Our Story: The Story of One Student Affairs Division

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Our Story The Story of One Student Affairs
Divisions Quest to Improve Assessment
Don Whalen, Coordinator of Assessment, Department
of Residence Carolyn Nading, Assistant Registrar,
Office of the Registrar NASPA International
Assessment Retention Conference St. Louis,
MO June 10th, 2007
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Overview

1. Where are you at?
2. Why do we have an assessment committee?
3. Who is involved in the assessment committee?
4. What are the involvements of the assessment
   committee?
5. When is the committee active?
6. Where does the committee do its work?
7. How does the assessment team do what it does?
8. Conclusions/discussion/questions

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Where are you at?

• Do you have an assessment office on your campus?
• Do you have an assessment person or staff
  dedicated to assessment in your student affairs
  division?
• Where would you rate your student affairs
  division in its assessment efforts beginning,
  intermediate or advanced?

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Iowa State University Facts

• 1st land-grant institution in U.S.
• Student Population 25,462 (Fall 06)
• 20,440 undergraduates
• 4,583 graduate/professional students
• Six undergraduate colleges
• Agriculture, Business, Design, Engineering, Human
  Sciences, Liberal Arts Sciences
• Carnegie Doctoral/Research Extensive University
• Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, a
  commission of the North Central Association of
  Colleges and Schools

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Division of Student Affairs

• Enrollment Services
• Admissions
• New Student Programs
• Student Financial Aid
• Registrars Office
• Student Counseling Service
• Student Health Center
• Memorial Union
• Student Activities Organizations
• Dept. of Residence
• Dining Services

• International Students Scholars
• Learning Communities
• Dean of Students
• Academic Success Center
• Disability Resources
• Greek Affairs
• Judicial Affairs
• LGBT Student Services
• Multicultural Student Affairs
• Recreation Services
• Student Legal Services
• Womens Center

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Why do we have an Assessment Committee?

• Implementation
• Committee charge
• Changes in leadership membership
• Defining and shaping our purpose

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The purpose of the Assessment Team

• Establish a liaison with the university
  assessment efforts, including those of the
  Provosts Office and Institutional Research
• Conduct Assessment for the Division (consistent
  with the Student Affairs Strategic Plan)
• Identify or establish professional development
  opportunities related to assessment
• Act as a resource for departments within the
  division. Communicate with department level
  teams or staff with assessment responsibilities.

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Who is involved in the Assessment Committee?

• Original Committee Make-Up
• Current Committee Make-Up
• Representation at all levels
• Entry-level professionals
• Registrar component (unique)
• Full-time Researcher- DoR
• Support Staff

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What are the involvements of the committee?

• Educate division staff at all levels
• Departmental Outreach training sessions
  meetings with each department
• Members consulted with departments
• Encourage assessment within the division and its
  departments
• Annual reporting of projects
• Project support through review of assessment
  methodology

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What are the involvements of the committee?
(cont.)

• Collaboration between departments
• Resource for departments within the division
• Keeping assessments aligned with the strategic
  plan
• Assessment of committee involvements

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When is the committee active?

• Creating the culture of improvement
• General activity during the academic year
• Training activities
• Activity at various roles and levels
• When to engage students in assessment initiatives

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Where does the committee do its work?

• General meeting structure- once per month
• Previously twice per month
• Meeting w/ departmental staffs
• Informal contacts among members

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How does the assessment team do what it does?

• Education of staff
• Assessment basics
• Developing outcomes, qualitative quantitative
  research, focus groups, survey development
• Assessment-related skills
• Excel, pivot tables, queries, SPSS, Stata,
  knowledge of data
• Available resources on campus
• Institutional Research (CIRP, NSSE), Statistics
  Lab, RISE, Registrars data
• Encouraging collaboration
• Establish working relationships
• Consultation
• Common readings on assessment

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How does the assessment team do what it does?

• Group Projects
• Research
• Financial, Academic, Environmental Influences
  on the Retention Graduation of Students
  retention project
• Student leadership study
• Surveys
• Student Opinion Survey
• NASPA gambling survey
• NASPA benchmarking survey
• Student Affairs Satisfaction survey (local)
• Student Employment Survey (local)

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How does the assessment team do what it does?

• Reports
• Publications
• Presentations
• On-campus
• Regional
• National/International
• Budget

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Discussion

• Would this model work on your campus? What
  changes would you need to make?
• What barriers would you face in implementation?
• Who would you need buy-in from to make it happen?

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Other Questions

• What has been successful for you to get people
  involved in assessment at your institution?
• Have you formed collaborative relationships with
  faculty or others outside of student affairs?
• How have these collaborations enriched your
  campus community? Have any projects or
  initiatives resulted?

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• If we knew what we were doing, it wouldnt be
  called research, would it?
• Albert Einstein

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Conclusion/Questions

• Please feel free to contact us for further
  information/questions
• Carolyn Nading- clnadin_at_iastate.edu
• Don Whalen- dwhalen_at_iastate.edu
• http//www.iastate.edu/