The Education Commission of the States (ECS) together with the American Association for Higher Education recently conducted five case studies of state-based approaches to assessment in undergraduate education in Colorado, Missouri, New Jersey, South Dakota, and Virginia. The case studies, in turn, are part of the Missouri Governor John Ashcroft's college quality initiative as the 1987-88 chairman of ECS. A chronology of critical points for the assessment initiative as it has unfolded in each of the case study states is presented as follows: (1) Colorado (e.g., the May 1986 conference on outcomes assessment sponsored by the University of Colorado); (2) Missouri (e.g., in the summer of 1986, the Council on Public Higher Education engaged the services of an outside consultant to anticipate action on the issue of assessment); (3) New Jersey (e.g., October 1986, the College Outcomes Evaluation Program sponsored its first statewide conference on assessment in New Jersey); (4) South Dakota (e.g., June 1987, following considerable institutional criticism and a change in Board leadership, the Board of Regents approved three major changes in the statewide testing program); and (5) Virginia (e.g., July 1987, institutional assessment plans were reviewed by the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia staff and three outside consultants). (SM)