2012 NCICU Conference Presentaion

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Effective Uses of a Versatile Survey Instrument for Assessment of Residence Life Presenters: Heidi LeCount, Office of Residence Life Dilnavaz Mirza Sharma, Office of Research, Planning and Assessment

Transcript of 2012 NCICU Conference Presentaion

Page 1: 2012 NCICU Conference Presentaion

Effective Uses of a Versatile Survey Instrument for Assessment of Residence Life

Presenters:Heidi LeCount, Office of Residence LifeDilnavaz Mirza Sharma, Office of Research, Planning and Assessment

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Survey Focus:Resident Assistant Evaluation and Residence Life Survey, Fall 2011

Conducted by: Meredith College Office of Residence LifeAdministered by: Meredith College Office of Research, Planning and Assessment

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Objectives

To describe elements of the survey’s design

To examine the survey as an effective assessment tool

To discuss modifications introduced over time

To highlight multiple uses of data gathered

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Why Assess Residence Life?

“learning outside of classes, especially in residential settings and extracurricular activities such as the arts, is vital. … Campus atmosphere and especially residential living arrangements are crucial.” (Light, 2001, pp. 8, 10)

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Why Assess Residence Life?

“There is very clear evidence that residence halls and campus activities have a positive impact on retention and personal development … Yet it is very difficult to convince a budget committee that campus activities and residence halls should be funded ahead of replacing a history professor.” (Upcraft & Gardner, 1989, p. 154)

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Purpose of Survey

Annual evaluation of Resident Assistant (RA) Staff Student feedback about campus living experiences

Gather information to assess unit outcomes

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Additional Purposes of Fall 2011 Survey Gauge student interest in proposed campus initiatives

(e.g., Learning Communities)

Poll students on current residence hall policies (e.g., male visitation, alcohol)

Inform and educate students about current procedures

Evaluate recently introduced campus life programs & services (e.g., Zipcar, Think Green)

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Survey Methods: Development From paper and pencil survey to Qualtrics, online survey

system, in Fall 2009

Paper questionnaire, developed by Residence Life staff, modified and enhanced

4-point scales used to measure survey responses - direct, meaningful, and easy for residents to understand

Dropdown menus & multiple choice questions to reduce errors and provide consistency

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Survey Methods: User-friendly Design Confidential survey – “…your name will not be linked to your

response.”

Statements with requests for users to rate their level of agreement/disagreement

Display and skip logic used to reduce survey time and efficiency – differentiated questions

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Survey Methods: Distribution and Marketing

Survey open between 2nd week of November & Thanksgiving

Incentives to encourage participation Survey takers could enter a drawing to win one of 2 Target gift cards

RA with most residents responding awarded programming funds

Supplemental survey takers offered additional incentives

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Survey Methods: Distribution and Marketing (cont.)

All residence hall students received two email invites with embedded link to survey

Personal emails and white board announcements from RAs advertise survey

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Survey Methods: Reporting

Overall combined report for general trends - all buildings and all floors

Individual reports to Resident Directors (RD) - each building and each floor

Means calculated for each scaled item

Graphs for easy visual reference and understanding of results

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Assessment RA performance evaluation process

Example Questions: My RA is welcoming and friendly to me on campus. I feel comfortable going to my RA for guidance and advice. I use my RA as a helpful campus resource. My RA has created interesting and informative bulletin boards. I think my RA treats all of her residents as fairly and equally as possible.

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Findings

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Use of Data RDs assess RA’s performance goals/complete annual

evaluation form

Will be used in 2011-2012 Residence Life Continuous Improvement Report (CIR) – annual unit level assessment report

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Assessment Students’ understanding of campus Health and Safety policies

Students’ awareness of how to access information about campus Health and Safety policies

Example Questions:

Which of the following options do you think are appropriate for contacting the RD on duty (check all that apply)?

How would you find out who the RA on duty for your residence hall is at any given time? (open ended)

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Note: Students who did not choose “Calling RD on Duty” were instructed about the only correct option and given RD’s phone number.

Findings

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Use of Data

Will be used in 2011-2012 Residence Life CIR

Increase efforts to communicate campus Health & Safety policy information

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Assessment Campus Policies: Alcohol and Open House Hours

Example Questions: Students who are 21 or older should be allowed to possess and

consume alcohol in their individual living spaces. (Agree/Disagree)

The current Male Visitation Policy at Meredith is adequate. (Agree/Disagree)

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Findings

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Use of Data

Student Government (SGA) recognized a need for further evaluation of campus policies

Follow-up survey conducted spring 2012

Additional open house hours added

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Assessment Interest in living & learning communities

Examples: Would you be interested in living on a floor with students

who have interests similar to yours?

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Findings

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Use of Data

Results discussed by committee exploring living & learning community options

Decision postponed to next academic year

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Assessment Effective communication with students and parents Residence Life web site update

Examples: Meredith College's Residence Life website was recently expanded to

include photographs of various residence hall rooms. Please rate your level of agreement with the following statements to help us improve this website’s feature.

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Findings

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Use of Data

Results will be included in 2011-2012 Residence Life CIR

Additional photographs (closets and bathrooms) to be featured on website

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Assessment Open ended questions to elicit general comments from

students.

Example Questions:Please list any additional topics you would like to see addressed on the Residence Life website.Other comments about your experiences with your Resident Assistant and Residence Director:Other comments about the above statements or residence life in general:

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Findings: Valuable Insights into Students’ Experiences• “My RA always … asks me how my day is going. This makes me happy. She also gives us candy.”

• “I haven't found her to be particularly inviting, but I don't try to be involved much either.”

• “DO NOT use Facebook there are residents who do NOT use Facebook and Twitter like myself.”

• “I love living on campus!”

•“Parking always seems like a hassle…”

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Use of Responses to Open Ended Questions

RDs when evaluating RA’s performance – specific successes/grievances highlighted

Strategic Planning GO Team (Co-Curricular) to evaluate student engagement as a key to improving retention

Modified parking policies

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Use of Data: New Green Initiatives on Campus

“Think Green” poster program evaluated as a success and will be expanded to all residence halls

Zipcar program will be directly marketed to 42 students who indicated interest on survey

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Happy Accidents Parking policy modified based on students’ comments

Sustainability initiatives expanded

Strategic planning – information presented to Co-Curricular Goals and Objectives (GO) Team

Baseline for judging student satisfaction as part of campus initiative

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Conclusion

A carefully planned survey can yield a wealth of useful information.

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Reference List

Light, R. J. (2001). Making the most of college: Students speak their minds. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Upcraft, M. L., & Gardner, J. N. (1989). The freshman year experience: Helping students survive and succeed in college. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.