Most institutions have broad, general statements of mission that are relatively brief.
Usually qualitative or quantitative measures can speak to their accomplishment. It also means those specific ends for which an institution is willing to be held accountable. The Commission assumes that statements of mission and purposes guide institutional planning and budgeting and provide a framework for governance, administration, and communication. Although stated purposes should be flexible enough to allow an institution to respond to new challenges and opportunities, they should be firm enough to allow it to resist haphazard growth or retrenchment. Moreover, they should be clearly stated and precise enough to allow the institution, its constituencies, and the Commission, to measure, either qualitatively or quantitatively, how well the institution achieves them.