Building a Culture of Evidence: I’ve got the basics, now what do I do?

Dr. Marguerite M (Maggie) Culp

This hands-on interactive presentation invites participants to assess the culture of evidence within student affairs at their institution, reflect on what they have learned about assessment in the last few years, and identify strategies they can use to take student affairs to the next level. Participants will have the opportunity to assess their readiness to move beyond satisfaction surveys, integrate qualitative and quantitative assessment tools, and identify and measure what really matters. Participants also will explore the essential culture of evidence question: are they measuring what really matters—and using the data intentionally and intelligently—or are they simply measuring that which is easy to measure and warehousing the data? Finally, participants will have the opportunity to analyze innovative culture of evidence approaches taken by their colleagues in colleges and universities around the country and identify those with the potential to work at their institution. Participants also will have an opportunity to meet with the presenter in small groups to discuss culture of evidence challenges unique to student affairs at their institution.

Beyond Satisfaction: Assessing Learning Outcomes from a Divisional Perspective

Student affairs leaders are answering the question “what do I want students to learn?" in the form of learning outcomes, yet struggle to answer the follow up question, “how do I know learning is happening”. This pre-conference workshop demonstrates how one institution researched, planned and implemented an assessment instrument. Participants will leave with a personalized assessment action plan to assist campus assessment efforts.

Welcome and Keynote Speaker

Estela Mara Bensimon, Professor of higher education and Co-Director of the Center for Urban Education, University of Southern California

Transforming Assessment to Overcome Inequality in Higher Education, Inequality in college attainment is a social and economic threat to all Americans. But higher education leaders and practitioners, with the right data practices and assessment tools, can be purposeful about closing equity gaps in the full range of college outcomes that are counted as evidence of student success. This session will give participants the theory, language, tools, and practices of equity-minded assessnent illustrated with concrete examples from Equity Scorecard campus adopters in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and California.

Assessing the Impact of a Retention Plan at a Large University

Stephen M. Nettles, AVP of Institutional Effectiveness, Ashford University; Loraine Devos-Comby, Institutional Effectiveness Manager, Ashford University

Online universities face increased accountability for student success. Following an initial denial of regional accreditation, a retention plan was implemented at a leading online university with more than 50% of students from ethnic minorities. This improvement effort included five initiatives (student orientation course, class size reduction, increasing minimum age for admission, conditional admission, and early detection of high-risk students). The individual and combined impact of the initiatives was monitored periodically. Student progression and retention increased and regional accreditation was awarded.

Open Enrollment, Persistence, and Success: A “non-traditional” Graduate School Perspective

Karen Ferguson, VP, Student Success and Retention, Northcentral University

Success, persistence, and completion are integral to the success of students and institutions alike. Many institutions struggle with providing the right level of support at the right time. Open enrollment institutions are faced with the unique challenge of meeting the needs of students who have a wide variety of experiences and levels of preparedness. During this session, the presenter will share the successes and challenges faced by a private online graduate school when implementing additional student support activities.

Designed Intervention: Utilizing High-Impact Practices to Enhance Professional Skill-Building with International Students

Lisa Roe, Assistant Director of Service-Learning, Northeastern University; Becca Berkey, Director of Service-Learning, Northeastern University, Center of Community Service; Liza Ashley, Service-Learning Program Assistant, Northeastern University; Suzanne Kim, Service-Learning Program Assistant, Northeastern University

This session, geared toward intermediate or advanced professionals working with persistence in international student populations, will present a mixed methods case study examining the obstacles that international students encounter when seeking out experiences in a professional setting, and the impacts of participation in a service-learning experience in preparing them to navigate those obstacles. Participants will consider the potential opportunities associated with and implications of adapting the practices examined in the case to their own context, and specifically with these students and their unique retention and persistence challenges.

In Crisis: Measuring the Success of an Emergency Office

Gale Stuart, Director of Assessment, Division of Student Affairs - The University of Texas at Austin; LaToya Hill, Associate Dean of Students, The University of Texas at Austin

Students who experience a personal or family crisis need special services to help them successfully continue their education. At UT Austin, Student Emergency Services (SES) was established for this purpose and for many years has measured success based on student self-reports. Because self-reporting can be limited in assessing overall effectiveness of services, SES expanded to other types of measurements. This session will illustrate other ways of gauging success by considering the outcomes of retention, graduation and GPA.

Using the CAS Standards for Program Assessment and Enhancement

Dan Bureau, Special Assistant to the Vice President for Student Affairs/Director, Student Affairs Learning and Assessment, University of Memphis

Leading the way for more than 35 years, the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) - a consortium of 41 professional associations - promotes intra-campus collaboration and reflects good practices agreed upon by the profession-at-large through the CAS Standards. Session participants will explore ways to use CAS to develop quality experiences for students, to connect your work to meaningful learning outcomes, and to transform your programs and services through purposeful, manageable assessment efforts with CAS program review tools.

Driving Student Success: Using Predictive Analytics & Holistic Assessment to Evaluate Student Programs

Renee Delgado-Riley, Student Affairs Director, University of New Mexico; Heather Mechler, Institutional Researcher, University of New Mexico

This session will describe a strategic process established within Student Services to align its assessment/student data tracking with institutional/state-wide student success outcomes. Directors from Student Services within Student Affairs in collaboration with the Office of Institutional Analytics have developed a holistic process for understanding program effectiveness through predictive analytics as well as indicators for student success. Student Services is dedicated to working with first-generation, low-income and traditionally underrepresented groups from early childhood through college, graduate school and career planning. Presenters will share their findings as well as the future planned projects and designs to improve the programs and overall student success.

Meaningful Assessment of Oral Communication in a Co-curricular Setting

Marjorie Dorime-Williams, Director of Academic Assessment, Baruch College

This session will present information on a new support model for improving English Language Learner (ELL) students’ oral communication skills at the college level, as well as how to prove the program’s validity using innovative assessment design and an online video assessment tool. We will offer strategies for professionals interested in increasing support for ELL students, and discuss how to provide effective learning goals and feedback to students while supporting cultural diversity on campus without marginalizing populations.

How Do We Know Students Are Better Off? Results-Based Accountability

Patience Whitworth, Assistant Dean of Students, University of Vermont; Rafael Rodriguez, Associate Director of Residential Life, University of Vermont; Kim Martin, Director of the Center for Student Ethics and Standards, University of Vermont; Ellen McShane, Director of Academic Success Programs, University of Vermont

Results Based Accountability (RBA) pushes assessment beyond counting students, satisfaction, and programs planned by asking the question: are people really better off? RBA pushes strategic planning beyond a document that is touched once a year (or less) and beyond jargon and into action. This program will discuss RBA as a strategic planning and assessment model for Student Affairs with lessons learned from implementing RBA at UVM. The goals for the session are to introduce RBA as a strategic planning process and to apply RBA to program assessment.

A Persistence Collaboration: Institutional Research in Support of Student Affairs

J.R. Bjerklie, Associate Director of Institutional Research, University of Maine at Fort Kent; Ray Phinney, Associate Dean of Student Life and Development, University of Maine at Fort Kent

Living on campus elevates engagement; engagement boost persistence. We will discuss how Residential Life and Institutional Research collaborate to provide better evidence to decision makers and better questions for researchers. We will explore two collaboration examples, and guide participants to discuss and weigh potential projects. Participants will gain a basic model for collaboration between researchers and decision makers, consider ways to use existing data to shape new research, and explore how administrators can sharpen IR value.

Educating and Retaining Refugees - A Truly Global Classroom

Jodi Gill, Adjunct Professor, Community College of Allegheny County

Given the international crises around the world, refugee resettlement and political asylum seekers are increasing in number. Refugees and asylees are excited to learn and eager to succeed in their new countries yet often face physical and mental barriers due to status and previous trauma which make a college campus more frightening than welcoming. Further, there are several myths and misconceptions about this population which can negatively impact their educational experiences. In this session, participants will learn about the legal and social processes of refugee resettlement both globally and locally. We will also explore classroom strategies and technologies to address various refugee and immigrant/asylee community and individual needs. Approaching our classroom as a global one will benefit the entire campus.

Connectivity and Engagement: The Coordinator – Student Relationship

Kristie Proctor, Director, Disability Services, Quinsigamond Community College; Terri Rodriguez, Associate Director, Disability Services, Quinsigamond Community College; Tami Strouth, Coordinator, Disability Services, Quinsigamond Community College; Ann Panetta, Coordinator, Disability Services, Quinsigamond Community College; Anne Shore, Coordinator, Disability Services, Quinsigamond Community College

Even though engagement is trending up in many crucial areas, research from the Center of Community College Student Engagement indicates that few students experience high-impact practices—the practices shown to be most effective (2015).Community colleges, and specifically student service offices such as disability services, can influence student behaviors—and improve engagement. It is reasonable to expect that engagement will increase students’ persistence.This workshop will explore the role of the Disability Services staff person in his or her efforts to engage with students with disabilities on a community college campus. Disability Services’ staff take an active role in initiating the transition to the college setting, and maintain a ‘high touch’ effort for the first-time student programming as part of its retention efforts. Coordinators work with students with various disabilities with the goal of enhancing their student learning and maximizing their college experience for positive outcomes. This panel discussion will highlight the four major strategies used to work with students’ developmental needs, advising, coaching, mentoring, and counseling, which foster seed of retention. Quinsigamond Community College has a Disability Services office serving about 700 students in Worcester, MA, with an overall population of roughly 8,000 students. The Disability Services Coordinators have an assigned caseload of students; five coordinators are located on the main campus, with one coordinator serving students on a satellite campus 24 miles away.

It Takes a Village to Graduate a Student: How Data and Collaboration Can Improve Retention and Foster Student Success

Dr. Mary Ann Coughlin, Associate Vice-President for Academic Affairs, Springfield College.

There is a lot of truth in the African proverb -- It takes a village to raise a child and there is a lot that can be learned from this proverb for higher education leaders. Many leaders focus on exploring data to find trends and answers to questions about retention and student success. Other leaders focus on developing programs and initiatives to engage students. And while both can be successful, the most successful initiatives combine data with collaboration across institutional divisions. This session will share examples of these types of initiatives and will encourage participants to add their experiences to the session.

An Improvement-Focused Approach: Fostering Staff Engagement in the Assessment Process

Lisa Snyder, Director of Assessment, Fort Lewis College; Jeff Dupont, Director of Recreational Services, Fort Lewis College

The Division of Student Affairs at Fort Lewis College has been able to lay the groundwork for a sustainable culture of assessment. Two years into the first assessment cycle, results are showing increased staff engagement and the emergence of meaningful assessment practices. Presenters will offer the step-by-step implementation process, along with key elements, timelines and templates that has allowed the division to become a leader in assessment on the Fort Lewis College campus.

Student Learning Outcomes Alignment through Academic and Student Affairs Partnerships

Susan Platt, Executive Director of Assessment, Student Affairs, California State University, Long Beach; Sharlene Sayegh, Director, Program Review & Assessment, Academic Affairs, California State University, Long Beach

This session focuses on aligning student learning outcomes from activity to institutional levels through Academic and Student Affairs partnerships. Such collaborations allow university partners to enhance student learning, development, and success. Moreover, our divisions of Academic and Student Affairs are structured so multiple levels of student learning outcomes can be developed, aligned, and monitored. Participants will consider their own levels of student learning outcomes and engage their campuses in best assessment practices using or modifying our template.

Assessing Campus Climate in Student Affairs: A Residence Life Example

Sara Kelly, Director, Residential Life/Learning Communities & Student Conduct, SUNY College at Brockport; Katy Wilson, Vice President of Enrollment Management & Student Affairs, SUNY College at Brockport

This presentation will discuss ways to assess elements of campus climate as it relates to residence life, and related areas within student affairs. With this data, strategic goals and action plans can be developed to aid in the retention and persistence of historically underrepresented groups. This presentation will be interactive, providing tangible take-aways for student affairs assessment and persistence initiatives from a mid-sized public institution and discussion of how to advance important campus climate assessment work that translates to increased persistence.

Using Evidence of Student Learning to Improve Higher Education: A View from the Field

Jillian Kinzie, Senior Scholar, NILOA, Indiana University Bloomington; Natasha Jankowski, Associate Director, NILOA, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

The National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) recently released book, Using Evidence of Student Learning to Improve Higher Education, looks across the landscape of higher education assessment to present a reframing of how to conceptualize and approach the assessment of student learning. Two of the authors will present points from select chapters focusing on fostering greater use of assessment results and organizing assessment to yield meaningful results, and highlight field tested principles for the use of assessment results to improve.

Developing a Sphere of Influence: Effective Strategies for Engaging Campus Colleagues in Assessment Practices

Amber Fallucca, director of assessment, university housing, University of South Carolina; Rebecca Goldstein, assessment coordinator, University of South Carolina

For many professionals responsible for assessment, it can be difficult to develop the infrastructure to successfully involve colleagues in generating sustainable assessment processes. This session will focus on established strategies to help support assessment professionals develop a far-reaching culture of assessment and to identify local advocates to champion these efforts. Presenters will facilitate an interactive group discussion where participants will share key insights from their own experiences, as well as design relevant action steps to implement back on their respective campuses.

AER Knowledge Community Needs Assessment Results - A Discussion on Future Professional Development

Andrew Mauk, director, student affairs assessment, research & planning, UNC Wilmington; Michael Christakis, associate vice president for student success, University of Albany; Ted Elling, associate vice chancellor, UNC Charlotte; Autumn Rae Florimbio, graduate assistant, UNC Wilmington; Darby Roberts, director of student life studies, Texas A&M University

In November 2014, an online needs assessment survey was sent to members of the NASPA Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Knowledge Community (AER KC) to obtain information regarding their professional development needs. The findings provided useful information for the Leadership Team of the KC. This roundtable forum will feature basic findings from the survey and a robust discussion on interpreting the data that will help facilitate both the professional development of members, as well as the future of the knowledge community.

Navigating the Politics of Assessment Practices: A Roundtable Discussion

Joshua A. Conway, Associate Director for Residential Life at Barnard College

Have you ever been asked to create an assessment with the sole purpose of making your department “look good?” Or even worse, to manipulate data in order to showcase only the benefits of your program or service so that you can receive additional funding? As student affairs practitioners we can acknowledge that assessment is an essential component of our work – but how do we navigate the challenging politics when colleagues or departmental/divisional leadership make these unfair demands? Join this engaging conversation where we will unpack various ethical dilemmas and develop practical tips for maintaining our own professional integrity and values with regards to assessment best practices.

Challenges and Successes: Development and revision of new assessment initiatives

Marjorie Dorime-Williams, Director of Academic Assessment, Baruch College

With growing demands for accountability, assessment is increasingly essential to the role of practitioners in postsecondary education. During this session, presenters will give examples of new assessment initiatives, discuss challenges of developing assessments, and share findings on what works and doesn’t work when developing an assessment. Information about assessment tools and processes will be introduced, however the focus of the session is to provide participants an opportunity to discuss some of the issues that arise when developing new assessment initiatives.

Morning Plenary Speaker

Donna Younger, Associate Vice President of Higher Education, Council for Adult and Experiential Learning

The recently renewed focus on the relationships among higher education, the economy, and adult learners have led many institutions to turn their attention to ways to better engage and support the adults they serve. In the process of designing or retooling student services and academic programs, it is essential to understand the experience of adults who return to college and consider the conflicts between the rewards of a college education and credential and the risks adults must confront to achieve them. In many ways, adult learners have more to gain and more to lose as they move through the college experience. Educators can use principles that guide Adult Learner Focused Institutions to inform their approach to serving adults.

Assessment-Driven Orientation: 5 Key Components for Success

Mitchell Levy, Vice President of Student Affairs and Branch Campus Management, Atlantic Cape Community College

This workshop addresses a significant institutional barrier (Redding & Dowling, 1992) negatively impacting student engagement, specifically student affairs programs based on assumptions of student needs rather than student-informed data. In response, the presenter will introduce a model of assessment-informed orientation programming. Participants will learn how assessment of student needs and goals was used to direct program development and revisions, contributing to increases in learning, motivation, retention and enrollment. Participants will also learn how to adopt and replicate this model at their institutions.

A Systemwide Perspective: Utilizing Predictive Analytics and Benchmarking via the CSU Student Success Dashboard to Drive Data-Driven Decision Making

Sabrina Sanders, Assistant Director Student Programs, California State University Office of the Chancellor

Participants will hear about the process of bringing together 23 California State University (CSU) campuses and hundreds of campus leaders taking the lead on intervention strategies developed through data driven decision-making in response to student’s persistence, retention and graduation. In this session the CSU Student Success Dashboard will be shared as just one example of an assessment tool that exemplifies how campus leaders interface with analytics and data visualization to identify themes and trends from mass data collection creating milestones and analytics to develop intervention strategies to support student success.

Using the CAS Standards for Co-Curricular Program Review & Assessment

Daniel Bureau, Special Assistant to the Vice President for Student Affairs and Director of Student Affairs Learning and Assessment, University of Memphis; Stephanie Gordon, Vice President for Professional Development, NASPA

In this interactive session, participants will learn detailed steps to implementing CAS standards for program review. Through the use of case studies, small group activities, and discussion, participants will learn how to prepare a unit or division for the program review process intended to foster substantive program improvement. Participants will leave with concrete action steps for implementing a CAS program review and assessments on their own campus.

What SA professionals do not know about adult learners can hurt them—and their institution

Maggie Culp, Higher Education Consultant

The good news for higher education institutions is that adults are entering or returning to college in record numbers. The not-so-good news is that these students are less likely than traditional 18-22 year old students to persist and complete their degrees. And the absolutely awful news is that many colleges and universities do not understand how to support these students, connect them to one another and to the institution, and build adult-friendly learning experiences and environments. Based on NASPA’s new book Increasing Adult Learner Persistence and Completion Rates, this interactive presentation explores current research related to adult learners, identifies the support adult learners need to succeed, and showcases what innovative institutions across the country are doing to increase the persistence and completion rates of student parents, student veterans, and other adult students. In addition, participants will have an opportunity to assess their knowledge of adult learner research and theories, evaluate their institution’s ability to meet the needs of this fast-growing population, and identify the major mistakes that colleges and universities make in working with adult students.

Assessing Campus Climates for Learning and Persistence

Robert D. Reason, Professor, School of Education, Director, Research Institute for Studies in Education Iowa State University; Andrew J. Ryder, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, University of North Carolina Wilmington

Using our own research with the Personal and Social Responsibility Inventory (PSRI) as a place to start the conversation, we will discuss the theoretical, methodological, and practical issues related to assessing campus climates for learning, development, and persistence. We will define and operationalize “climate,” paying particular attention to how the definitions inform campus assessment activities. Based on student learning outcomes of particular interest to audience members, we will identify practical tools and approaches to campus climate assessment.

Keeping Students on the Ship: Building a Brand New Student Retention & Persistence Program

Owen Gates, Coordinator of Student Retention Initiatives, University of West Florida; Sarah Luczyk, Director of Assessment & Planning - Division of Student Affairs, University of West Florida

Shifting institutional priorities from an increasing enrollment focus towards taking ownership of student’s academic success can be challenging. The University of West Florida (UWF) has been in the process of making this happen over the past year. Prioritizing student success over base enrollment has required a great deal of strategic investment/planning in Student Success, Persistence and Retention initiatives. Come hear about some of the changes that are taking place at UWF. Also, take part in some collaborative problem solving with your colleagues.

Out the Shadows: A Qualitative Portrait of Foster Alumni who have Persisted in College

Kerri Kearney, Associate Professor, Higher Education & Student Affairs, Oklahoma State University

This session will present and discuss the experiences of foster alumni college students in Oklahoma using known factors related to retention. Designed for higher education practitioners at all levels and researchers, the session discusses a multi-case study using online survey data, interviews, drawings, and other qualitative data sources. It also highlights the intertwined nature of research and the campus-based service work to support foster alumni students that is occurring through Oklahoma’s statewide collaboration of higher education institutions and their communities.

Using Rubrics to Measure Students’ Experiences

Kristyn Muller, Senior Apartment Coordinator, University at Albany; Steve Lampedusa, Assistant Director of Residential Life, State Quad, University at Albany

At the University at Albany, a rubric was created and used by Residential Life staff to measure the degree to which residents understood the potential consequences of their behavioral misconduct. Rubrics can be a great assessment tool for measuring students’ experiences when a survey design is not possible. During this session, the presenters will explain how to develop rubrics, discuss how to utilize rubric data, and give participants the opportunity to practice creating rubrics for hypothetical student affairs units.

Online Survey Responses Rates: The Impact of Timing in a Higher Education Setting

Timothy Salazar, Data Analyst, Texas A&M University; Kelly Cox, Assistant Director, Texas A&M University

Despite their efficiency and popularity, online surveys in educational settings have faced one major challenge: low response rate. For a better understanding of the impact of survey contact time on response rate, this study examines electronically distributed surveys to look for differential effects on Texas A&M’s students, staff, and faculty. The findings are being used to maximize response rates by coordinating distribution of electronic surveys at optimal times.

Teaching Collaborative Assessment: Building Capacity among Graduate Students through Applied Learning

Andrew Ryder, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, University of North Carolina, Wilmington; Andrew Mauk, Director of Assessment, Research, and Planning, University of North Carolina Wilmington

Interest and demand for assessment data often outstrips the time and energy of assessment directors and committees and the urgent usually trumps other important or helpful assessment activities. In this program, we share outcomes of a capacity building model utilized at UNC Wilmington that draws upon applied learning pedagogy and academic partnerships to extend our assessment efforts. We will work with participants to brainstorm similar strategies at their home institutions.

Sharing the Load: Empowering Student Leaders to Assess Programming

Whitney Brown, Coordinator of Student Affairs Research, Assessment and Staff Development, University of Alaska, Anchorage

Get your students involved in a win-win-win culture of evidence! Share the load of data collection by empowering student leaders with an integrated programming and assessment process; create meaningful development experiences for those coordinating events; and enhance learning experiences of program participants. Acquire tools to articulate the value of assessment and learning outcomes and demonstrate that assessment can be fun and easy! See how UAA student leaders have integrated assessment into their programming process to capture student learning and success.

Using Data to Understand and Improve Persistence and Completion

Joan Becker, Vice Provost for Academic Support Services, University of Massachusetts Boston

Abstract: In 2010, as part of the development of its 15-year strategic plan, UMass Boston convened a Graduation Rates Committee that undertook an 18-month analysis to understand the factors that impact undergraduate student retention. We found that our freshman retention rate, at 77% (five-year average), was on par with our peers. Where we differed was in our graduation rate: UMass Boston continued to lose students, and only an average of 39% graduated in six years. Students who came back for year 2 on track were more than twice as likely to graduate, however, only about one-third of the students who returned for year 2 came back on track. This was the problem we set out to solve. This presentation will discuss the analyses the committee undertook, the strategies implemented to date, ongoing tracking of key indicators and benchmarks, and the increases in retention and graduation rates that we have achieved.

Using Dynamic Dashboards to create Interactive Assessment

Rebecca Goldstein, Assessment Coordinator, University of South Carolina; Amber Fallucca, Director of Assessment, University Housing, University of South Carolina

Dashboard Technology is common in the business world, and increasingly used in student and academic affairs to track, assess, and visualize student and programmatic data. Dashboards are appealing because of their user friendliness, allowing staff to see and assess their data by using different variables to reshape the data. This session will define the term “dashboard”, discuss how dashboards can be developed at a unit level, and encourage participants to create an action plan for developing dashboards in their own institutions.

Creating a Culture of Assessment through Innovative Programming

Beth Moriarty, Director of Residence Life and Housing, Bridgewater State University; Cathy Holbrook, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, Bridgewater State University

The Student Affairs Assessment Committee was charged with overseeing a grant process to promote innovative programming and to create a culture of assessment on campus. Come learn about how we designed and implemented the Student Support Grant and tied it to assessment and telling our story. Presenters will share assessment data from programs that have been grant funded.

Panel: Stories from the Trenches: Examinations in Assessment and Persistence Trends

Kevin Kruger, President, NASPA Marva Craig, Vice President for Student Affairs, CUNY Borough of Manhattan Community College Mitchell Levy, Vice President of Student Affairs, Atlantic Cape Community College Jason Meriwether, Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management & Student Services, Indiana University-Southeast Greg Sammons, Vice President for Student Affairs, Alfred State College

Join for a conversation with vice presidents from a variety of institutional types to learn how campuses are developing and applying assessment and persistence initiatives. Moderated by NASPA President, Kevin Kruger, the panel will share insight into the current trends on campuses and how they are attempting to meet the needs of students. Leave with new ideas to take back to your campus and innovative strategies to apply fresh tactics.

Using a Predictive Indicator Model to Improve Retention

Jason Meriwether, Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, Indiana University Southeast

Attrition of first year students is a complex challenge for many institutions. Engaging students at the end of first semester, and sometimes even at midterms may already be too late to influence academic behavior patterns. This interactive session will redefine current approaches and timelines for encouraging student success, involvement, and engaged learning. Robust discussion and group interaction will reveal how a predictive model led to increased student persistence and reduced melt among first year students across two cohorts.

Providing Meaningful Feedback to High-Risk Students: Using Rubrics to Impact Persistence

Vernette Doty, Associate Director Office of Student Life & Civic Leadership, University of California, Merced

High-risk students receive feedback in many areas including oral and written communication, but how much of it are they able to process and practically apply? Discover how assessment projects employing rubrics can be used to provide students with meaningful feedback and contribute to success and retention, particularly in first generation college students. Participants will learn how to develop student learning outcomes into rubrics that offer students purposeful feedback, contributing to student persistence.

Bringing Retention and Career Readiness to the Classroom

Mike Ormsby, Assistant Director for Student Retention Programs, Career Services, University of Hartford

“What are you doing to get my student hired?” Take a ride through one professional’s experience attempting to answer this question by working with faculty to incorporate career readiness into a class for at-risk students. The research-informed program will be shared in detail including timeline of events, ongoing refinement, resources used, and student evaluation results.

Moving Above and Beyond Satisfaction Surveys: A Story of Formative Assessment

Erin Twomey, Associate Director for Campus Life & New Student Orientation, Quinnipiac University; Jessica Kitt, Consultant, Campus Success, Campus Labs

Have you discovered after facilitating a program or event that your students did not learn what you had hoped? Formative assessment can help assure administrators are addressing gaps in knowledge in the midst of a learning experience. Quinnipiac University embraced the idea of moving beyond summative methods by incorporating formative assessment techniques throughout student programming. This program highlights how one campus used formative assessment to advance their understanding of their students’ co-curricular experience.

Assessing Intervention-Based Student Affairs Services: Practical Considerations for Measuring Student Learning and Program Performance

Erin Kitchell, Coordinator for Student Conduct & Outreach, University of South Carolina; Amber Fallucca, Director of Assessment, University Housing, University of South Carolina

Inherent challenges exist when assessing student support services focused on developmental components, such as student conduct issues and health services. Furthermore, the sensitivity associated with these student experiences can complicate already difficult situations. This session will focus on the long-term progression of one intervention-based office to improve assessment methods and strategies as means to understand student learning outcomes and program performance.

Does Assessing the Context Matter as much as Assessing the Data?

Daniel Newhart, Director, Oregon State University

If higher education is meant to contribute to the public good, and assessment is meant to help us understand student learning, how do we insure assessment is contributing to the public good, as well? This presentation will explore how the foundations of assessment may not lend themselves to a critical discourse about the purposes and ends of assessment, and will discuss the unique position that assessment in student affairs can add to this dialogue.

Improving Students' Co-curricular Experience through Assessment

Marjorie Dorime-Williams, Director of Academic Assessment, Baruch College

The impact of students’ perceptions of their learning is a crucial aspect of higher education. This session includes information on the role of assessment in co-curricular and curricular development. Based on a longitudinal, mixed methods assessment of developmental mathematics courses, the presenters will share how assessment is used to understand students’ viewpoints on obstacles to learning and create engaging resolutions. The session will include guided discussion on active use of assessment results to improve student learning.

Student Engagement and the Updated NSSE: Exploring High Impact Practices, Leadership, and Persistence

Jillian Kinzie, Senior Scholar, NILOA, Indiana University Bloomington; Dr. Sarah Luczyk, Director of Assessment & Planning, Division of Student Affairs, University of West Florida; Susan Platt, California State University-Long Beach, Executive Director of Assessment

The updated National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) provides new information about students’ experiences in leadership, learning support and high-impact practices, and module results offer insights into civic engagement and advising. This session will highlight findings relevant to all campuses interested in student persistence, and provide an opportunity to apply assessment results. Also, campuses with NSSE results will gain insights into analyzing results to understand activities associated with persistence and review a new map of who on campus to connect to results.

Part 2: Stories from the Trenches with VPSAs

For this workshop, voting delegates and vice presidents are invited to attend. This is a follow-up discussion to the previous panel presentation to allow for in-depth conversation and analysis of current trends. Coffee and light refreshments will be served.

Pairing Implementation Fidelity Data with Learning Outcome Data to create a Vigorous Assessment Cycle for Program Evaluation

Jean Starobin, Associate Director of Administrative Services, University of Florida; Karley Counts, Training and Development Coordinator, University of Florida

Student Affair Professionals have been challenged to use assessment results to improve student learning. As such, many professionals have created assessment cycles that utilize solely outcome assessment and do not explore the alignment of the planned versus the implemented program. This session will examine the strategy used to evaluate a student employment program utilizing an assessment cycle that uses both fidelity and outcome assessments to make recommendations for program improvement.

Enhancing Global Competency: What Makes a Difference?

Yanmei Zhang, Coordinator, Research Programs and Services, University of Florida

This program discusses a study that examined college student global competency and what factors impact student learning outcomes in this area. This study found that students have improved since they started college; and certain student characteristics and specific programs and services in campus housing affect student learning outcomes in global competency. Assessment method will be discussed. Participants will share knowledge, skills, and experience of assessing global competency and of developing programs and services to enhance global competency for college students.

NASPA+ACPA Professional Competency Best Practices in Assessment

Taylor Odle, Graduate Research Assistant

The 2010 joint publication on competency development established broad and diverse areas of attainment expected of student affairs professionals, regardless of work tenure, specialization, or job role. This session seeks to review the professional competencies, to present a theoretical model for evaluating personal competency development and outcomes, and to provide attendees with strategies and an action plan of best practices to execute and assess a personal competency development agenda.

The Iterative Process of Aligning Student Learning Outcomes and Assessment Tools

Lisa Roe, Assistant Director of Service-Learning, Northeastern University; Becca Berkey, Director of Service-Learning, Northeastern University, Center of Community Service; Liza Ashley, Service-Learning Program Assistant, Northeastern University; Suzanne Kim, Service-Learning Program Assistant, Northeastern University

This presentation is intended for novice to intermediate assessment professionals who would like to explore an example of how the iterative process of program-level assessment can be shaped. To accomplish this, presenters will discuss the process used by the Service-Learning Program at Northeastern University. Using lessons from our example, in addition to Suskie (2009) and Maki (2010) as guides to best practices in student learning assessment, participants will have the opportunity to reflect and brainstorm with peers regarding where they are at in their own process. Each participant will leave with practical next steps for committing to an iterative process for aligning existing student learning outcomes with their assessment tools.

Using Mental Models Research to Inform Student Affairs Assessment Practices

Bill Heinrich, Research Assessment Specialist, Michigan State University

Learning outcomes assessments often take place without individuals grasping the ways their own enacted mental models impact instructional, program, and institutional assessment. As a result, assessment efforts often reveal competing priorities of individuals seeking to meet multiple institutional goals, programmatic purposes, and/or outcomes assessment needs. This program presents data from interview research and applies the data to organizational decision making. Participants engage in activities designed to stimulate deeper understanding of student affairs assessment work.

AER KC Welcome Reception

The Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Knowledge Community would like to invite you to a reception in the Avenue One foyer. A private space will be reserved and light appetizers will be served. Join in and learn more about how to be involved and the work this knowledge community promotes.

Closing Plenary

Stephanie Gordon, Vice President for Professional Development, NASPA; Darby Roberts, Director, Student Life Students, Texas A&M University; Ted Elling, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs University of North; Michael Christakis, Vice President for Student Success, University of Albany; Jeanna Mastrodicasa, Associate Vice President, University of Florida

Looking into the Crystal Ball: Future of Assessment

Examining the Role and Impact of Mentoring on the Persistence and Retention of URM Students

Brit Toven-Lindsey, Research Analyst, University of California, Los Angeles

Recent higher education literature has demonstrated the positive impact of mentoring on students, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. Given this, it is imperative that institutions better understand how mentoring can be integrated into various undergraduate programs and what assessment methods can best inform further programmatic changes. This session will describe the role of three distinct types of mentoring relationships within three unique undergraduate programs and how these relationships contribute to student retention and persistence outcomes.

Learning Outcomes Assessment at Minority-Serving Institutions: One Size Does Not Fit All

Erick Montenegro, Research Assistant, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

This presentation displays findings from a National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) report on the assessment activities within minority-serving institutions. While examples of assessment approaches and practices of minority-serving institutions will be presented, lessons learned for modifying assessment approaches based on students served or even sub-groups of students within an institution will be explored. Further, examples will be shared from a variety of institutions on their assessment practices.

Using the Federal Climate Survey Toolkit to Conduct a Sexual Assault Survey

Jennifer Lowman, Coordinator, Student Persistence Research, University of Nevada, Reno

This session reviews the federal climate survey toolkit for sexual assault, discusses efforts to collaborate on survey design and promotion, provides access to survey tools and materials, and dispels notions that a survey of this importance should be conducted or managed by an external organization. Although the federal toolkit is cover a broad range of topics (too many to expect students to respond to), methods that optimize the breadth of data collected while minimizing the burdens of students are displayed. Replication is welcomed.

Understanding the Basics: A Case Study on Assessment and Strategic Planning

Scott Brown, Ph.D. student, University of Georgia; Jackie Clark, Ph.D. student, University of Georgia; Justin Grimes, Ph.D. student, University of Georgia; Natalie Reckard, Associate Director of Residence Life/Ph.D. student, Kennesaw State University/University of Georgia

This session features an overview of the fundamentals of assessment using a current example of an assessment project in the Division of Student Affairs at the University of Georgia in Athens as a case study. Participants will learn about assessment within the context of the division’s strategic plan, particularly around building inclusive campus environments. Lastly, participants will have an opportunity to connect their understanding of assessment to projects on their own campus.

Translating Data into Dollars: Increasing the Funding of the Boston College Bystander Program

Katie Dalton, Director, Women's Center, Boston College; Rachel DiBella, Assistant Director, Women's Center, Boston College

This session describes a three tiered assessment (pre/post/3-month post) designed to measure the effectiveness of Bystander Intervention Education by assessing changes in student attitudes related to and understanding of sexual violence, belief in rape myths, students’ likelihood of engaging in help seeking behavior, and students’ actual behavior changes. The data from this assessment, which illustrates evidence-based learning, resulted in increased funding for the Bystander program as well as full institutional support for a mandatory full roll out of the program to all freshmen in 2014-2015. (2,300).

Sharing Data and Marketing Results in Student Affairs

Michael N. Christakis, Ph.D., Vice President for Student Success & Public Service Professor, University at Albany

With increasing calls for accountability of student learning, it is becoming increasingly crucial for Student Affairs Assessment Professionals to share data and market results for a various stakeholders across diverse formats. Further, “closing the loop” is often cited as a major challenge facing Student Affairs professionals engaged in the assessment process, as we often find our data and results remain dormant during the decision-making process for a numbers of reasons.

Integrating Student Affairs and Academic Affairs: Increasing Student Engagement and Persistence

Jim Fatzinger, Senior Associate Provost for Student Affairs, Georgia Gwinnett College; Jo Galle, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs, Georgia Gwinnett College; Jeff Galle, Director, Center for Academic Excellence, Emory Oxford College

When well-organized and measured for effectiveness, integrating student affairs and academic affairs promotes active student learning environments as well as persistence toward graduation. In this presentation, two Georgia liberal arts colleges possessing distinctly different academic profiles demonstrate how good assessment practices run throughout each institution’s efforts to work collaboratively, promote a culture of student engagement, and ultimately, measure success. Professionals present perspectives from the Center for Academic Excellence, Student Affairs, and Academic Affairs.

One Goal, Two Universities: Comparing Black Male Undergraduate Achievement

Gabrielle St. Leger, Acting Associate Dean of Campus Life, New York Institute of Technology

The ongoing discourse concerning Black undergraduate male persistence, retention, andgraduation drives innovative program development. Programs for these students are typically housed within campus-­wide diversity initiatives that are systemically under construction. How does an institution go about creating a program that increases retention and graduation rates? What does research say works? This session highlights research on successful retention strategy from the perspectives of Black male undergraduates and institutional leaders promoting diversity, creating space for interactive dialogue centered on best practices.

Beyond Learning Outcomes: Designing an Instrument to Assess Student Learning

Cindy Long Porter, Associate Vice President of Student Affairs, Quinnipiac University; Megan Buda, Director of Student Conduct, Quinnipiac University

Across college campuses student affairs practioners are developing learning outcomes only to struggle with what comes next. This presentation shares the step by step approach one institution used in developing an assessment instrument that examined divisional and departmental learning outcomes and how the data is being used.

Grade-A Assessment: Integrating the Teaching of Assessment with Student Affairs Department Practices

Anne Lundquist, Director, Student Affairs Strategic Planning and Assessment, Western Michigan University; Kelly Reed, Graduate Assistant and Teaching Assistant, West Michigan University

This session will share the strategies, methods and assignments for teaching a graduate level course on Student Affairs Assessment built upon the NASPA/ACPA AER competencies.This course also utilized a semester long project with multiple Student Affairs departments resulting in a poster session in a conference style setting with campus stakeholders and administrators as attendees and evaluators.

Using Learning Outcomes to Form the Questions Asked

Michael Kennedy, Resident Director, University of Hartford

Many times we ask questions to find out information, but are we asking the right questions. By forming strong learning outcomes or goals you can develop purposeful questions to ask. When will then look at small ways that you can take this outcomes/goals to develop assessment tools on your campus. This allow for departmental assessment to happen much easier and purposeful to develop a student experience

Improving at-risk First Years Support Seeking Behaviors with Non-Cognitive Needs Assessment

Debora Nelli, Student Retention and Initiatives Manager, Western Washington University

This small group discussion session will explore the use of a non-cognitive needs analysis survey, the College Student Inventory (CSI), for enhancing at –risk freshmen’s self-awareness and support seeking behaviors. The groups will examine sample CSI reports of student’s academic motivation, general coping and support receptivity. The session will report findings on the impact of the survey on 150 at-risk freshmen’s campus support seeking behaviors. This session will be of interest to advisors, academic coaches and retention administrators.

Be the Success Story: How the Higher Learning Commission’s Academies Can Help Member Institution’s Improve

Destiny Quintero, Director of Academies, Higher Learning Commission

Each and every year, higher education professionals attend conferences and workshops that cover a wide-range of topics. We welcome these opportunities to network, develop our core competencies, and exchange best practices for possible implementation on our campuses. Although we spend an enormous amount of time at conferences listening to the success of our peers, we spend less time contemplating how we can be the success story. Lets change that! Administrators, faculty, and staff of all levels from Higher Learning Commission member institutions are welcome to attend a presentation on two programs designed to support institutional self-improvement in the areas of assessment of student learning and persistence and completion. The Assessment Academy and the Persistence and Completion Academy are both mentor-facilitated, four-year programs centered on the development and implementation of a cross-functional team-based project. The purpose of the Academies in relation to accreditation, their multiple benefits, adaptive features, and desired goals will be presented by HLC staff. Participants will be engaged in a cross-talk session to contemplate and discuss questions that signify their first step towards perpetuating change and becoming the next success story!

Estela Mara Bensimon, Ed.D.

Professor of higher education and Co-Director of the Center for Urban Education

Estela Mara Bensimon, Ed.D., is a professor of higher education at the USC Rossier School of Education and Co-Director of the Center for Urban Education, which she founded in 1999. Bensimon applies her knowledge on organizational learning, leadership, and equity on the ground, at colleges and universities in several states. With a singular focus on increasing equity in higher education outcomes for students of color, she developed the Equity Scorecard—a process for using inquiry to drive changes in institutional practice and culture. Since its founding, CUE has worked with thousands of college professionals—from presidents to faculty to academic counselors, helping them take steps in their daily work to reverse the impact of the historical and structural disadvantages that prevent many students of color from excelling in higher education. The innovative Equity Scorecard process takes a strengths-based approach starting from the premise that faculty and administrators are committed to doing “the good.” CUE builds upon this premise by developing tools and processes that empower these professionals as “researchers” into their own practices, with the ultimate goal of not just marginal changes in policy or practice, but shifts on those campuses towards cultures of inclusion and broad ownership over racial equity.

She is the Principal Investigator of Equity in Excellence in Colorado, a place-based project funded by the Ford Foundation and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She is also the Principal Investigator for the Equity Scorecard Initiative in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. In 2007, Professor Bensimon received a grant from the Ford Foundation to organize a series of institutes on the use of critical research methods for over 100 young scholars of equity in higher education.
Dr. Bensimon has published extensively about equity, organizational learning, practitioner inquiry and change; and her articles have appeared in journals such as the Review of Higher Education, Journal of Higher Education, Liberal Education, and Harvard Educational Review. Her most recent publications include a co-edited book Confronting Equity Issues on Campus: Implementing the Equity Scorecard in Theory and Practice. She is also the co-editor of Critical Perspectives on Race and Equity, a special issue of the Review of Higher Education.

Dr. Bensimon has held the highest leadership positions in the Association for the Study of Higher Education (President, 2005-2006) and in the American Education Research Association, Division on Postsecondary Education (Vice-President, 1992-1994). She has served on the boards of the American Association for Higher Education and the Association of American Colleges and Universities. She is the current Chair of AERA’s Social Justice and Action Committee. In 2011, she was inducted as an AERA Fellow in recognition of excellence in research. She is a recipient of the USC Mellon Mentoring Award for faculty and Distinguished Service Award from the Association for the Study of Higher Education.

Dr. Bensimon was associate dean of the USC Rossier School of Education from 1996-2000 and was a Fulbright Scholar to Mexico in 2002. She earned her doctorate in higher education from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Kimberly Griffin, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Dr. Kimberly Griffin is an Associate Professor in the Higher Education, Student Affairs, and International Education Policy Program (Student Affairs Area of Specialization). Dr. Griffin earned her doctoral degree in Higher Education and Organizational Change from the University of California, Los Angeles, her Master's degree in Education Policy and Leadership at the University of Maryland, College Park, and her Bachelorss degree from Stanford University in Psychology. Prior to completing her doctoral work, Dr. Griffin worked in higher education administration, primarily focusing in the areas of diversity recruitment, admissions, and retention at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

Dr. Griffin's research interests are primarily focused in three areas: the access, experiences, and outcomes of underrepresented communities in higher education; diversity within the Black higher education community; and the influence of relationships on outcomes at critical time points. These interests have led her to conduct work on a variety of topics, including mentoring relationships in academe, diversity in the professoriate and career development of Ph.D. completers in science, Black professors and their engagement in student interaction, the experiences of Black immigrant college students, diversity recruitment in graduate education, and campus racial climate.

Donna Younger, Ed.D.

Associate Vice President of Higher Education

For over thirty years, Donna Younger has served as a practitioner, consultant, and researcher in the field of adult human development and learning.  Beginning with her doctoral work at the University of Memphis with Dr. Art Chickering, she focused
on evaluating and developing learning environments that work best to support adult learning.  As a faculty member at the School for New Learning, DePaul University, Donna taught and mentored hundreds of adult learners and served
as Director of Undergraduate Programs.  Also during that time, she became involved
with the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning and soon began twenty-five years of service as a CAEL consultant in adult learning theory and prior learning assessment.  Recently, Donna assumed a position as CAEL’s Associate Vice President of Higher Education where she works primarily with colleges and universities in improving programs and services for adult learners.  She has written a number of articles addressing adult learning and assessment and recently published The College Experience for Adults, a guide for adults returning to college.

This history captures the chronology of experience, but not the passions nor areas of particular expertise Donna has developed.  Her early work with CAEL in assessing soft skills in adults led to years of study in emotional intelligence and the development of several courses in EI and leadership that she teaches at DePaul University.  Years of work in the assessment of learning within higher education and beyond evolved to a commitment to illuminating links between adult learning theory and assessment operations that characterize her work as a consultant and trainer.  Finally, thirty years of service in a competency-based adult program at the School for New Learning have led to a rich and deep understanding and passion for the core principles of competency development and assessment.  Looking ahead, Donna eagerly anticipates her continuing learning and development as a practitioner and leader in adult learning and assessment.