IEEE Committee on Engineering Education Activities
Purpose
This process describes the method that will be
employed for mentoring of Program Evaluators.
Objectives
The process objectives are:
- To ensure that all new Program Evaluators are
familiar with the goals, objectives, procedures
and responsibilities of the CEAA.
- To provide a contact for aiding new Program
Evaluators preparing for and conducting their
first visit.
- To provide pre-visit support to all Program
Evaluators as a means of answering questions
relating to the accreditation process.
- Provide feedback to CEAA on issues relating to
training of evaluators or improvement of
processes.
Process Owner
This process is owned and maintained by the Chair of
the CEAA, who is responsible for its ongoing
implementation.
Process (a flow diagram for the process is
shown in Attachment
A)
-
Initial Communications with new Program
Evaluators. The CEAA Mentor Coordinator will
contact each new Program Evaluator as soon as
possible after his/her visit assignment. Initial
contact will normally be made through e-mail.
Correspondence to the new member will include
the following items: (a) A letter of
introduction explaining the purpose of the
Mentor Process. Attachment
B shows a typical letter of introduction.
(b) Visit process framework (see Attachment
C). This document provides an overview of
major activities associated with the visit. (c)
Checklist of Program Evaluator Deliverables (See
Attachment
D). This important document aids the
Evaluator in organizing and conducting the
visit. (e) Characteristics of Evaluator
Excellence (See Attachment
E). This helps the new Evaluator understand
what is expected.
- A follow-up telephone
contact is made by the Mentor Coordinator to
each new Program Evaluator within a short time
after sending the e-mail. The purpose of the
call is to ensure that the evaluator has
received the e-mail information and to answer
any questions that the evaluator may have. The
Mentor Coordinator should explain the CEAA
report review process and offer assistance to
the evaluator. Although each evaluator has two
Visit Consultants assigned, the Mentor
Coordinator is the Lead Visit Consultant for all
new evaluators.
-
Pre-visit Consultations with New Program
Evaluators. During the visit preparation
phase the CEAA Mentor Coordinator will act as a
resource for answering questions and providing
advice. The CEAA Visit Consultants may also
provide assistance and advice if needed. In some
cases evaluators may need to contact the Visit
Consultants or CEAA Mentor Coordinator during or
after the visit.
-
Mentoring of experienced Program
Evaluators. After a Program Evaluator has
completed his or her first visit, CEAA Visit
Consultants act as mentors to their assigned
Program Evaluators. Normally, the Lead
Consultant makes initial contact with the
Evaluator prior to their visit to explain the
role of mentors and to offer assistance. The
initial contact is normally made through e-mail
following a process similar to that outlined in
(1) above. Attachments C, D, and E should be
provided in this initial contact. The two
Consultants share all subsequent mentoring
responsibilities. Mentors provide Evaluators
with contacts for questions or issues that may
arise prior to the visit and interact in post
visit activities as necessary.
-
Process Feedback. At the January CEAA
meeting the CEAA Mentor Coordinator shall report
to the CEAA any issues identified in the
mentoring process that have potential for
improving the accreditation process or the
training of new Evaluators. The Mentor
Coordinator shall contact all Visit Consultants
prior to the meeting in order to identify all
issues and opportunities for improvement.
Following the meeting, the CEAA Mentor
Coordinator communicates issues brought up by
the CEAA that need to be emphasized to new
Evaluators back to the Evaluators.
