Partnering with Faculty on Peer Education

This article is adapted from one that originally appeared in The BACCHUS Network’s The Peer Educator magazine. Original article by: Melissa Sage-Bollenbach and Lyndsey (Withers) Hawkins, Bradley University

On many campuses, there is often an invisible divide between student affairs and academics; they are considered separate and viewed as independent. However, collaboration may be more important now than ever. Particularly as schools try to do more with less, the sharing of resources is invaluable. Faculty can and do enhance student development and professional staff can and do promote student learning. An overall holistic approach to learning is key to student success and retention.

For many years, the Wellness Program at Bradley University has worked closely with our faculty in a variety of ways. First and foremost, by making evaluation a very important part of our programming efforts, we have been able to engage faculty in research activities. A place to begin this process is by simply gathering data. This can be through a straightforward pre and post-test administered before and after your program. Once you have some data points to share with faculty, you can discuss more complex ways to further evaluate your efforts. Faculty can even assign your program evaluation as a class project! These types of efforts can help faculty affirm the co-curricular experience of students as contributing to their academic growth and maturation.

Another important way to collaborate is by co-authoring grant proposals with faculty members. Grants can be intimidating, but they are often not as bad as you think. (An easy place to start looking is at foundation grants. Foundation grants tend to be more clear-cut and not as time consuming as governmental grants.) Counter to what perceptions may be, the academic areas on our campuses are also looking for additional resources for their departments. Offering small amounts of money to faculty for research or evaluation efforts can go a long way in fostering a relationship between student and academic affairs.

Finally, it is vital to include faculty on health-related ad-hoc committees or task forces. Some academic units are a natural fit and may be interested in your efforts. These departments include the social sciences, health-related areas such as nursing, and teacher education. However, it is also important to look for faculty from other areas who may have personal connections to the health and wellness issues you are addressing. Many people are motivated to help because they have been personally touched by an issue. Try talking to and getting to know faculty during campus meet-and-greets or by attending lectures or events sponsored by academic departments. Finding those advocates with personal buy-in can be priceless!

There are many other possible collaborations between academics and student affairs. Faculty can help a student affairs department develop learning outcomes for all programs. Faculty will better be able to understand the importance of the student affairs programs when they see goals and objectives accomplished.

It also is important to make sure faculty feels valued by student affairs. When planning an awareness week on sexual health, consult with the nursing program to assess what areas of sexual health are of highest concern. Discuss with a sociology professor what cultural issues should be mentioned during alcohol awareness week. Consult the psychology club’s faculty advisor about trends in the field when hosting an event about mental health. Faculty are experts in their field, so utilize them as such. Take their advice to heart and acknowledge their contributions to your program.

Now, how do you make the collaboration a reality?

The life of anyone working at a university is busy. At times, faculty are overwhelmed with opportunities for their students. It is our job to make it clear to faculty that collaboration is vital to their students’ success. Be prepared and clear when you present the idea of collaboration. Make a list of how this will benefit their students or their department. Sell the collaboration.

Hopefully the culture of your campus promotes this collaboration. If it does not, then talk to your higher administration about the importance of working with the academic side of campus. The administration sets the expectations for their staff. When the administration buys into the idea of collaboration, they will expect it from their departments. In addition, when higher administration shows excitement for something, many faculty recognize them as role models for campus and consider the idea.

Whatever collaboration is possible, do it. Any collaboration will help show the importance and will be a great starting point for conversations with faculty in the future.