Spring 2022
ABOUT TRENDS TRENDS is published three times a year by Great Lakes Association of College and University Housing Officers (GLACUHO) for members of the association.
GLACUHO is a non-profit organization that strives to: Better prepare housing officers to meet the diverse and changing needs of those we serve with primary concern for students.
Contribute to the improvement of dining services, residential life, residential services, and residential facilities provided by housing officers.
Sponsor activities and services which assist housing officers in the exchange and distribution of information and ideas.
Support the goals and purposes of the Association of College and University Housing Officers International (ACUHO-I)
Advance and communicate professional knowledge and standards in the field of housing.
Provide opportunities for the education and professional development of housing officers.
GLACUHO Communications & Marketing Committee Sara Kennedy
Amanda Mientus
University of Cincinnati
Miami University
Qiana Boyd
Makayla Ostapa
University of Indianapolis
Aurora University
Kyra DeLoach
Alexis Straub
Southwestern Michigan College
Michigan Technological University
Tim McCue
Kellee Steffen
Illinois State University
Ohio University
GLACUHO Board of Directors & Committee Chairs President Quiana M. Stone
Technology Coordinator Jeremy Alexander
Professional Foundations Chair Kate Page
DePaul University
Eastern Illinois University
Miami University
Past President Robin Gagnow
Committee Chair Delegate Rod Waters
Campus Safety & Crisis Management Chair Kevin Krauskopf
Baldwin Wallace University
DePaul University
Elmhurst University
President-Elect Steve Herndon
Conference Host Chair Zac Birch
Conference Host Assistant Chair Dave Arnold
University of Dayton
Northern Illinois University
University of Illinois
Secretary Nathan C Tomson
Health and Wellness Chair Tresa Barlage Zianno
Facilities & Operations Chair Danielle Hernandez
Central Michigan University
Miami University
Northern Illinois University
Treasurer Shavonn Nowlin
Student Learning Brittany Coy
Communications & Marketing Chair Sara Kennedy
Saint Xavier University
University of Mount Union
University of Cincinnati
Exhibitor Liaison Eddie Nguyen-Koelzer
Inclusion & Equity Chair Rodrina Moore
Contemporary Issues Chair Demetrius T. Gary
Michigan State University
Wayne State University
University of Michigan
Editorial Guidelines All members of GLACUHO institutions are encouraged to submit articles for publication. Be sure to indicate the name of author(s), institutions(s), email address(es), and GLACUHO committee or board affiliation, if applicable. Articles not received on time or not published will be considered for the next issue. Submitted content may also be published at any time based on editorial needs and focus of edition. Necessary editorial revisions will be made to ensure publication quality and to meet space requirements. Authors must submit work with GLACUHO to make necessary edits for publication to TRENDS and to maintain consistency across the publication. Submitted content ma\y or may not be published at the discretion of GLACUHO. Material that has been submitted to other publications is discouraged. Authors bear full responsibility of the accuracy of references, quotations, tables, and figures submitted for publication. Authors further hold GLACUHO harmless from any liability resulting from publication of articles. Any editorial mention of commercial interests is intended entirely as an information service and should not be construed as an endorsement, actual or implied, by GLACUHO. Submission should be made at www.glacuho.org/?Trends_Submissions Comments, and questions for TRENDS can be sent to trends@GLACUHO.org Sara Kennedy - University of Cincinnati sara.kennedy@glacuho.org GLACUHO Communications and Marketing Chair
Advertisements For information, please contact the GLACUHO Communications and Marketing Chair. GLACUHO reserves the right to reject any advertisement not in consonance with the GLACUHO Diversity Statement (revised 2018). Advertising of a product or service in this publication should not be construed as an endorsement.
A LOOK INSIDE THIS ADDITION OF TRENDS... 5
Write for Trends
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Incorporating our Contemporary Issue into Building a Sense of Belonging Jen Imel - Contemporary Issues Committee
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Using NACE Skills and Attributes for Student Learning Bradford Peace & Katie Kromer - Student Learning Committee
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GLOWing Forward: A Look Into the Future of the GLACUHO League Of Women Mellie Derry
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Call for Programs
19
COVID-19 Redesigning Spaces Rebeccah Maley
21
Article References
22
DONT FORGET... Write for Trends
Submissions due
Incorporating our Contemporary Issue into Building a Sense of Belonging
Jen Imel & Riley Sparks Contemporary Issues Committee Throughout the history of higher education, universities have been challenged and tasked with confronting our shortcomings in areas of diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice. Beginning by looking at the discriminatory conception and leading up to where universities have fallen short today, it is no wonder our current contemporary issue focuses on creating equitable and socially— just practices on our campuses, specifically in our housing and residence life departments. Our president, Quiana Stone, has selected Cultural Equity Practices in Housing and Residential Life: A Call to Activism and Social Change as our contemporary issue for the 2021-2022 term. This asks the question; how do we turn our discussions into actionable steps to support diverse populations on and off our campuses?
The Contemporary Issues Committee plans to put forth materials with each Trends publication that will help GLACUHO members think deeply about how our institutions are cultivating these environments, where we fall short, and how we can actively work to affect positive change on our campuses. To begin, we will examine our current understanding of sense of belonging and how universities and practitioners can do more to support a sense of belonging for our students, staff, and faculty. Sense of Belonging Defined Sense of belonging can be defined through how comfortable, connected, and supported a campus community feels. According to Gopalan and Brady (2019), “In college, feeling a sense of belonging may lead students to engage more deeply with their studies, leading to persistence and success.” Students who feel a greater sense of belonging are more likely to be retained on campus, access resources that will help them succeed, and create lasting connections (Goplan et al, 2019).
In many ways, we can also translate these findings to how we feel as staff and faculty. Carr, Reece, Kellerman, and Robichaux state that up to 40% of people report having a low sense of belonging at work (2019). If we as employees of the university are not feeling that we belong in our departments, that we are connected, how can we be the resources that students rely on to provide them with a sense of belonging as well? Another important experience that is linked to belonging is identification (Carr et al, 2019). In a system that is founded and built on white supremacy, it is no wonder research suggests minoritized students do not feel a strong sense of belonging, primarily at four-year institutions (Johnson 2020). Many universities idealize the concept of sense of belonging for their students, but if we take a look at the foundational theories many of us utilize in aiding in creating a sense of belonging, we can see our minoritized students are often left out of the narrative. ne of the ways we are able to assess our effectiveness in creating a sense of belonging for marginalized students is utilizing our knowledge of student development theories that give student affairs practitioners a greater understanding of how to build that sense of belonging for students. Some foundational theories to highlight include Baxter Magolda's theory on Self-Authorship, Sanford's theory of Challenge and Support, and Astin's theory of Student Involvement. Utilizing these theories is how we have created environments that support students in their holistic development and growth. Creating those environments of care and support is what’s needed to ensure students feel that sense of belonging in their communities. Unfortunately, as we know, these foundational theories often ignore identities that have been historically marginalized in higher education, as well as the changing demographics both among our students and within our departments.
As much as we rely on these theories and incorporate their findings into our practice, we must also consistently examine how they hinder our progress when we do not critically view their theoretical limitations. To decentralize whiteness from our practice, we need to explore theories that decolonize student affairs work, question our comfortability, and prioritize the experience and belonging of our marginalized students.
A Look Ahead for the Contemporary Issues Committee As stated in the GLACUHO Presidential Contemporary Issue statement by Quiana Stone, our mission and goals for creating cultural equity within housing and residence life departments start with our actions. How are we challenging oppression, prejudice, and discrimination on our campuses? How are we responding when student’s call on us to join them as catalysts of change? In many ways, it all starts with a strong sense of belonging in our communities. The Contemporary Issues Committee looks forward to engaging GLACUHO members in multiple dialogues, webinars, and articles around sense of belonging, inclusive leadership, and equitable practices. In future Trends articles, we will examine how we can cultivate a stronger sense of belonging for all members of our communities through inclusive leadership praxis and equitable practices in programming and campus policy
Using NACE Skills and Attributes for Student Learning Bradford Peace, Ball State University Katie Kromer, Miami University Student Learning Committee Student staff members, who serve in roles like Resident Assistants (RAs), contribute greatly to the work of Residence Life departments, and we also know the RA role contributes greatly to the students’ professional development. However, how are we making sure the students fully understand and implement the skills they are developing from holding this leadership position in their careers after graduation? This is a prime opportunity for student learning within residence life departments and using a new tool from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) can help us achieve this goal. NACE was established in 1956 and is a professional organization that connects college career services professionals and business professionals and is the “...leading source of information on the employment of the college educated, and forecasts hiring and trends in the job market; tracks starting salaries, recruiting and hiring practices, and student attitudes and outcomes; and identifies best practices and benchmarks” (National Association of Colleges and Employers, 2022). Every year, NACE completes a survey of its employer members regarding their hiring plans to project the market for recent college graduates and within this survey a list of 20 skills and attributes is established by the employers for what they are seeking in new candidates (NACE Job Outlook 2022, 2021).
From a quick glance, there is a lot of overlap from the skills and attributes employers are seeking and the skills students gain from holding the RA position. Using the NACE skills and attributes as a guide can provide RAs and residence life departments language for the skills that RAs are developing, present insight into the transferable skills employers are seeking, and help RAs understand how the RA position is benefiting them for their future career. All of which aid in their learning and development during their time with us as student staff members. Using the information from NACE does not have to wait until your RA staff is hired, but it can be a great addition to your RA recruitment efforts. Using this information in recruitment is an easy way to demonstrate the skills students gain from the RA position and help the position stand out from other opportunities students can seek out. Let’s be real: the RA position is a great oncampus job, but it also comes with a significant level of responsibility that most other on-campus jobs do not have and that can deter students. There are years when application numbers drop and there is concern about having enough candidates to hire for the next academic year and last-minute recruitment efforts are implemented or staff restructuring has to happen. This is not ideal, so maybe changing recruitment efforts to also include the skills students gain that are valued by future employers could be compelling to students. Miami University started using NACE data to assess the RA role in Spring 2021 and found that this data was useful in updating RA recruitment efforts. Through the assessment, RAs were asked to rank the NACE skills by order of which ones they have learned by being a RA. This data can be used to demonstrate which skills RAs gain from the role and how they connect to skills employers are seeking. By using the NACE data, we can shine light on the skills that connect to the RA position and explain how these skills are enhanced through the RA position. We know that students are concerned with how they are spending their time and the benefits they are getting from the opportunities they are committing to, so let’s lay it out for students and show them all the benefits of joining our teams.
Being intentional with developing NACE Competencies for student staff can take a variety of forms. One of the most tangible approaches would be connecting NACE Competencies to the learning outcomes of student staff training. To embed NACE Competencies in training and student development, departments should reflect on what themes and skills they want students to develop. Clemson University and the University of Tampa co-hosted a symposium in 2017 to share how each institution developed a framework for student learning based on competencies. While the approaches were noticeably different, both identified the underlying “attributes” which they sought to develop and then matched their desired NACE Competencies to these attributes (Gray, 2017). NACE’s eight career readiness competencies are highly correlated with the activities of a traditional resident assistant. Staff engage in critical thinking, leadership, communication, and equity and inclusion consistently within a typical RA role. Within staff training, these competencies can directly translate into student staff training learning outcomes. For example, within the Critical Thinking competency, NACE states that an example behavior would be to “proactively anticipate needs and prioritize action steps” (NACE, n.d.). A learning outcome for this behavior could be that student staff will learn to effectively gather information and prioritize action steps to support residents in crisis.
At Ball State University, the Student Staff Training committee has been developing and distributing “Knowledge Nuggets” for staff meetings, each focusing on one NACE Competency. A typical knowledge nugget would utilize an activity and a series of reflection questions to discuss the activity, what students observed and thought, and ultimately what they could do to apply it to their current and future positions. Staff facilitate the activities monthly for approximately 30 minutes and over the course of the academic year will cover eight of the most important competencies. Once learning outcomes have been established, it is important to develop evaluations to understand how student staff are learning and growing in these competencies. Departments and institutions may want to develop a pre-test where students are asked to reflect on which of the attributes they want to most intentionally develop and then identify the activities which connect to this competency. At the end of the year, a post-test can ask the students to provide examples of how they have grown in the competency area which can help them see the value of their experience while reflecting and articulating how they have learned. As institutions continue to evaluate how their student staff positions have changed and encourage students to apply for the positions, utilizing NACE Competencies in phases from recruitment to training to reflection on staff performance can help crystallize student learning and help them prepare for their future opportunities.
GLOWing Forward: A Look Into the Future of the GLACUHO League Of Women Mellie Derry, Chelsea Knarr, Alexis Straub, & Michelle Sujka For more than 50 years, GLACUHO has created opportunities to cultivate amazing relationships across the region. As introduced at the 2021 GLACUHO Annual Conference, women-identifying housing professionals in the region can be involved with a new opportunity to foster connections to grow personally and professionally. A proposal was passed in support of the GLACUHO League of Women, otherwise known as GLOW, as the first affinity group in GLACUHO! GLACUHO League of Women’s earliest beginnings started out of ideas and passion for women’s empowerment. During the GLACUHO 2020 Annual Conference, Michelle Sujka from the University of Cincinnati and Chelsea Knarr from Kent State University presented “F*ck it to Fabulous: Creating a community of women who get it,” a presentation about imperfection, career expectations, and empowerment. The presentation provided the opportunity to create a Women’s Task Force within the region to gather more information about the need to support women identified professionals.
The Women’s Task Force, led by Knarr and Sujka, worked from January, 2021 through June, 2021 to complete 50+ listening tours with women across the region or previously affiliated with the regional association to find the gaps in GLACUHO and higher education for women identified professionals. In addition to the listening tours, the Women’s Task Force was filled with tons of personal and professional development opportunities including several lunch connections, a women’s issues panel, and a secret sister exchange program to name a few. Through these listening tours and these events, it was discovered that there was a need for an affinity group to provide support, resources, connections, and professional development opportunities for women-identified professionals in the region. The Women’s Task Force created a proposal for GLOW, the GLACUHO League Of Women, with its founding principles of creating social connections for women-identified professionals in the region and providing women-identified focused personal and professional development opportunities for the region.
The proposal was passed and GLOW was introduced and presented at the 2021 conference with it’s first event being the Graband-GLOW Breakfast at the GLACUHO 2021 conference in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The hard work of the Women’s Task Force found a desire among many levels of professionals across the region to be connected both professionally and personally with other women in housing. With this in mind, the proposal highlighted that there be two committees within the group, a professional development and social planning committees to create multiple types of involvement throughout the whole year. Currently there are 11 women in the GLOW planning committee across all four states. Sujka and Knarr will continue to co-lead the group into its first year as a recognized affinity group through the 2022 annual conference, while also preparing the next co-leaders, Mellie Derry (Wittenberg University) and Alexis Straub (Michigan Technological University). The cochairs elect both served on the Women’s Task Force. Derryis currently chairing the Social Planning Sub-Committee while Straub is chairing the Personal and Professional Development Planning Sub-Committee on the current GLOW team!
Derry and Straub, who met through GLOW and served on the Campus Safety and Crisis Management Committee last year, is a perfect example of the friendships that our committee hopes to continue to create and strengthen through GLOW! GLOW’s goal is for folxs to be able to attend the conferences, and other GLACUHO events, and see faces and friends that our group has helped establish. Through the work from both sub-committees, GLOW seeks to provide in-person and virtual opportunities such as webinars, roundtables, happy hours, and more! If you are a women-identifying housing professional in the GLACUHO region and are interested in joining the league of amazing women please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/ToXF1UQNkXjP4dLu9. If you are interested in joining the group as a planner, it is not meant to be a heavy involvement opportunity, rather a few hours a month to meet and execute the opportunities. If you are interested in attending the events only, the link is for you too, we will place you on our listserv to keep updated on our upcoming events!
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submit BY JUNE 6th
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COVID-19 Redesigning Spaces A continuance to the 2021 GLACUHO Outstanding Research and Writing Award: Student-Centered Learning Spaces During a Pandemic
Rebeccah Maley Easter Illinois University The Data According to Baker, from Student housing demand shifts to private rooms as sector adapts to pandemic, “There is also a growing trend of groups wanting to switch to single rooms, rather than their usual shared rooms” (2020). For students seeking single rooms over shared, they believe the increased payment is worth the cost to have their own personal safe haven away from others (Koester, 2000). Research has shown single rooms can be detrimental to students' growth during their transition away from home and can impact their sense of belonging., Having a roommate, despite some growing pains, is known to be a successful tool in retaining students (Booker, 2016; Koester, 2020). An idea to accommodate the need for privacy while maintaining a connection, KWK Architects suggests, “‘next best’ bedroom design that will be considered is a doublebedroom designed as a “paired-single” unit – two singles side-by-side – with each occupant having furniture, a closet, operable window on “their side” and only necessarily shared elements…The bedroom shape would be wide and shallow, allowing beds, desks and closets to be located further apart” (Koester, 2020). As professionals, we acknowledge each student is unique, so is each residential design.
Other suggestions, that the author believes may be more attainable, is the creation/redesign of “third spaces”. Originally coined by Oldenburg (1999) the third space is a place that one can get away from home (first space) and work (second space). Often these spaces meet their desires to engage, study, connect, and collaborate (Barkley, 2016; Han & Chang, 2017). Residence halls often find these spaces to be “common rooms for socializing and studying, such as classrooms, exercise rooms, lounges, game rooms, and cooking space…[that are] flexible common spaces that expand and contract as needed for various event sizes” (Fox Blocks, 2015). This third spaces underutilized to create connections, find a sense of belonging, and endless opportunities for students to learn outside of the classroom.
The Suggestions The first research question was “where do they go to study?” Most participants sought out convenient locations. According to Ibrahim and Fadzil (2013), outside academic spaces should be accessible and dynamic, central locations around campus help create a sense of belonging. For the researcher’s participants, this meant the library for group projects or closeness to their work or home. It was found that the effect of community had an impact as well. In order to develop community and create a sense of belonging, there needs to be the consideration of the whole of a student's experience and the structures built around them (Barkley, 2016; Booker 2016; Modell et al., 2009). All the participants referred to studying in the residence halls as a place where they could work, be with friends, and stay close to home. The next question the researcher asked was “why exactly did participants choose to study there?”. The interview questions referred to connections made in those spaces, such as people or technology where they felt motivated or distracted and to ruminate on any additional features provided in those spaces. The researcher found participants sought out locations that provided motivation elements that included access to resources, which limited their distractions to seek those amenities. Some of these amenities were shared by the participants: printing (37 times), food (23 times) and beverages (14 times) as very important features to be academically productive. However, for all participants, they found certain distractions had brought them a sense of “relief” or “peace” while studying. Examples of this include, high ceilings, stained glass windows, large windows, areas where they can nap (yes in public), and even people watching kept them motivated. Since the start of the pandemic a lot of things have changed. Today “we are facing compulsory social distancing beyond the amygdala and proxemics. We are ordered by public health authorities to create distances between households, neighborhoods, cities, and even countries” states Szasz (2020). Students feel that continuing to be on campus is not the same, it takes a toll, and creates distrust with others due to social distancing, hyper cleanliness, and basic interactions with others.
Reflections Through this design one can strive to provide communities a “third space” where it can be accessible to any student for social engagement and academic success. With this information, and from your own experience, think about how your institution can create this newly formatted space to accommodate this “new normal”? What are the advantages or disadvantages of spaces on your campus that already exist? Share your thoughts with us by emailing the Facilities and Operations Committee Chair danielle.hernandez@glacuho.org and be on the lookout for our follow up webinar later this spring!
Article References: Incorporating our Contemporary Issue into Building a Sense of Belonging Astin, A. W. (1999). Student Involvement: A Developmental Theory for Higher Education. Journal of College Student Development, 40(5), 518-529. Baxter Magolda, M. B. (2001). Making their own way: Narratives for transforming higher education to promote self-development. Carr, E.W., Reece, A., Kellerman, G.R., Robichaux, A. (2019). The value of belonging at work. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2019/12/the-value-of-belonging-at-work. Johnson, Elin (2020). Students’ sense of belonging varies by identity, institution. InsideHigherEd. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/01/02/minority-students-sense-place-higher-two-year-four-year-institutions. Sanford, N. (1967). Where colleges fail: A study of the student as a person. Stone, Quiana (2021). GLACUHO Presidential Contemporary Issue 2021-2022. GLACUHO News: General. https://www.glacuho.org/news/558086/GLACUHO-Presidential-Contemporary-Issue-2021-2022.htm. Renn, K. A. (2003). Understanding the identities of mixed-race college students through a developmental ecology lens. Journal of College Student Development, 44(3), 383-403
Using NACE Skills and Attributes for Student Learning Gray, K. (2017). Starting a campus-wide competency development program: Different approaches, common ground. https://www.naceweb.org/career-readiness/best-practices/starting-a-campus-wide-competency-development-program/ National Association of Colleges and Employers (2022). What is Career Readiness? https://www.naceweb.org/careerreadiness/competencies/career-readiness-defined/ National Association of Colleges and Employers. (2022). What is NACE? about our association. https://www.naceweb.org/about-us/ National Association of Colleges and Employers. (2021). Job outlook 2022. 2022-nace-job-outlook (1).pdf
COVID-19 Redesigning Spaces Baker, D. (2020, October). Student housing demand shifts to private rooms as sector adapts to pandemic. ICEF Monitor - Market intelligence for international student recruitment. Retrieved February 22, 2022, from https://monitor.icef.com/2020/10/student-housing-demand-shifts-to-private-rooms-as-sector-adapts-to-pandemic/ Barkley, E. F. (2009). Student engagement techniques: A handbook for college faculty. John Wiley & Sons. Booker, K. (2016). Connection and Commitment: How Sense of Belonging and Classroom Community Influence Degree Persistence for African American Undergraduate Women. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 28(2), 218-229. Fox Blocks. (2014). 6 trends for new Resident Hall - dormitory design and construction. Fox Blocks. Retrieved February 22, 2022, from https://www.foxblocks.com/blog/trends-for-new-resident-hall-dormitory-design-and-construction Hall, E. T. (1966). The hidden dimension (Vol. 609). Garden City, NY: Doubleday. Han, X., & Cheng, H. (2017, June). Analysis on design principles of public facilities on campus and its adaptability to campus environment. In 2nd International Conference on Contemporary Education, Social Sciences and Humanities (ICCESSH 2017). Atlantis Press. Ibrahim, N., & Fadzil, N. H. (2013). Informal setting for learning on campus: Usage and preference. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 105, 344-351. Koester, S. (2020, July). Residence Hall Design Trends to change in response to covid-19. Residence Hall Design Trends to Change in Response to COVID-19 | KWK Architects. Retrieved February 22, 2022, from https://www.kwkarchitects.com/news-views/details/residence-hall-design-trends-to-change-in-response-to-covid-19 Modell, H., DeMiero, F., & Rose, L. (2009, March 1). In pursuit of a holistic learning environment: the impact of music in the medical physiology classroom. Advances in Physiology Education, 33(1), 37–45. doi: 10.1152/advan.90149.2008 Oldenburg, R (1999). The great good place: Cafes, coffee shops, bookstores, bars, hair salons, and other hangouts at the heart of a community. Da Capo Press.
SUBMISSIONS DUE MAY 31 st
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