In September 2022, Dr. Sara Osman, Program evaluation and accreditation manager at the QAIE unit led a workshop on GMU self-assessment of social accountability using The Network, Towards Unity for Health (TUFH) tool. TUFH developed a tool named Institutional Self-Assessment Social Accountability Tool (ISAT) for assessing social accountability in different institutions. The workshop aimed to evaluate GMU using the TUFH assessment tool (ISAT) and provide evidence that would aid in the completion and submission of GMU’s application.
QA&IE invited two faculty members and two students from each college at GMU to participate in the workshop and provide information and support for the collaborative process.
One of the workshop’s key advantages was that it provided a clear position of GMU in the field of social accountability area, where the participants identified areas where GMU excels in terms of community engagement, areas where improvement is needed, and the different approaches to make improvements. This information was utilized to develop a plan in each section of the application to represent GMU’s future plan for social accountability and to adopt strategies to improve community engagement activities.
By involving students and faculty in the ISAT application process, GMU can ensure that the assessment tool is comprehensive and reflective of the community engagement activities taking place on campus. Additionally, by working together, students, faculty, and administration are helping to ensure that GMU is making a positive impact on the community and fulfilling its role as a socially responsible institution.
The GMU leadership is enthusiastic about the partnership and believes that TUFH’s assessment tool will be a useful benchmark for community engagement standards. The workshop participants and attendees gave excellent comments to the QA&IE unit, and were happy with the opportunity to learn more about TUFH’s work.
The TUFH ISAT assessment tool for assessing social accountability can be found on their website(https://socialaccountabilityhealth.org/application/).
