UTech Annual Report 2018-19

Accredited by the University Council of Jamaica (UCJ) ANNUAL REPORT 2018-2019 University of Technology, Jamaica 81 Mrs. Denise Stephenson-Hammil Senior Director Planning and Development The Office of Planning and Development leads the University’s Strategic Planning process as well as implementation of Annual Operational Plans, supported by Institutional Research activities to contribute significantly to effective decision-making. Project development to meet particular needs has also been a core function of this Unit. Having guided the Executive Management team at its 2015 Retreat in developing the approach necessary to prepare for Institutional Accreditation, the review period saw intensive preparation in implementation of the Institutional Accreditation Planning effort. The contribution of the Office included the provision of critical data and other documentary evidence to support the development of the Institution’s Self- study document, as well as preparation of other content and assistance with review of the draft documents. The Institutional Research function provided critical support to the University in relation to Strategic Planning and various analyses of operational data through a variety of research activities. These activities include the management of data collection, gathering in-depth information about students and faculties/colleges, such as student admissions, enrolment, retention/attrition, graduation reporting, and maintaining official programme information as well as monitoring programme performance. The Institutional Research Office (IRO) liaises with Government Ministries and Agencies e.g. Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), the Jamaica Tertiary Education Commission (JTEC) and, to a lesser extent, STATIN in the provision of statistical and other data to reflect key aspects of the university’s provision of education and training for national development. The Project Development Unit has played a key role in recently completed UTech Enhancement project.