institutional leadership
• Promote financial stewardship and show responsibility
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• Well managed resources and facilities
• Students & faculty know how to use well
• Skilled personnel
• Facilities are beautiful and resources are user friendly
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• Well managed financial services
• Students & faculty are served well financially
• Financial services and requirements explained clearly
• Stays within budget/means
• Skilled personnel
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• Academic program encourages skills
• Curriculum serves students well
• Academic requirements are clearly explained
• Academic requirements are enforced
• Achievable academic standards
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Father/Priest/ Goodness/Love
Knowing Where-When, Moral Inclination, Self-sacrifice, Wisdom, Obedience
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• Learn to apply wisdom, moral judgment
• Obedience and respect to elders/teachers
• Love God, faculty, fellow students and neighbors as self
• Act wisely to bring honor, not dishonor, to Lord, institution, self
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• Experienced personnel
• Counseling, advising
• Personal example to students
• Self sacrifice to students, admin., institution
• Love God, students, administrators, and neighbors
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• Experienced administrators
• Provide example of self sacrifice to students, faculty-staff
• Employee assistance
• Provide student-staff benefits/programs
• Serve as intermediary to publics
• Love God, students, faculty, staff , publics, and neighbors
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• Wise, stewardly use of resources and facilities
• Safe and secure facilities
• Well maintained facilities
• Facilities used in ways that encourage love for each other
• Experienced library & facilities personnel
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• Wise use of funds
• Tuition & fees kept low
• Sound financial management
• Well maintained accounts
• Conservative budgeting process
• Fully accountable with annual audit
• Experienced financial personnel
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• Wise faculty and academic planning
• Academic requirements are followed and met
• Curriculum is regularly reviewed and improved
• Academic standards are good (high)
• Students and faculty are accountable
• Experienced faculty
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Spirit/Prophet/ Truth/Faith
Knowing What-Why, Integrity, Judgment
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• Master broad and deep learning
• Speak truthfully and biblically
• Do academic work with full integrity
• Live faithfully and joyfully with knowledge, shun foolishness
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• Knowledgeable personnel
• Develop curriculum, academic goals, and mission with integrity
• Teach the truth
• Teach with personal and academic integrity
• Live by faith
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• Knowledgeable administrators
• Work with academic and administrative integrity
• Declare the truth in how the institution speaks publicly
• Act on biblical principles, not on pragmatic expediency
• Live by faith
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• Resources and facilities meet institutional needs
• Knowledgeable library and facilities personnel
• Truthful information published
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• Knowledgeable financial personnel
• Finances sufficient to meet institutional needs
• Keep student costs low, stable
• Truthful PR, accounting, and fundraising
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• Knowledgeable academic personnel
• Programs truly meet student needs
• Students, faculty study and live truthfully & faithfully
• Truthful & accurate academic records and information kept
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A Trinitarian Perspective on Institutional Roles and Responsibilities (continued)
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Publics
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Alumni, Parents & Stakeholders
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Churches & Communities
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Peer Institutions, Accreditation & Civil Authorities
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Christ/King/ Beauty/Hope
Knowing How, Skills, Kingdom-Cultural Dominion
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• Offer skills to benefit College
• Make opportunities to serve current students; for students to serve alumni and stakeholders
• Offer counsel and advice to students
• Promote College with prospective students, community
• Loving relationships between alumni, parents, stakeholders and College
• Lovely alumni-parent-student communication
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• Offer skills and resources to benefit students and College; faculty & students serve needs of community
• Make opportunities for students & faculty to work & serve
• Exchange of counsel and advice between churches, community, College
• Loving relationships between community and College
• Lovely church-community-student communication
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• Offer skills and resources to benefit College, peers, and state
• Willing to make opportunities for students improvement, exchange
• Offer counsel and advice to institution
• Loving relationships between peer institutions, accrediting body, and even civil authorities
• Lovely peer, accrediting body, civil authorities communication
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Father/Priest/ Goodness/Love
Knowing Where-When, Wisdom, Moral Inclination, Obedience, Self-sacrifice
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• Timely involvement with College, events
• Wise two-way counsel and advice between alumni, parents, stakeholders and administration
• Sacrificial financial, prayer, moral support
• Maintain commitment to College’s mission & vision
• Good alumni-parent-administration communication
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• Timely mutual involvement between College, community events
• Wise two-way counsel and advice to administration
• Generous financial, prayer, moral support
• Understand and appreciates College’s mission & vision, which fit needs of church and community
• Good church-community- administration communication
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• Timely, appropriate involvement between College, peers, accrediting body, and civil authorities
• Wise two-way counsel and advice between peers and authorities
• Appropriate prayer, moral support between peers & accrediting body
• Mutual understanding of institutional missions & roles
• Good peer-accreditation-authorities communication
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Spirit/Prophet/ Truth/Faith
Knowing What-Why, Integrity, Judgment
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• Knowledgeable of College education needs
• Two-way counsel and advice between alumni, parents & faculty
• Support teachers and academic programs
• Maintain contact with College’s educational program
• Truthful alumni-parent-faculty communication
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• Knowledgeable of College-community education needs
• Two-ways counsel, advice, input from faculty & community
• Faculty public service and community involvement
• Maintain contact with College’s educational program
• Truthful church-community-faculty communication
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• Knowledgeable of peer-accreditation-authority needs
• Appropriate input to/from institutions
• Faculty public service and community involvement
• Reports truthful and accurate
• Truthful peer-accreditation-authority communication
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A Trinitarian Framework for Collecting Institutional Information
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Personnel
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Operations
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Students
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Faculty/Staff
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Administration/
Governance
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Library, Resources & Facilities
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|
Academic Programs & Curriculum
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Christ/King/ Beauty/Hope
Knowing How, Skill, Kingdom-Cultural Dominion
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• Evidence of skills
• Evidence of effective reasoning
• Evidence of strengthened hope, vocation
• Evidence of eye for life, beauty, Christ’s Kingdom
• Evidence of serving Christ in life and culture
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• Evidence of skilled personnel
• Evidence of nurturing teaching
• Evidence of academic vision & leadership
• Evidence of showing beauty of subjects taught, joy of learning
• Evidence of cultural leadership
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• Evidence of skilled administrators
• Evidence of articulating institutional goals
• Evidence of promoting faithful institutional culture
• Evidence of providing institutional leadership
• Evidence of financial stewardship and responsibility
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• Evidence of well managed resources and facilities
• Evidence of students & faculty knowing how to use well
• Evidence of skilled personnel
• Evidence facilities are beautiful and resources user friendly
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• Evidence financial services well managed
• Evidence students & faculty served well financially
• Evidence financial services & reqs explained clearly
• Evidence of staying within budget
• Evidence of skilled personnel
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• Evidence of academic program encourages skills
• Evidence of curriculum serving students well
• Evidence of clear explanation of academic requirements
• Evidence academic requirements are enforced
• Evidence academic standards achieved
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Father/Priest/ Goodness/Love
Knowing Where-When, Moral Inclination, Self-sacrifice, Wisdom, Obedience
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• Evidence of applying wisdom, moral judgment
• Evidence of obedience and respect to elders/teachers
• Evidence of love of God, faculty, fellow students and neighbors
• Evidence of acting wisely
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• Evidence of experienced personnel
• Evidence of counseling, advising
• Evidence of personal example to students
• Evidence of self sacrifice to students, admin., institution
• Evidence of love of God, students, administrators, and neighbors
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• Evidence of experienced administrators
• Evidence of providing example of self sacrifice to students, faculty-staff
• Evidence of employee assistance
• Evidence of provid-ing student-staff benefits, programs
• Evidence of serving as intermediary to publics
• Evidence of love of God, students, faculty, staff, publics, and neighbors
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• Evidence of stewardly use of resources and facilities
• Evidence of safe and secure facilities
• Evidence of well maintained facilities
• Evidence facilities used to encourage love for one another
• Evidence of experienced library & facilities staff
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• Evidence of wise use of funds
• Evidence tuition & fees kept low
• Evidence of sound financial mnagemnt
• Evidence of well maintained accounts
• Evidence of conservative budgeting process
• Evidence of annual audit
• Evidence of experienced financial staff
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• Evidence of wise faculty and academic planning
• Evidence academic requirements are followed and met
• Evidence of curriculum being regularly reviewed and improved
• Evidence academic standards are good (high)
• Evidence students and faculty are accountable
• Evidence of experienced faculty
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Spirit/Prophet/ Truth/Faith
Knowing What-Why, Integrity, Judgment
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• Evidence of mastering broad and deep learning
• Evidence of speaking truthfully and biblically
• Evidence of doing academic work with full integrity
• Evidence of living faithfully and joyfully with knowledge
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• Evidence of knowledgeable personnel
• Evidence curriculum, academic goals, & mission developed with integrity
• Evidence of teaching the truth
• Evidence of teaching with personal and academic integrity
• Evidence of living by faith
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• Evidence of knowledgeable administrators
• Evidence of working with academic and administrative integrity
• Evidence of declaring the truth in how the institution speaks publicly
• Evidence of acting on biblical principles, not on expediency
• Evidence of living faith
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• Evidence of resources and facilities meeting institutional needs
• Evidence of knowledgeable library and facilities staff
• Evidence of truthful information being published
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• Evidence of knowledgeable financial staff
• Evidence finances meet needs
• Evidence of keeping student costs low, stable
• Evidence of truthful PR, accounting, and fundraising
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• Evidence of knowledgeable academic personnel
• Evidence programs truly meet student needs
• Evidence students, faculty study and live truthfully & faithfully
• Evidence truthful & accurate academic records and information kept
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A Trinitarian Framework for Collecting Institutional Information (continued)
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Publics
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Alumni, Parents & Stakeholders
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Churches & Communities
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Peer Institutions, Accreditation & Civil Authorities
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Christ/King/ Beauty/
Hope
Knowing How, Skills, Kingdom-Cultural Dominion
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• Evidence skills offered to benefit College
• Evidence of opportunities made to serve current students; for students to serve alumni and stakeholders
• Evidence counsel and advice offered to students
• Evidence of promoting College with prospective students, community
• Evidence of loving relationships between alumni, parents, stakeholders and College
• Evidence of lovely alumni-parent-student communication
|
• Evidence skills and resources offered to benefit students and College; faculty & students serve needs of community
• Evidence opportunities made for students & faculty to work & serve
• Evidence counsel and advice offered between churches, community, College
• Evidence of loving relationships between community and College
• Evidence of lovely church-community-student communication
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• Evidence skills and resources offered to benefit College, peers, and state
• Evidence of willingness to make opportunities for students improvement, exchange
• Evidence counsel and advice offered to institution
• Evidence of loving relationships between peer institutions, accrediting body, and even civil authorities
• Evidence of lovely peer, accrediting body, civil authorities communication
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Father/Priest/ Goodness/Love
Knowing Where-When, Wisdom, Moral Inclination, Obedience, Self-sacrifice
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• Evidence of timely involvement with College, events
• Evidence of wise two-way counsel and advice between alumni, parents, stakeholders and administration
• Evidence of sacrificial financial, prayer, moral support
• Evidence commitment to College’s mission & vision maintained
• Evidence of good alumni-parent-administration communication
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• Evidence of timely mutual involvement between College, community events
• Evidence of wise two-way counsel and advice to administration
• Evidence of generous financial, prayer, moral support
• Evidence of understanding and appreciation of College’s mission & vision, which fit needs of church and community
• Evidence of good church-community- administration communication
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• Evidence of timely, appropriate involvement between College, peers, accrediting body, and civil authorities
• Evidence of wise two-way counsel and advice to between peers and authorities
• Evidence of appropriate prayer, moral support between peers & accrediting body
• Evidence of mutual understanding of institutional missions & roles
• Evidence of good peer-accreditation-authorities communication
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Spirit/Prophet/ Truth/
Faith
Knowing What-Why, Integrity, Judgment
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• Evidence of knowledge of College education needs
• Evidence of two-way counsel and advice between alumni, parents & faculty
• Evidence of support to teachers and academic programs
• Evidence contact with College’s educational program maintained
• Evidence of truthful alumni-parent-faculty communication
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• Evidence of knowledge of College-community education needs
• Evidence of two-way counsel, advice, input from faculty & community
• Evidence of faculty public service and community involvement
• Evidence contact with College’s educational program maintained
• Evidence of truthful church-community-faculty communication
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• Evidence of knowledge of peer-accreditation-authority needs
• Evidence of appropriate input to/from institutions
• Evidence of faculty public service and community involvement
• Evidence institutional reports are truthful and accurate
• Evidence of truthful peer-accreditation-authority communication
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[1] Peter Leithart, Ph.D., “The Dance of God, the Dance of Life: Perichoresis in Creator and Creature,” Triune Life, Christ Church Ministerial Conference, Moscow, ID, Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2003.
[2] See, e.g., James S. Taylor, Poetic Knowledge: The Rediscovery of Education (Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 1998), for a compelling argument to recover this way of knowing that “among the philosophers and poets of ancient, classical, and medieval times . . . was virtually a given as part of the human being’s ability to know reality” (p. 5).
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