Stories, Outcomes, and Accomplishments Reporting System (SOARS)

The Stories, Outcomes, and Accomplishments Reporting System (SOARS) is the online system used by all Extension educators to prepare the annual:

  • Plan of Work (POW)
  • Report of Accomplishment (ROA)

All educators are also required on an on-going basis to enter publications, awards, external funding, and program impacts.

Getting Started

  • Login to SOARS
  • SOARS Data Entry Manual (rev. 9/15/2011, Version 2.03)
    Learn or review how to use SOARS.
  • First prepare your POW or ROA offline in Word. SOARS allows last year's plans of work to be copied over, so you don't have to start from scratch each year.
  • After the due date your POW or ROA, they will be locked and require the approval of your immediate supervisor to submit or edit them.  If you attempt to submit or edit it after the deadline, it will trigger an unlock request sent to your immediate supervisor by SOARS and requires a justification.

Get Access

Access requires an ONID or DINO account:

Who is this for?

A POW and ROA are required for all Extension faculty and program assistants conducting educational programs for Extension (.20 Extension FTE or greater).

System Requirements

Use a Mac or PC with a current operating system and web browser, preferably a recent version of Firefox, Safari, or Explorer. Most of the troubles reported with SOARS have resulted from using out-of-date browers or user error.  To prevent user error, read the Data Entry Manual (PDF).

Extension Plan of Work (POW)

The 2013 POW process begins October 8, 2012. 2013 plans of work are due by December 15, 2012.  After the due date your POW will be locked and require the approval of your immediate supervisor to submit or edit it.  If you attempt to submit or edit it after the deadline, it will trigger an unlock request sent to your immediate supervisor by SOARS and requires a justification.

Reports of Accomplishments (ROA)

ROA’s are critical for annual performance reviews. ROA, Extension Contacts, Volunteer Contacts, etc. for the 2012 calendar year are due January 15, 2013. You can start entering data November 15.

  • If a 2012 POW wasn’t submitted, a ROA cannot be created for a POW for that year.
  • If you need to create a 2012 POW in order to submit a 2012 ROA, you need to submit the 2012 POW first.
  • Report of Accomplishments Report Results

Audience Contact Forms

Submit your contact information via SOARS. The forms below may be used to keep track of your program contacts throughout the year (mailed or email forms will NOT be accepted):

To determine the race of clientele you can observe or ask.  If you ask, it must be an optional question after someone is admitted to the program, not as a condition for acceptance.

Extension Contacts and Volunteer Contacts are considered Ongoing Reporting within SOARS.  Therefore, they can be entered in SOARS year-round.

Impact Evaluation

Measuring, documenting, and reporting program impact is one of the most important and challenging elements of SOARS. Impact Statements are considered Ongoing Reporting and can be entered in SOARS all year as they are achieved.

Training Modules – Writing Effective Impact Statements

Program Concentrations:

You can also visit the College of Ag Creating Powerful Impact Statements website for additional resources.

Institute Review Board (IRB) Information

The requirement to enter program evaluation/impact data into SOARS does not automatically result in the need for IRB approval, however you are expected to seek IRB approval for program evaluation that constitutes “research with human subjects.”  Prior to completing an application, contact the IRB to discuss whether your project requires IRB review. Program Leader can also give you guidance about conducting program evaluation with human participants.

Many program evaluation efforts without the intent to publish in scholarly journals do not meet that definition and therefore do not require IRB approval.

Website Statistics for SOARS

If you are seeking statistics on web downloads of your learning materials and communications to report in SOARS or for other purposes, visit: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/eesc/how-to/web-statistics-tutorial
 

2012 Plans for Program Area

SOARS plans for the current year:

Questions?

Please refer to:

Contacts

For additional questions, please refer to the SOARS contact person for your program: