The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

4177.0: Tuesday, November 12, 2002 - 2:35 PM

Abstract #48410

A Comprehensive Program Evaluation Model for Public Health Doctoral Programs Offered via Distance Education

Michael Graham, PhD and William H. Wiist, DHSc. School of Health and Human Services, Walden University, 155 Fifth Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55401, 612-338-7224 x1227, mgraham@waldenu.edu

Program review is one mechanism by which a university routinely evaluates its academic programs and associated services to ensure they reflect the quality standards that are imperative for the university’s future. The evaluation provides a basis for revising, strengthening, enhancing, and deleting programs. This session highlights the components of a year-long comprehensive and formative assessment of a public health-health services doctoral program that is delivered via distance education. It also presents a "grounded theoretical model" for evaluating similar programs, which was derived from the assessment process. The model postulates the following key assumptions about academic program evaluation: 1. It is designed to confirm the overall quality of the program and the degree to which it adheres to current standards in the discipline outside the confines of the university; 2. It facilitates accountability to the various constituencies and the communities the program and the university seeks to serve; 3. It helps in long-range planning by providing the basis for future academic plans and resource allocation; and 4. It leads to changes that enhance the program's basic values of quality, integrity, and student centeredness.

Learning Objectives: At the conculusion of this session, participants will be able to

Keywords: Public Health Education, Outcomes Research

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: I am employed by the institution in which the research was conducted

The Many Aspects of Public Health Learning: Learning via Distance

The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA