Student Affairs Assessment, Research, and Planning
On this page you will find SAARP articles from various editions of the Student Affairs On Deck newsletter. Click the button to the story you would like to read further.
October 2020 Articles
November 2020 Articles
Equity-Minded Assessment: Translating Strategies into Student Affairs Practice
Student Affairs Educators use assessment to identify, measure, and evaluate student learning and operational performance to improve the student experience. Striving towards equity-minded assessment embodies our commitment to engaging diverse student learners in high-quality experiences beyond the classroom.
What does it look like in everyday student affairs assessment life? Practice exemplars are provided below for each equity-minded assessment strategy identified by Montenegro & Jankowski (2020) of the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA):
- Check biases and ask reflective questions throughout the assessment process to address assumptions and positions of privilege. The Office of the Dean of Students recognized that physically coming on campus to meet with a case manager could be an obstacle for students experiencing a medical emergency or recent death in the family. Moving the university excused absence process to an online format increased access for students while also minimizing assumptions about an individual’s ability or specific need.
- Use multiple sources of evidence appropriate for the students being assessed and assessment effort. The Campus Recreation and Wellness Adventure Program regularly use post-activity reflections to explore students’ experiences. Student focus groups in spring 2019 provided a deeper dive into the outdoor knowledge and skills students gained from adventure trips.
- Include student perspectives and take action based on diverse perspectives. Both ECU Leads and Citizen U programs have held informal feedback sessions with a diverse range of participants to conduct SWOT & SOAR exercises. The qualitatively-focused feedback helped the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement implement programmatic changes and determine future workshop topics.
- Increase transparency in assessment results and actions. Purple Pantry used social media to highlight service to 400 students and distribution of over 4,000 pounds of food between January and August 2020. Staff also use a brief intake form to better understand student food bank users’ year in school, financial aid status, and in-state or out-of-state residency.
- Ensure collected data can be meaningfully disaggregated and interrogated. Survey data is examined by outcomes/results, as well as by inputs and environments, to situate contexts for results. Analysis of the First-Year Assessment disaggregates student-level characteristics (Race/Ethnicity, class level, etc.) to determine how much outcomes vary by sub-groups. Understanding differences provides context for additional exploration and evaluation.
- Make evidence-based changes that address issues of equity that are context-specific. After students who use Disability Support Services (DSS) provided feedback on the importance of classroom autonomy, the office purchased Sonocent, a notetaking software. Based on high student usage, DSS continues to provide the software free of charge.
Let us know how you are using strategies related to equity-minded assessment! Contact Helen at halaszh19@ecu.edu
October 2020 Articles
Upcoming: 2019-2020 Annual Outcomes Review Feedback and 2020-2021 Plan Check-in
Remember that annual outcomes information you submitted to Nuventive Improve during the summer? Now is the time for it to be reviewed by the Institutional Assessment Review Committee (I-ARC). The I-ARC includes faculty and staff across the university including all staff from Student Affairs Assessment, Research, and Planning (SAARP). Each year, one-half of Student Affairs departments will have their annual outcomes information reviewed by the I-ARC while the other one-half will be reviewed internally by SAARP. Either way, your annual outcomes information will be looked at in-depth and you will be provided valuable feedback to help improve your outcomes information.
How do I-ARC and SAARP evaluate your outcomes assessment report?
I-ARC and SAARP utilize a rubric to determine if your explanations and representation of data meet the requirements of each reporting area (Actions Taken, Results, Analysis of Results, and Actions Planned) in Improve. For example, do results (data from measures) indicate whether or not you met your criteria for success? Does the analysis of the results indicate actions taken during the year improved your outcome as well as provide a foundation for actions planned for the next year?
How do I prepare for my feedback session?
Reviewer’s feedback will be emailed to designated unit staff on Friday, Oct. 16th so that you can review which areas you have met the requirements and then what areas need improvement. You’ll also receive your full Improve outcomes report. After you receive your information, we recommend setting time aside to compare the outcomes rubric to your Improve outcomes report to understand the key areas needing improvement. It is important to review all comments before you come to the feedback meeting so you can discuss your interpretation of the review and how you believe you can improve the information.
Who will be part of the assessment review discussion?
Kathy Hill or Jeremy Tuchmayer will facilitate the feedback meetings. Specified staff from your department/unit and your assessment liaison will be invited to participate in discussion and planning.
When will my assessment review meeting be scheduled?
All assessment review meetings will start at the end of October and finish in the middle of November. You will receive invitations for a Teams meeting in the coming weeks to discuss your feedback and make any necessary modifications. All modifications need to be made in Improve prior to December 15, 2020.
If you have any questions before your assessment review meeting, please feel free to contact your assessment liaison.
Equity in Assessment: A Brief Introduction
Dr. Helen Mulhern Halasz, Assistant Director
The imperative to address diversity, equity, and inclusion in our work is the responsibility of all Student Affairs Educators. We use assessment to identify, measure, and evaluate the success of expected outcomes related to student learning and administrative structure performance. We use data to tell a story, but a richer, more interesting story includes multiple voices and experiences.
How we approach our work matters. Is your current assessment perpetuating inequality? How do you strategize change to advance equity? Overwhelmed yet? Let’s offer a short introduction to Equity-minded Assessment.
Context is key. By understanding and reflecting upon the program, assessment leader(s), and learners, we can design and implement an assessment plan leading to appropriate and equitable results. Expand how success is defined. Provide opportunities and resources so individual or group identity does not predict their outcome. Knowledge is important but action mitigates inequity.
Montenegro & Jankowski (2020), from the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA), identify six actions in order to “do equity-minded assessment:
- Check biases and ask reflective questions throughout the assessment process to address assumptions and positions of privilege;
- Use multiple sources of evidence appropriate for the students being assessed and assessment effort;
- Include student perspectives and take action based on perspectives;
- Increase transparency in assessment results and actions;
- Ensure collected data can be meaningfully dis-aggregated and interrogated; and
- Make evidence-based changes that address issues of equity that are context-specific” (p. 13).
Utilizing a critical approach in examining our current assessment processes may confirm how we are getting it right as well as where to focus future improvement efforts. The multi-layered student learning experience should be reflective of all students. Equity-minded Assessment encompasses dispositions, tools, and strategies to achieve that possibility.
Student Affairs Assessment, Research, and Planning is creating training opportunities and resources about Equity-Minded Assessment. Want to know more? Contact me at halaszh19@ecu.edu. Reference- Montenegro, E., & Jankowski, N. A. (2020, January). A new decade for assessment: Embedding equity into assessment praxis (Occasional Paper No. 42). Urbana, IL: Univ of Illinois and Indiana Univ, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA). https://www.learningoutcomesassessment.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/A-New-Decade-for-Assessment.pdf