Submission Highlights

Team Information

Jodi Cropper, jodi.cropper@cuanschutz.edu, Director of Academic Programs
Leigh Small, Associate Dean of Academic Programs
Latrice Pettigrew, Graduate Programs Manager
Salina Evans, Undergraduate Program Manager
Daniel Hussey, Undergraduate Program Manager
Ingrid Eschholz, Academic Programs Specialist (and former AMC Associate Registrar)
Rosario Medina, Assistant Dean of Graduate Programs
Leli Pedro, Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Programs
Tammy Spencer, Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Programs
Sandra Tapiceria, Admissions Operations Analyst

What

Ms. Cropper developed and implemented a three-step strategic plan to increase office efficiencies, streamline processes and strengthen the infrastructure that supports academic programs.
The Office of Academic Programs (OAP) facilitated the implementation of sequenced plans of study (POS) across degree programs and tracks to ensure a sequenced curriculum, improve student learning and meet accreditation requirements. Now, students are cohorted by degree program and track, allowing accurate annual projections of course enrollments and number of course sections; subsequently, faculty can plan their year-long teaching effort.
Simultaneously, OAP implemented a revised CUSIS coding model that cohorts students by degree, track and admission term. Now student data reports are accurate, registration is managed using requisites and less time is spent working with unofficial internal spreadsheets and tracking documents (see attachment).
An algorithm, developed by Ms. Cropper, utilizes the POS and CUSIS coding model to project clinical placement needs by student cohorts, allowing staff and faculty to work proactively, rather than reactively. These step-wise changes facilitate smooth transfer of accurate information across various relational software programs.

Why

The College of Nursing is the largest unit on the Medical Campus encompassing 1,200 students and four degree programs (BS, MS, DNP, PhD), each with 3-12 tracks and 2-3 plans of study per track. Enrollment management is essential for seamless student progression and streamlined faculty/staff workload. This multi-step strategic innovation provides the infrastructure necessary for college growth. Prior growth opportunities were blocked due to inaccurate data and highly manual processes, requiring staff to focus on urgent student situations, and recurring faculty workload challenges. Now, the OAP team can anticipate challenges and collaboratively plan strategies with faculty to avoid difficult situations.

When

The Office of Academic Programs implemented plans of study with the cohort of students that matriculated in fall 2017. In spring 2019, the CUSIS student coding model was implemented and in fall 2019, the coding model was used with the integration of a software program (InPlace) to manage clinical placements. In fall 2019, the algorithm that determines when students will start their clinical placements was implemented, and in December 2019, the reports that assist in projecting enrollments and future placement needs was finalized.

Example of Undergraduate Planning