Journal Article

Strategy Precedes Operational Effectiveness: Aligning High Graduation Rankings With Competitive Graduation Grade Point Averages

Preston-Grimes, Patrice, Bassett, Kimberley C., Apprey, Maurice, Lewis, Dion W., Wood, Beverly

2014

Overview

Two pivotal and interconnected claims are addressed in this article. First, strategy precedes program effectiveness. Second, graduation rates and rankings are insufficient in any account of academic progress for African American students. In this article, graduation is regarded as the floor and not the ceiling, as it were. The ideal situation in the promotion of strategy is the alignment of high graduation rates or rankings with high graduation cumulative grade point averages. This strategic alignment is precisely what needs to be formulated in the first instance before making judgments about program development and/or operational effectiveness. The work of the Office of African American Affairs of the University of Virginia provides the context for observing trends in academic performance that illustrate the optimal alignment between high graduation rankings and correspondingly high grade point averages.

• Publisher: Routledge,Taylor and Francis Group,Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
• Subject: Academic Achievement / Academic Support Services / African American Students / African Americans / Alignment / Averages / Black students / Capacity Building / College graduates / College students / Competition / Educational History / Educational policy / Effectiveness / Elementary school students / Evaluation research / Grade Point Average / Graduation Rate / Ratings & rankings / School Segregation / Strategies / Student Personnel Services / Students / University of Virginia / Virginia