Assessment in leadership development programs

In NASPA's web publication, Net Results, there's an article about assessment of student learning outcomes in leadership development programs. Here are a couple of excerpts:

A report from the Commission on the Future of Higher Education (2006) outlines several concerns regarding the U.S. higher education system including access, affordability, quality, and accountability. This report states there is a lack of accountability processes to determine if colleges are succeeding in educating students. With the current economic conditions as well as accountability demands from internal and external stakeholders related to the quality of higher education, assessment is an essential part of any department on campus. Administrators must determine the impact programs are having on students in order to justify the basic survival of those programs. These student outcomes could be knowledge gained, skills developed, or behavioral changes based on what is learned and applied. Knowledge gained is easier to assess through pre/post tests or self-evaluations. Skills developed and behavioral changes take place over time and are more difficult to assess.

One of the departments on a college campus that needs to conduct assessment is leadership development programs.

And now, for the rest of the story...