Some of these means of assessment already exist, either as a part of the seminary program or as a part of the process of ordination. Indeed, since the first two goals of the program, priestly identity in Christ and in the Church, describe the sacramental reality of the priesthood, the Rite of Ordination itself, with its ritual examination and formula of commitment, can be seen as a means of assessment: if the Ordination takes place, the sacramental realities ensue. What is assessed thereafter is the extent to which ordained alumni live and work in accord with that sacramental reality. Other means have been devised for the sole purpose of assessment. These include juried video evaluations, critical incidents and evaluations, and exit interviews and essays. The most extensive means of assessment is a series of three instruments by which respondent self-report and a pastoral-employer survey take place. The content of these instruments is derived from the goals of each of the three formation programs: the Human and Spiritual Formation Program, the Intellectual and Cultural Formation Program, and the Pastoral and Practical Formation Program. The first instrument is addressed to candidates completing the Ordination-M. Div. program; the second to alumni having completed the program in the previous 2 to 5 years; the third to pastoral “employers” such as bishops, vocation directors, personnel directors, and local pastors of dioceses in which Kenrick alumni serve. The first instrument is administered on an annual basis; the second and third on a triennial basis.

The Outcomes Assessment Program is administered by a standing committee of the Faculty, the Assessment Committee, whose chair acts as Director of Assessment. The committee’s membership includes a representative of the students. The data produced in the assessment process are kept on file in the Office of the Registrar. The Assessment Committee works in cooperation with the Faculty, reporting both to the Faculty and to all the seminary’s constituencies. Its work over a period of five years is comprehensive in scope, covering the entire range of seminary program goals. From year to year, however, it is selective in the number of goals that it assesses, to keep its work to manageable dimensions.

In the event that assessment indicates a deficiency in the seminary program, a joint committee consisting of members of the Board of Trustees and members of the Faculty review the assessment data and make recommendations to the Faculty for reformulating the goals or revising the program. Revision itself is principally the work of the Faculty, through appropriate committees, which include student representation. Final approval of such changes usually rests with the Board of Trustees and the Board of Directors.

By no later than the fifth year after the adoption of a new or revised seminary program, that program is reviewed by the Faculty, making use of assessment data and addressing deficiencies in the manner described just above. In the process of this five-year review, the Assessment Program itself, and the work of the Assessment Committee are also evaluated.