Date:
4/11/2003
Contact: Wendel Sloan at 505.562.2253
Reporter: Britt Hochhausler
PORTALES – Have you ever wondered where your professor evaluations go? Have you ever wondered how retention (students staying in school) statistics are found? The answer to both of these questions lies in the Office of Planning Services at Eastern New Mexico University.
Planning Services is the major institutional research office at ENMU, under the umbrella of the Office of Planning and Analysis. Since ENMU is a federally- and state-funded institution, Planning Services has to gather the information to report to the government. They compile all the data about age, ethnicity, high school education, credit hours, and hometowns of students, as well as data about faculty and staff. They compile this data into fact books about students and university employees and compile students' evaluations of their instructors.
"We get to know the entire university," said Amy Holt, associate
director of Institutional Research.
Ms. Holt came to ENMU in 1984 as a department/division secretary for the Planning Services office where she first became involved in institutional research.
"I was trained by the University's researcher how to put the reports together," Ms. Holt said. She was later promoted to Institutional Research, and now holds the associate director position. While she was department/division secretary, she earned her bachelor's degree in university studies. "I had a lot of upper division hours in computer information systems," Ms. Holt said.
The first planning office for ENMU was formed in 1977. Dr. Everett Frost, ENMU president from 1991-2001, was the first vice president for Planning and Analysis.
"Before that office was formed, planning had been an ad hoc procedure. Planning was done when it was needed. It was not systemic and that was a weakness for the university," said Dr. Patrice Caldwell, the executive director for Planning and Analysis.
Assistingin the Office of Planning Services is Jolene Duran, an Institutional Research specialist since 1999 . She coordinates all the classroom facilities in the University, as well as the Becky Sharp Auditorium and Regents' Room. She started out in Admissions in 1982 and then moved to the Office of Planning and Analysis as executive secretary. She assists with the preparation of reports and data compilation.
"We do some fun stuff," Ms. Duran said. "I enjoy the work of this office."
Amy and Jolene: Statistics don't lie.