Communique Winter 2017

CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY STUDENT SERVICES L’ASSOCIATION DES SERVICES AUX ÉTUDIANTS DES UNIVERSITÉS ET COLLÈGES DU CANADA WINTER / HIVER / 2017 / ISSN 1206-8500

Meet the new CACUSS staff... pg.9

Reflecting on Our Past. Our Future.

More info about #CACUSS17 on page 8 COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 1

2 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

Contents

Communiqué Volume 17, Issue 3, Winter 2017/ Tome 17, Numéro 3, Hiver 2017

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President’s Message | Message de la présidente | MESSAGE

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Executive Director Update | Mise à jour de la directrice générale | MESSAGE

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What to Expect at #CACUSS17 | NEWS

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My Past. My CACUSS Future. Introducing New CACUSS Staff by Megan MacKenzie & Jonathan Elias | PROFILES

Patricia Pardo, President, cacuss-president@cacuss.ca

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Procedural Fairness Monograph by Brandy Usick | NEWS | Student Conduct

Angie Clarke, Finance Director, angie.clarke@mi.mun.ca

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Matthew Montgomery Receives CACUSS Student Leadership Award | NEWS

Jack Dobbs, Director-at-Large / Research and Recognition,

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Request for Submissions (NEADS) | NEWS | Accessibility and Inclusion

jdobbs@mtroyal.ca

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The Birth of the Canadian National Orientation Census by Lesley D’Souza, Josh Hass, Liz Hilliard, Ian Simmie & Tom Brophy | UPDATE | Orientation, Transition,

ambartlett@upei.ca

Retention | Research, Assessment, Evaluation

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From Student to Student Life Professional by Eric Schwenger | OPINION | Leadership Educators

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Is It Worth It, Really? by Eric Schwenger | OPINION | Leadership Educators

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Investigating the Long-Term Impact of Student Leadership Roles by Alena Boczek, Janet Miller, Natasha Reynolds, Mark Keller & Kathleen O’Reilly | RESEARCH | Leadership Educators

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A Nursing Practicum in Student Affairs by Karen Morse | PROFILE | Student Health

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Understanding Accessibility in Graduate Education for Students with Disabilities in Canada by Kathleen Moore & Mahadeo Sukhai | RESEARCH | Accessibility and Inclusion | Graduate and Second Entry

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Mount Royal University Academic Strategist Program by Janalee Morris | PROFILE | Accessibility and Inclusion | Academic Learning

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Bridging Co-Curricular and Curricular Learning in Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness by Nora Sobel & Bradley West | PROFILE | Equity-Seeking Groups | Digital Communications in Higher Education

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Changing the Culture of Mental Health on Campus by Andrew Szeto, Debbie Bruckner, & Ashley Humeniuk | PROFILE | Campus Mental Health | Student Health

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CACUSS Memories and Reflections by Nancy Willihnganz | NARRATIVE

Editor / Rédacteur Mitchell Miller, communique@cacuss.ca

CACUSS Board/Conseil ASEUCC David Newman, Past-President, david.newman@utoronto.ca Christine Adam, Director-at-Large / Advocacy, cadam@tru.ca

Anne Bartlett, Director-at-Large / Communities, Dale Mullings, Director-at-Large / Communities, dale.mullings@utoronto.ca Amy Gaukel, Director-at-Large / Policy, amy.gaukel@lassonde.yorku.ca Marcelle Mullings, Director-at-Large, Professional Development, mmullings@ryerson.ca

Communiqué is published by the Canadian Association of College and University Student Services (CACUSS)/L’association des services aux étudiants des universities et colleges du Canada (ASEUCC). All material copyright CACUSS/ASEUCC unless otherwise noted. Material may not be reproduced without the express written permission of CACUSS/ASEUCC. The opinions expressed in Communiqué do not reflect those of the magazine or of CACUSS. Le Communiqué est publié par la Canadian Association of College and University Student Services (CACUSS)/l’Association des services aux étudiants des universités et collèges du Canada (ASEUCC). Copyright pour le contenu : CACUSS/ASEUCC, à moins d’indication contraire. Aucune reproduction du contenu de cette publication sans l’autorisation écrite expresse de CACUSS/ASEUCC. Les opinions exprimées dans Communiqué ne reflètent pas ceux du magazine ou de l’ASEUCC. Jennifer Hamilton, Executive Director, cacuss-ed@cacuss.ca Advertising / La publicité CACUSS Secretariat, contact@cacuss.ca Submissions / Soumissions News, articles, updates, opinion pieces, letters to the editor, artwork and photographs relating to college and university student services in Canada are all very welcome. Send submissions to: Nous acceptons les nouvelles, articles, mises au point, énoncés d’opinion, lettres aux rédacteurs, illustrations et photographies se rapportant aux services aux étudiants des collèges et des universités. Faire parvenir vos soumissions à : Mitchell Miller, communique@cacuss.ca CACUSS Secretariat/Secretariat ASEUCC 150 Eglinton Ave. E., Suite 402 Toronto, ON M4P 1E8 Email: contact@cacuss.ca Website: www.CACUSS.ca COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 3

President’s Message

Canada’s Sesquicentennial: The World Needs More Canada

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arking the 150th anniversary of Confederation – also known as the sesquicentennial – Canadians will be spending this year reflecting on Canada’s past, reimaging the present, and planning for the future.

Seventy years before Confederation, the early leaders in Canada believed higher education was a key to the formation and development of our nation. By the time of Confederation, in 1867, only 17 degree-granting institutions existed. They had adopted the Oxford model of education where tutors lived in the halls with the students. The earliest student services professionals were the Residence Dons, Dean of Men, Dean of Women, Dean of Students, Student Personnel Services Officer, Counsellor, Placement Officer, and Chaplain. The guiding philosophy for their work was “in loco parentis,” and these student affairs pioneers were trailblazers and major contributors to shaping the growth of Personal Service education.

From this beginning, post-secondary institutions grew both in the number of services and in how those services have been delivered. In this sesquicentennial year, Universities Canada reports that more than one million undergraduate students arrived on Canadian university and college campuses. Close to 300,000 of them will graduate and enter the workforce in 2017. But are we preparing our students for a world that no longer exists? The post-secondary sector has not changed in any significant way for a very long time. The model imbedded in the curriculum needs to be as flexible as Canada has been in the last 150 years, drawing from diverse sources in order for graduates to be ready for the next 50 years.

Post-secondary enrollments will slow dramatically over the next decade as the general population of 17-24 year-olds decline. To maintain funding, universities, colleges, and technical institutes will need to take steps to reduce student attrition rates from the current levels of up to 20% of the student population and will need to seek growth from traditionally underserved, minority populations (Chiose, 2016).

In order to flourish – perhaps even to survive – the post-secondary sector must find solutions to this new challenge, overhaul many of their entrenched processes, and foster environments that engage students.

A 150th birthday calls for gifts to mark the occasion. We have many gifts to offer to Canada’s higher education sector. Student affairs and services professionals create experiences that enhance the growth and development of students and develop the conditions that foster engaged and active learning. We have theoretical and practical research for student engagement. We have been engaged in the work of creating diverse and inclusive campus environments. We have been community building to ensure that graduates have a role in our new Canada. Our ongoing commitment to social justice and indigenization will be particularly important as we work towards removing systemic barriers for historically marginalized student groups.

We strive to increase retention and remedy challenges to persistent student concerns. Our entire raison d’être is to focus on the whole student perspective and 4 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

to understand the factors that impact a student’s ability to enroll, persist, thrive, and then ultimately graduate.

Canada’s 150th is an historic moment: a time to ponder the connection of our lives as colleagues and as Canadians. I am so very grateful that my family immigrated to Canada and that I have experienced a country that strives for unity and takes seriously our diversity and difference. This June, CACUSS will have the opportunity to celebrate our past, review our present, and look to Pat Pardo our future at our Ottawa conference, themed “Our Past. Our Future.”

In his address to Parliament last June, as he lauded his host country for championing values such as integrity, human rights, and fair play, President Barack Obama coined the phrase, “The world needs more Canada.” We have made a 44-year contribution to the post-secondary landscape in Canada. We had a part to play in showing that Canada had a very bright future. We have an even bigger part to play in showing the world why it “needs more Canada.” We both have so much to offer!

I feel so blessed and fortunate to be part of this profession, at this time in our history.

Happy 150th birthday, Canada!

References Chiose, S. (2016, September 17). Making the Grade. The Globe and Mail.

Message de la présidente

Le cent cinquantenaire du Canada : le monde a besoin de plus de Canada

À

l’occasion du 150e anniversaire de la Confédération – aussi appelé « cent cinquantenaire » –, les Canadiens passeront cette année à réfléchir au passé du Canada, à repenser le présent et à planifier l’avenir.

Soixante-dix ans avant la Confédération, les premiers dirigeants du Canada croyaient que l’éducation supérieure jouait un rôle clé dans la formation et le développement de notre nation. Au moment de la création de la Confédération, en 1867, seuls 17 établissements conféraient des grades universitaires. Ces établissements avaient adopté le modèle d’éducation d’Oxford, selon lequel les tuteurs vivaient dans les résidences avec les étudiants. Les premiers professionnels des services aux étudiants étaient le responsable des résidences, le directeur des étudiants, la directrice des étudiantes, le directeur des services personnels aux étudiants, le préposé des services aux étudiants, le conseiller, le responsable du placement et l’aumônier.

Ils s’appuyaient sur le principe selon lequel ils devaient « tenir lieu de parents », et

ces pionniers des affaires étudiantes ont joué un rôle innovateur et ont largement contribué au développement de l’éducation en matière de services personnels.

Par la suite, les établissements d’enseignement postsecondaire ont évolué, à la fois sur le plan du nombre de services offerts et du mode de prestation de ces services. En cette année de cent cinquantenaire, Universités Canada révèle que plus d’un million d’étudiants de premier cycle sont arrivés sur les campus universitaires et collégiaux canadiens. Près de 300 000 d’entre eux termineront leurs études et s’intégreront à la population active en 2017. Toutefois, préparons-nous les étudiants à un monde qui n’existe plus? Le secteur de l’enseignement postsecondaire n’a pas beaucoup changé depuis très longtemps. Le modèle intégré au curriculum doit être aussi souple que le Canada l’a été au cours des 150 dernières années, en s’appuyant sur diverses sources afin que les diplômés soient prêts pour les 50 prochaines années.

Les inscriptions au niveau postsecondaire ralentiront considérablement au cours de la prochaine décennie à mesure que la population générale des 1724 ans diminuera.

Afin de maintenir leur financement, les universités, les collèges et les instituts de technologie devront prendre des mesures afin de réduire les taux d’attrition des effectifs étudiants par rapport à leur niveau actuel, qui peut atteindre 20 % de la population étudiante, et devront fonder leur croissance sur des groupes traditionnellement mal desservis (Chiose, 2016). Afin de prospérer – voire simplement survivre –, le secteur de l’enseignement postsecondaire doit trouver des solutions pour relever ce nouveau défi, remanier bon nombre de ses processus bien établis et favoriser des environnements qui contribuent à la mobilisation des étudiants.

Un 150e anniversaire suppose des cadeaux pour souligner l’occasion. Nous avons de nombreux cadeaux à offrir au secteur canadien de l’enseignement supérieur.

Les professionnels des affaires étudiantes et des services aux étudiants créent des expériences qui renforcent le développement et l’épanouissement des étudiants et établissent des conditions qui favorisent un apprentissage actif et engagé. Nous offrons de la recherche théorique et pratique qui contribue à l’engagement des étudiants.

Nous nous employons à créer des environnements diversifiés et inclusifs sur les campus. Nous développons la conscience communautaire afin de veiller à ce que les diplômés aient un rôle à jouer au sein du nouveau Canada. Notre engagement continu à l’égard de la justice sociale et de l’autochtonisation sera particulièrement important dans le cadre de nos démarches visant à éliminer les obstacles systémiques pour les groupes d’étudiants traditionnellement marginalisés.

Nous nous efforçons d’accroître la rétention et de régler les difficultés liées aux préoccupations persistantes pour les étudiants. Notre raison d’être consiste entièrement à mettre l’accent sur la perspective globale des étudiants et à comprendre les facteurs qui influent sur la capacité d’un étudiant de s’inscrire dans un établissement, de persévérer, de s’épanouir et, finalement, d’obtenir son diplôme.

Le 150e anniversaire du Canada est un moment historique qui nous amène à réfléchir au lien entre nos vies en tant que collègues et en tant que Canadiens. Je suis très reconnaissante que ma famille ait immigré au Canada et m’ait ainsi permis de vivre dans un pays qui aspire à l’unité et qui prend au sérieux notre diversité et nos différences. En juin prochain, l’ASEUCC aura l’occasion de célébrer notre passé, de revoir notre présent et de prévoir notre avenir dans le cadre de notre conférence qui aura lieu à Ottawa, sous le thème « Notre passé. Notre avenir. » En juin dernier, dans son allocution devant le Parlement, alors qu’il félicitait le pays qui l’accueillit de s’être fait le champion de valeurs telles que l’intégrité, les droits de la personne et l’équité, le président Barack Obama a prononcé les mots suivants : « Le monde a besoin de plus de Canada. » Nous contribuons depuis 44 ans au paysage postsecondaire au Canada. Nous devions montrer que le Canada avait un avenir très prometteur. Nous avons maintenant un rôle encore plus important à jouer en montrant au monde pourquoi il « a besoin de plus de Canada ». Nous avons tous deux tellement à offrir!

Je me sens très privilégiée de faire partie de notre profession, à cette époque de notre histoire.

Bon 150e anniversaire, Canada!

Références Chiose, S. (17 septembre 2016). « Making the Grade ». The Globe and Mail.

Executive Director Update

Our Past. Our Future. Archives.

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here have been many changes at CACUSS over the last six months, all of them positive and moving the organization forward. We have invested in a new staffing structure, including hiring one full-time and one part-time staff member (meet them on page 9!).

We have restructured our membership to encourage more institutional members and streamline our membership process. We have invested in new tools for Communities of Practice and technology that will be launched this May. All of these initiatives will move CACUSS towards “Our Future” as an organization.

For this report, however, I thought I would have some fun, and so I went back through 20 years of The Bulletin (CACUSS Newsletter from 1973 to 1990), and Communiqué Version 1 (CACUSS Newsletter from 1990 to 2000) to see the issues that our organization was discussing and to reflect on “Our Past”.

The Bulletin was published from 1973 until the final issue in 1990. It was published four times per year and sent to all CACUSS members. It Jennifer Hamilton contained reports from the CACUSS Board and Presidents, updates from all the divisions, and features of the annual conference. It also periodically featured stories from campuses and research summaries.

Here are a few highlights from the archives!

1980 • The question was posed, “Do we need a Professional Preparation Program for Student Services Personnel?”

• Membership fees in CACUSS were $25 each.

• The Board considered having the annual conference convene every two years.

• The Board was discussing restructuring CACUSS, moving to a regional association structure and away from a divisional structure.

1982 • There was an ad posting travel fares to Montreal for the annual conference, and you could book your flight by sending a cheque to BelAir Travel as listed in the newsletter. There were clearly only a few flights per week and a fare to travel to the Montreal conference in 1982 was $728 from Vancouver and $200 from Toronto.

• The newsletter advocated for increasing the number of conference sessions on “Handicapped” students. (This was before CADSPPE was a division of CACUSS).

COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 5

• There was a contest to design a new logo for CACUSS, with a prize of PEI art.

1984 • The new CACUSS logo, the “Tree,” was unveiled.

• Alcohol awareness was a big feature.

• CACUSS developed partnerships with CIRA, CBIE, OCSA, and COCA. 1985 • The first Student Affairs Institute was held, a week-long in-depth training held in the summer for student services staff. This was the predecessor to CISAS (Canadian Institute on Student Affairs & Services).

1986 • CACUSS surveyed the professional development needs of members and the top four issues identified were the changing needs of students, management of people, research in student services, and the effect of the college/university environment.

• CACUSS focused on its core purpose and mission and sought feedback from members on the role of CACUSS as advocates/activists, as developing and disseminating research, as an association, and as an accrediting body for professionals.

2000 • 60 proposals were received for the 2000 conference (which was held at York University) (Read on page 8 how far we’ve come since then!).

• Organizational restructuring, including questioning the role of the divisions, was yet again a topic of Board and President Reports.

The themes present in these publications are very consistent with issues that we are dealing with today. The focus and future of our work and our organization, the impact of national and international issues, professional development of our members, sharing stories of our campuses, and our challenges and successes are all topics for writing and discussion in our organization. While many things have changed with the organization over the years, I was surprised to find so many familiar and recurring themes: a great way to celebrate our past as an organization!

Did you know that you can access back issues of the Communiqué magazine from 2000-2017 online? (Visit cacuss.ca/past_communique_members.html. You must login as a member to view the issues.) Soon we will have these back issues catalogued and searchable for you to find articles relevant to your practice!

If anyone has back issues of The Bulletin from the 1970s, I would love to get your copies for the CACUSS files! Please feel free to contact me at my email below. cacuss-ed@cacuss.ca | @cacusstweets

Mise à jour de la directrice générale

1990 • The last issue of The Bulletin in February 1990 included an “In Memoriam” statement reflecting on the massacre at the École Polytechnique.

The first issue of Communiqué (Version 1, the newsletter) was published in 1990.

It featured a “fresh new look” and its purpose was to be a “resource that connects YOU with the issues and challenges facing the Student Services sector in Canada.”

The front page of the first issue focused on supporting students in response to the Gulf War. This theme of how international and national issues impact students and staff was consistent throughout the publications. Communiqué featured a regular “Research Edition” featuring summaries of Research submitted by members.

According to a membership report, in 1988/89 CACUSS had 53 institutional and 85 individual members. In 1992/93, CACUSS had 53 institutional members and 197 individual members.

1996 • Featured the first students in the Memorial University MEd Program in Student Development.

• Reorganization of CACUSS was again a topic of the CACUSS Board.

1997 • Counselling services was eliminated (cut) at Carleton University.

• My own first submission Communiqué entitled “The Loss of New Professionals to the United States: A Problem for Student Affairs” was featured as part of a focus on new professionals.

1998 • Focused on celebrating the 25th anniversary of CACUSS 25.

• Special status recognition was given to “Peer Helper Programs” as an interest group within CACUSS. • CACUSS had 4 divisions: CAFSAA (Financial Aid), CCHSA (Health), SASA (Student Affairs), and CUCCA (Counselling).

1999 • A Transgender/Transsexual Policy Group was established at Queen’s University.

• CADSPPE (Canadian Association of Disability Service Providers in Post-Secondary Education) was featured as the newest (fifth) division of CACUSS. 6 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

Notre passé. Notre avenir. Nos Archives.

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’ASEUCC a fait l’objet de nombreux changements au cours des six derniers mois; tous étaient positifs et font avancer l’organisation. Nous avons investi dans une nouvelle structure de dotation, y compris l’embauche de deux membres du personnel, l’un à plein temps et l’autre à temps partiel (ils vous sont présentés aux page 9!). Nous avons restructuré la composition de notre effectif afin d’accroître l’adhésion institutionnelle et simplifié notre processus d’adhésion. Nous avons investi dans de nouveaux outils destinés aux communautés de pratique et dans une technologie qui sera mise en œuvre en mai. Toutes ces initiatives feront évoluer l’ASEUCC vers « notre avenir » en tant qu’organisation.

Toutefois, j’ai voulu m’amuser un peu dans le présent rapport; j’ai donc parcouru 20 ans de publication du Bulletin (périodique d’information de l’ASEUCC de 1973 à 1990) et les numéros de la version 1 de Communiqué (bulletin de l’ASEUCC de 1990 à 2000), afin de déterminer les questions qui faisaient alors l’objet des analyses et des réflexions de notre organisation dans « Notre passé ».

Le Bulletin a été publié de 1973 jusqu’à la publication du dernier numéro, en 1990. Il était publié quatre fois par année et diffusé à tous les membres de l’ASEUCC. Il contenait des rapports du conseil d’administration et des présidents de l’ASEUCC, des mises à jour de toutes les divisions et des articles relatifs aux conférences annuelles.

En outre, il comportait périodiquement des articles provenant de campus et des résumés de recherches.

Voici quelques faits marquants tires des archives!

1980 • On se posait la question suivante : « Avons-nous besoin d’un programme de préparation professionnelle destiné au personnel des services aux étudiants? ».

• Les frais d’adhésion à l’ASEUCC étaient de 25 $ par membre.

• Le conseil d’administration étudiait la possibilité de tenir la conférence annuelle aux deux ans.

• Le conseil d’administration discutait de la réorganisation de l’ASEUCC et envisageait de passer d’une structure divisionnaire à une structure d’association régionale.

1982 • Une annonce indiquait des tarifs de voyage à Montréal à l’occasion de la conférence annuelle, et on pouvait réserver un vol en envoyant un chèque à l’agence BelAir Travel, comme le précisait le bulletin. De toute évidence, il n’y avait que quelques vols par semaine et, en 1982, le prix d’un billet d’avion pour se rendre à la conférence à Montréal était de 728 $ au départ de Vancouver et de 200 $ au départ de Toronto.

• Le bulletin préconisait l’accroissement du nombre de séances de la conférence consacrées aux étudiants « handicapés ». (C’était avant que l’ACCESHP [Association canadienne des conseillers aux étudiants en situation de handicap au postsecondaire] ne devienne une division de l’ASEUCC.) • On a lancé un concours de dessin d’un nouveau logo pour l’ASEUCC, avec une œuvre d’art de l’Î.-P.-É. en guise de prix.

1984 • Le nouveau logo de l’ASEUCC, l’« arbre », a été dévoilé.

• La sensibilisation à la consommation d’alcool constituait un sujet important.

• L’ASEUCC a établi des partenariats avec l’ACRI (Association canadienne des relations industrielles, le BCEI (Bureau canadien de l’éducation internationale), l’AOSC (Association ontarienne de soutien communautaire) et le COCA (Council of Ontario Construction Associations).

1985 • Le premier institut des affaires étudiantes a eu lieu; il s’agissait d’une semaine de formation approfondie tenue pendant l’été à l’intention du personnel des services aux étudiants. C’était le prédécesseur du CISAS (Canadian Institute on Student Affairs & Services).

1986 • L’ASEUCC a mené un sondage relatif aux besoins des membres en matière de perfectionnement professionnel, qui a permis de cerner les quatre principaux enjeux suivants : les besoins changeants des étudiants, la gestion des personnes, la recherche en matière de services aux étudiants et les effets de l’environnement collégial et universitaire.

• L’ASEUCC mettait l’accent sur sa mission et son but fondamentaux et sollicitait les commentaires des membres au sujet du rôle de défenseur d’intérêts et d’activiste de l’ASEUCC, sur le plan de l’élaboration et de la diffusion de recherches, en tant qu’association et en tant qu’organisme d’accréditation de professionnels.

1990 • En février 1990, le dernier numéro du Bulletin comportait une rubrique « In Memoriam » en hommage aux victimes de la tuerie de l’École polytechnique.

• Le premier numéro de Communiqué (version 1, le bulletin) a été publié en 1990.

Il affichait un « style frais et nouveau » et avait pour but de « VOUS connecter avec les enjeux et les défis du secteur des services aux étudiants au Canada ». La

page de couverture de ce premier numéro mettait l’accent sur le soutien à l’égard des étudiants en réaction à la guerre du Golfe. Ce thème lié aux répercussions des enjeux internationaux et nationaux pour les étudiants et le personnel est demeuré constant dans l’ensemble des publications. Communiqué comportait une rubrique régulière consacrée à la recherche qui présentait des résumés de recherches soumis par les membres.

• Selon un rapport relatif à l’adhésion, en 1988-1989, l’ASEUCC comptait 53 membres représentant des établissements et 85 membres particuliers. En 19921993, l’organisme comptait toujours 53 membres représentant des établissements et 197 membres particuliers.

1996 • La publication présentait les premiers étudiants inscrits au programme de M.Ed. en développement des étudiants de l’Université Memorial.

• Le conseil d’administration abordait à nouveau la réorganisation de l’ASEUCC. 1997 • Les services de counseling ont été éliminés (supprimés) à l’Université Carleton.

• Mon premier article, intitulé « The Loss of New Professionals to the United States: A Problem for Student Affairs » (L’exode des nouveaux professionnels vers les ÉtatsUnis : un problème pour les affaires étudiantes), a été publié dans Communiqué dans le cadre d’un reportage consacré aux nouveaux professionnels.

1998 • On mettait l’accent sur la célébration du 25e anniversaire de l’ASEUCC. • On a reconnu un statut spécial aux « programmes d’aide entre pairs » en tant que groupe d’intérêts au sein de l’ASEUCC. • L’ASEUCC comptait quatre divisions : CAFSA (aide financière), CCHSA (santé), AASE (affaires étudiantes) et ACCUC (counseling).

1999 • Un groupe de politiques transgenres et transsexuelles a été établi à l’Université Queen’s.

• L’ACCESHP (Association canadienne des conseillers aux étudiants en situation de handicap au postsecondaire) était présentée en tant que plus récente (cinquième) division de l’ASEUCC. 2000 On a reçu 60 propositions pour la conférence de 2000 (qui avait lieu à l’Université York). (Vous verrez, à la page 8, tout le chemin que nous avons parcouru depuis!).

La restructuration organisationnelle, y compris la remise en question du rôle des divisions, était une fois de plus abordée dans les rapports du conseil d’administration et du président.

Les thèmes abordés dans ces publications correspondent tout à fait aux enjeux auxquels nous faisons face aujourd’hui. L’objectif et l’avenir de notre profession et de notre organisation, l’impact des enjeux nationaux et internationaux, le perfectionnement professionnel de nos membres, le partage d’histoires concernant les campus, ainsi que nos défis et nos réussites sont tous des sujets de rédaction et de discussion pour notre organisme. Même si les choses ont bien changé au sein de l’organisation au fil des ans, j’ai été étonnée de repérer de nombreux thèmes familiers et récurrents : une excellente façon de célébrer le passé de notre organisme!

Saviez-vous que vous aviez accès aux numéros de la publication Communiqué de 2000 à 2017 en ligne? (Allez à l’adresse cacuss.ca/past_communique_members. html. Vous devez vous connecter en tant que membre pour afficher les numéros.)

Les numéros antérieurs seront bientôt répertoriés, et vous pourrez les consulter pour trouver des articles ayant un lien pertinent avec l’exercice de votre profession.

Si vous avez des numéros des années 1970 du Bulletin, je serais ravie d’obtenir vos exemplaires pour les dossiers de l’ASEUCC. N’hésitez pas à m’écrire à l’adresse de courriel indiquée cidessous. cacuss-ed@cacuss.ca | @cacusstweets COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 7

You’re Invited to Reflect on “Our Past” and Help Shape “Our Future”:

What to Expect at #CACUSS17

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he year 2017 is a landmark year. Canada celebrates its 150th anniversary, signifying a time to reflect on the past and plan for the future. The CACUSS community is invited to come together at the 2017 Annual CACUSS Conference in Ottawa, the epicentre of Canada 150 celebrations, to commemorate this milestone and embrace the theme of “Our Past. Our Future.” In the past few decades, the field of student affairs and services has made significant strides to support the education, fulfillment, and well-being of our students. “Our Past. Our Future.” requires us to acknowledge our past to learn from our experiences, ensuring that we create innovative approaches for the future.

The 2017 CACUSS Conference will be an exciting and unforgettable occasion, no matter if this is your first time attending or if you are a long-time delegate.

You will have more opportunities than ever to meet and reconnect with friends, colleagues, and other professionals across Canada and the world. This year’s conference is particularly exciting because delegates will get to engage experientially with the new CACUSS Student Affairs and Services Competency 8 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

Model (www.cacuss.ca/Student_Affairs_and_Services_Competency_Model.html) for the first time as part of the conference program. We will also continue offering you the chance to connect with content and colleagues from any of the twenty-plus CACUSS Communities (www.cacuss.ca/top_communities.html). Most importantly, you will get a chance to learn, experience, and reflect – for your own growth and to effect positive change for your students, institution, and field.

Highlights of the 2017 CACUSS Conference include our Opening Reception at the Canadian Museum of Nature; keynote speaker Frank O’Dea, Canadian entrepreneur and humanitarian; the first-ever CACUSS Conference sessions to be Powered by PechaKucha; a robust Pre-Conference Session Series at our host institution Carleton University; and the public unveiling of the identity behind @cacusslanyard (or maybe not).

The success and sustainability of CACUSS and its conferences depend on the active engagement and enthusiasm of our community members. The Program Committee has already been overwhelmed by the amount of interest and energy that we’ve witnessed. This year, we received more session proposals, had more peer reviewers, and completed more individual reviews (over 800!) than ever before. We would like to thank everyone who submitted or reviewed a session, and has played a part in helping us grow and advance this year’s conference.

To register for the conference and to learn more about all the great things that await you at #CACUSS17 in Ottawa this June, visit and keep checking the conference website at www.cacuss.ca/conference.

If you know that you will be joining us in Ottawa, make sure to join the Conference Facebook event (facebook.com/events/1572845006260904/), tweet out that you are headed to #CACUSS17, or share your excitement for #CACUSS17 on Instagram!

For general questions about the 2017 Conference, please contact Allison at events@cacuss.ca. For questions about Conference Registration, please contact Kalynn at conference@cacuss.ca.

We look forward to seeing you in Ottawa!

The 2017 CACUSS Program Committee

My Past. My CACUSS Future.

Introducing our new Manager of Professional Development and Member Engagement

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by Megan MacKenzie

hen a dear colleague from the University of Guelph shared a job posting with me in the fall, I could not believe my good luck. I had spent five years as an Instructional Designer at a small campus on the East Coast and was ready for a new challenge. Enter CACUSS, with the most exciting job posting I had seen in a very long time.

I managed to convince CACUSS that I was the person for the job, and here I am: the new Manager of Professional Development and Member Engagement.

I grew up in rural Prince Edward Island and prior to settling on the Island for good, I worked my way across Canada, holding positions in Student Affairs at University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), McMaster University, the University of Guelph, and Simon Fraser University. When I moved back to PEI in 2012, I took a temporary job as an Instructional Designer and stayed for five years! Little did I know that my combination of experiences in Student Affairs and teaching would serve me so well in this opportunity with CACUSS. My professional interests are diverse and include Universal Design for Learning, ePortfolios, experiential and community-engaged learning, and building online spaces for learning and sharing. I am currently teaching an online course at UPEI on ePortfolios for adult learners, and I love the messiness of unpacking our experiences, reflecting on them, and presenting them to others. Personally, I enjoy eating good food, running half-marathons, and the fact that I can wear slippers all day in my home office.

As the Manager of Professional Development and Member Engagement, my primary responsibility is to develop and deliver a comprehensive professional development plan.

In the scope of this plan, I am managing projects related to professional development operations and revenue, as well as developing new professional development offerings for members based on the new CACUSS Competency Model.

In regards to member engagement, I am beginning to work closely with the Networks and Communities of Practice to support their objectives in regards to communication, programming, professional development, and other initiatives. I am very excited to help our Networks and Communities with some new communitybuilding initiatives in the coming months, which will hopefully result in some new energy and excitement to strengthen engagement within the Communities of Practice.

In the coming months, I am working on some very exciting projects. My biggest undertaking is to publish a comprehensive professional development plan, which will

address operational and capacity issues including technology, resource management, financial investment, assessment, and regional engagement. I am currently working on developing several new professional development offerings, including two this fall that I am very excited about! I am also working with Jennifer Hamilton, Jon Elias (the new Coordinator of Digital Communications and Technology), and the rest of the CACUSS team on a huge project related to online community development and developing some new resources for our Networks and Communities of Practice.

So far, my favourite part of working for CACUSS is the interaction I get to have with volunteers on the Professional Development Committee, Annual Conference Program Committee, and the Community of Practice Assembly. The energy and commitment of CACUSS volunteers is incredible and inspiring. I am so fortunate to have the opportunity to work with and learn from such wonderful members.

I am looking forward to having the opportunity to meet CACUSS members at the Annual Conference in June, in webinars, at workshops, and online! I would encourage all members to reach out, contact me, or track me down at the conference in Ottawa (where I might have prizes and swag to give away!) and introduce yourself. I can’t wait to meet you!

Megan MacKenzie is the Manager of Professional Development and Member Engagement for CACUSS. She can be reached at megan@cacuss.ca or you can find her on Twitter @mfmackenzie.

Introducing our new Digital Communications and Technology Coordinator

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by Jonathan Elias

am extremely pleased to have joined the CACUSS family and am excited to share my marketing, technology, and professional association expertise to contribute to the student affairs and services community. I recently began my part-time role as the new CACUSS Digital Communications and Technology Coordinator on February 1st, and it is already clear how special the CACUSS community is. I have found CACUSS to be an extremely welcoming, intelligent, and hardworking group.

I graduated from the University of Toronto with an Honours Degree in Economics and went on to complete the postgraduate Marketing Management and Project Management programs from Humber College.

My co-curricular activities at school included volunteering as the Social Coordinator and Webmaster for the University of Toronto Portuguese Association, and serving as a three-time guest speaker for the Humber College postgraduate Marketing Management and Global Business Management programs.

For the last eight years, I have assisted nonprofit organizations with strategic planning, technology, marketing, and outreach initiatives. I also currently serve as the Marketing Manager at CIPS (Canada’s Association of Information Technology Professionals) and was recently the Marketing and Outreach Coordinator at ITAC Talent (Information Technology Association of Canada’s Talent Division). I also COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 9

run my own consulting company Elias Marketing (eliasmarketing.ca), which provides online marketing and project management services to small businesses and associations.

My marketing experience includes organic and paid social media marketing, SEO (search engine optimization), SEM (search engine marketing), managing an e-newsletter, running surveys, tracking and analyzing analytics, managing partnerships, purchasing and selling advertisements, running innovative marketing campaigns, and creating online and print marketing materials.

My technical skills include creating and managing websites, running webinars, managing membership systems, utilizing video and photo editing software, and using a variety of communication tools. Working for membership associations for the past eight years has allowed me to develop skills to communicate with stakeholders and engage members, volunteers, and students. The associations I have worked for have put a heavy emphasis on professional development, best practices, and career development, which will translate well to my new role at CACUSS. My experience promoting events and engaging attendees will also be a great asset, as I have promoted events to both senior professionals as well as students, including the Annual BTM (Business Technology Management) TalentMash Event, which was held in four major cities across Canada this past year. I also have experience in creating and implementing strategic plans and projects for associations focused on creating value for stakeholders, improving communication, and creating new revenue streams.

Along with my professional association, technology, and marketing knowledge and experience, the academic community holds a special place in my heart. I come from a family of educators, where both my parents are teachers, and my sister works in student services. I greatly recognize and see the value of promoting and connecting educators across the country to help advance the way that we support students and the quality of education, and I am excited to contribute to this amazing community.

In terms of my personal interests, I am a big Toronto Raptors fan and also enjoy watching the Toronto Maple Leafs and a variety of soccer games. I play in a co-ed soccer rec league every week and love both the social and health aspects of playing recreational sports. Marketing, technology, business, and psychology are my biggest interests – and what you will often see me tweeting about.

I am also a proud husband, and father of a one-year-old, who gives me a ton of joy and an extra fire to work hard every day to achieve both my personal and professional goals. Being a new father has taught me a lot including extreme patience (he is an energetic and adventurous child), selflessness (his priorities and happiness always come first), and love (seriously, this kid can be crazy, but his smile makes it all worth it!).

In my new role with CACUSS, I am currently helping to launch the new CACUSS website, membership system, and online community engagement platform. I will also be helping to develop new communication and outreach plans and tools to support the work of the CACUSS communities of practice, and provide increased value and engagement for our members.

I would love to get your input on how I can help create more value for you and the CACUSS community. I also look forward to meeting more of you, and encourage you to connect with me by email or online.

Jonathan Elias is the Digital Communications and Technology Coordinator for CACUSS. He can be reached at jon@cacuss.ca or you can find him on Twitter @Jon_Elias and on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/jonathanelias.

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Procedural Fairness Monograph

by Brandy Usick

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hen the Procedural Fairness monograph by Dr. Lynn Smith was first released in 1998, it quickly became a relied upon resource for student affairs practitioners and academic administrators responsible for handling investigations of misconduct and/or appeals of disciplinary or academic decisions. Over the past two decades as the area of student conduct has grown and the issues have become increasingly complex, it became clear that the monograph required an update.

Given the diversity of models across Canadian post-secondary institutions, we knew we had to ensure the process was collaborative and addressed the needs of the professionals working in the area. It was important too that we seek input from identified experts who could provide guidance on contemporary issues. The annual CACUSS conference provided additional opportunities to gather initial feedback from members of the Student Conduct Community of Practice that further shaped the content and the organization of the monograph.

As a result of this process, the revised monograph incorporates the following features: • a primer on procedural fairness; • assistance on investigative processes, hearing procedures, and decision-making; • easy-to-use format with clear headings, table of contents, glossary of terms, and references to valuable resources and relevant case law; and • valuable insights from special contributors on challenging and evolving areas, including violence on campus, residence matters, and restorative justice.

At the 2016 CACUSS Conference, the authors and contributors facilitated a session on the monograph that included an active discussion on identifying additional needs and opportunities for sharing resources and best practices. Stay tuned for a Procedural Fairness monograph Q&A webinar that will be scheduled in the spring.

The monograph is available as a downloadable PDF for CACUSS members ($29.95 for non-members). Printed copies are available for $39.95. For more information, please visit www.cacuss.ca/publications_ monographs.htm.

Mount Allison Grad Matthew Montgomery Receives CACUSS Student Leadership Award

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ecent Mount Allison graduate Matthew (Matt) Montgomery has earned national recognition for his leadership as the recipient of the Student Leadership Award from the Canadian Association of College and University Student Services (CACUSS). A Psychology and Canadian Studies graduate, Matthew has been recognized for his vigorous efforts at the Meighen Centre for Learning Assistance and Research, which provides support and services to Mount Allison students with disabilities.

Matthew’s work at the Meighen Centre was multifaceted, and he was always up for tackling any challenge that was thrown his way.

“I have been involved with the Meighen Centre from the beginning of my Mount Allison career. Over the years, I progressively became more involved with the Centre by tutoring, becoming a peer mentor, and helping in any other areas that I could,” says Montgomery. “I am surprised and very grateful to receive this award because I was not expecting to be chosen.”

As a student with a learning disability, learning did not come easily for Matt. Having only been assessed at the end of his first year at Mount Allison, he had to re-learn how to learn, had to place trust in his tutors and disability advisors, had to overcome his frustrations, and most importantly, work extremely hard for his academic success.

Yet successful he was, and in the 2013-14 school year, he was the recipient of the Johnson Scholarship Foundation Award for academic excellence and overcoming obstacles as a student with a disability.

Originally from Oakville, ON, Matthew also balanced his academic life with football, playing for the Mount Allison Mounties for four seasons as a defensive back, two of which were AUS Championship seasons. Matthew learned to channel the leadership he gained on the field, bringing those experiences to the Meighen Centre.

Anne Comfort, Mount Allison’s Meighen Centre manager, recognizes Montgomery’s extraordinary work ethic and leading attitude.

“His leadership on and off the field earned him the respect of players and coaches alike…Matthew has proven to be a true advocate for students with disabilities. As part of the Centre’s mentorship program, where we match senior students with disabilities with first-year students, he took on the role of supporting the first-year football players with disabilities,” says Comfort.

For Matthew, providing support to those in need was a given. As a leader, he was constantly looking to make everyone around him better, whether through something

as small as tutoring, or as big as a campaign. “During his time at Mount A, he has also been involved in The Meighen Centre’s tutoring program and played a major role in a community anti-bullying campaign that saw varsity athletes interact with middle school students to encourage them to speak up and stand up to bullying,” says Comfort. Initiatives like this were simply in Matt’s nature.

Because of Matthew’s vigour and enthusiasm, he was also given unexpected opportunities. One of those opportunities involved being a TA in a class outside of his primary field of study. Despite his apparent lack of prerequisites, Dr. Susie Andrews realized that Matt’s enthusiasm and experiences outweighed all else.

“Matt Montgomery is a caring and thoughtful individual. He listens to others and makes them feel immediately at ease. His warmth makes the classroom a wonderful learning environment for me and for our students. Learning with him this term has been extremely rewarding for all of us,” says Dr. Andrews.

Matthew served as a constant inspiration to those around him, and his impact on the university and Meighen Centre will not easily be forgotten. The CACUSS Leadership Award is a perfect recognition of Matthew’s dedication and efforts to the Meighen Centre, Mount Allison, and the entire Sackville community. Since graduating in May, Montgomery is applying to work as a police officer in Ontario.

Request for Submissions: Landscape of Accessibility and Accommodation for Postsecondary Students with Disabilities in Canada

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he National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) is undertaking a thorough examination of the current landscape of accessibility and accommodations for students with disabilities at publicly-funded post-secondary institutions across Canada, funded by the Government of Canada’s Social Development Partnerships Program (SDPP-D). The research is expected to inform the Government of Canada’s consultation on planned accessibility legislation. We want to ensure that a variety of voices and perspectives are represented throughout each step of the project. This is where you, the reader, come in.

We are seeking written submissions from institutional offices that describe best practices and lessons learned from working with students with disabilities.

We are looking for details on professional development practices, innovative programming for students with disabilities, success stories, and effective policies and practices. We also want to know about gaps in learning, knowledge, and service. If your school has a model program or service, tell us about it!

Submissions should be no longer than 1,000 words and should be submitted by email by April 28, 2017 to frank.smith@neads.ca with subject heading: “The Landscape of Accessibility and Accommodation for Students with Disabilities Submission”. You can find more information about the project at www.neads.ca/en/about/media/index.php?id=427 and the call for submissions is available at www.neads.ca/en/about/media/index.php?id=437.

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The Birth of the Canadian National Orientation Census: Lessons Learned from Conducting a Census of National Orientation Practices

by Lesley D’Souza, Josh Hass, Liz Hilliard, Ian Simmie & Tom Brophy

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ur lives are a string of transitions, woven together over time. In those early days, we usually hold the belief that one day we will be finished, fully complete human beings. It is only later in life that we start to realize that our identity is perpetually in a state of development. It is these periods of transition that teach us about who we are

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and who we want to be.

The magic of transition is why post-secondary institutions spend thousands of dollars on programs, services, and resources to support students during times of known transition. Interventions designed at these points have a high likelihood of influencing successful outcomes for students. Existing research (mostly from the United States) has demonstrated that students in their first six weeks of post-secondary education are at the highest risk of attrition, and so we now have orientation, transition, and retention programming to mitigate this risk. The question is whether our Canadian interventions are supporting the outcomes, as we believe they do.

A Bit of Background There is not much research out there that focuses on programming provided by Canadian Student Affairs – but that does not let us off the hook. We must continue to strive to be scholarly practitioners and consume existing research, even if it comes to us from outside our national borders. Just because the research subjects are not Canadian does not render their conclusions useless to us. However, questions that relate to our unique political landscape, our delivery of higher education, and our student population do warrant further study.

Over five years ago, three Student Affairs professionals, Tom Brophy, Liz Hilliard, and Ian Simmie, came together to discuss our understanding of orientation and transition programs in Canada. They realized that on top of a lack of research focusing on our unique attributes, there was not even a clear snapshot of exactly what transition programming was occurring across the country. How could we begin to understand

the effects of transition intervention if we did not even know what those interventions consisted of? It seemed like a good starting point, and work on the Canadian National Benchmarking Survey began.

The questions were based on the NODA Databank, and the team worked to edit and add questions to sufficiently “Canadian-ize” it for our educational landscape.

However, life and careers intervened, and after some of the group members’ own transitions into new positions, the survey remained unfinished.

In 2015, new life was breathed into the idea when the two co-leads of the freshlyminted Orientation, Transition and Retention CACUSS Community of Practice (Josh Hass and Lesley D’Souza) identified the same problem that the earlier survey team had begun to investigate. With this renewed interest, these five professionals came together and started a year-long process to complete and deliver the survey tool to orientation professionals across Canada. Our outcomes were to generate a snapshot of current orientation practices in Canadian higher education and to analyze for any trends in our educational landscape. It was a lengthy process of idea generation, wordsmithing, and heavy pruning before it was deemed ready for distribution. In addition to the assessment and research-focused lenses of the team, the tool was tested by several practicing orientation professionals, and was reviewed by Brandon University’s Research Ethics Board and ruled exempt. Finally it was ready for delivery and it was built in Campus Labs’ Baseline product to be distributed via the CACUSS national contact list.

Almost as soon as the survey went out, the team started to get feedback and suggestions for revision. It is a longer tool, and we quickly made changes that were absolutely necessary, and made note of all the feedback so that it could inform future survey cycles. It was so exciting to see the engagement of professionals from across the country and the collective data they provided.

What We Learned During this project, we would say we learned as much about best practice in the process of creating and conducting a national survey as we did around Canadian orientation practices. We gave our best efforts to the creation of the survey, but the information we have now has highlighted many improvements to the process and the tool that will yield better data in future cycles. For those of you looking to conduct a collaboratively designed professional survey, here are some suggested steps based on our learning experience.

1. Start. Rather than let yourself be discouraged by a lack of background or expertise, just start somewhere. Showing up is half the battle.

2. Partner. In addition to tapping colleagues who have an interest in the project, think about your outcomes and who needs to be part of development to give you the best chance of achieving them. This might mean content-specific expertise, or positional representation (e.g. college or university staff, equity perspectives, etc.). Also, be sure that the people you partner with have a clear idea of what kind of commitment is needed; this is probably the most important step in moving forward.

3. Audit. Do a knowledge/experience audit of your current team and figure out how to fill any gaps. We actually skipped this step and our tool suffered as we did not properly take into account the suitability of the tool to assess orientation programming in college environments. It was a big piece of the learning that we took from the design of our survey.

they mirror the needs you outlined in your auditing process. For us, one thing that did not come up was the confusion that arose around the title of the survey.

Our tool was meant as a census of current orientation practices in Canada; however, by calling it the “Orientation Benchmarking Survey” we confused many professionals who already associate that name with the Campus Labs tool used to gather student data regarding orientation programming – some of which we are not eager to broadcast widely. We also struggled to find common language that carried the same meaning in all areas of the country.

7. Distribute. Figuring out your distribution strategy has to happen alongside the development of the survey, and you have to consider how you will deal with organizational complexity and differences between institutions across the country.

Job titles, staffing models, and organizational structures are so different that you might have multiple staff who need to respond at certain institutions, and only one person at others. Think ahead to find out who actually needs to receive your survey tool. The CACUSS membership list was a big help to us here.

8. Analyze & Share. Take the data pledge and do not hoard your data. Make sure you plan in time to crunch your data and share it openly with others to close the loop.

What Does the Future Hold?

It is obvious that the landscape of orientation and transition programming in Canada is rich and diverse. Out of our responses from 89 institutions, 98% provided programming to assist students with their transition into and orientation to their institution. Within that sample, there was a wide variety of both institutional type and location, and transition practices identified. We shared an overview of the results of this survey at the 2016 CACUSS Conference and are in the process of creating an e-report to disseminate to those who participated in the survey. In the future, we hope to conduct another cycle of the census with an improved survey tool.

If you are interested in informing the development of the next version of this survey, or have questions about the 2016 results, please feel free to reach out to the CACUSS Orientation, Transition & Retention Community of Practice at otr@cacuss.ca. If you belong to another CACUSS Community and want to conduct a similar survey of professional practices, you can also contact the CACUSS Research & Awards Committee for support.

Social Excursions at CACUSS 2017!!

Consider joining your colleagues or meeting new friends by signing up for one of the 3 optional socials being offered at CACUSS 2017!

4. Research. Are there existing tools out there that you can build from? Is there research or literature that speaks to the project? Spend some time looking around for information that could prove invaluable in the design of your survey.

Sunday, June 11 2:00-4:00pm Monday, June 12 7:00-9:00pm Tuesday, June 13 7:00-9:00pm

5. Design. Create the thing. It will be time-consuming and tedious, and exciting at the same time. See where your curiosity leads you and then be prepared to aggressively prune away most of what you have created so that people will actually be able to complete the survey in less than an hour.

For details and to register go to www.cacuss.ca/conference

6. Test. We did test our survey with a selection of staff from our institutions, but we were not very systematic about the representation of our testers. Make sure

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From Student to Student Life Professional: Transitions, Barriers, and Implications for Practice

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by Eric Schwenger

ith the 2017 CACUSS Conference fast approaching, and given that the focus of this issue of Communiqué is centred on “looking back,” I thought it might be interesting to juxtapose a forward-facing consideration to complement the reflection on how far Canadian student affairs has come (and how far indeed!).

As a recent graduate of the University of Toronto (B.A. (Hons) ’16, University College), the past year or so has nothing short of flown by for me as I transitioned (partially) out of the student sphere and into the realm of professional higher education. Looking back, it was only a little over twelve months ago that I made the somewhat impromptu decision to pursue student services as a vocation, thanks in large part to four important mentors of mine (Leah McCormack-Smith, Steve Masse, Jacquie Beaulieu, and Adam Kuhn), all students and/or graduates of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE). I have spent the past year reflecting quite heavily myself on both my own journey and the adventures of those around me, and I have picked up on a theme that seems to be surprisingly absent in both academic and professional Higher Education discourse – the transition and support of current and former student leaders into the realm of professional student affairs.

Having realized relatively late that I wanted to translate my experience as a student into a career in student affairs, I somehow stumbled my way into the Master of Education program at OISE, which has set me onto a (hopefully) solid trajectory into the Canadian student affairs world. However, I do my best to maintain a critical lens in all areas of my life (largely thanks to my undergraduate philosophy training), and higher education is no different. While I have been lucky to have had a never-ending list of incredible mentors and enablers to help guide and support me along the way, I have learned both in and out of my classes that Canada maintains a unique higher educational landscape, which comes with a unique set of challenges for students like myself attempting to translate their experiences as student leaders into professional competence and capacity. Indeed, it seems perplexing that Canadian student leaders, who enjoy an unrivaled sense of autonomy and skill development in their roles (Robinson, 2011), can sometimes face so much logistical freight in translating their experiences as student leaders into the role of professional student supports. This is especially perplexing given that many of the gatekeepers to this profession have themselves shared at least a handful of experiences with the students who will one day take the torch from them in continuing the world-class student development we provide as Canadian SAS professionals.

The transition from student to professional student affairs practitioner has not been an easy one, but it has undoubtedly been one of the most insightful and informative experiences I have traversed in my 22 years, and I am ever thankful to have received support from so many different people and places. While it can be exceedingly difficult to shed the “student” label and effectively demonstrate the value of my co-curricular student endeavours, the transition has demanded my employment of a novel brand of critical thinking, which, while painfully unforgiving at times, has granted me a newfound appreciation for the word “professional.” It has been a blessing to have 14 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

been able to learn from some of the best here at U of T (like Melinda Scott (Dean of Students, University College) or Neil Buddel (Dean of Students, Centennial College and Associate Professor, OISE)), and applying the wisdom of the giants of the Canadian Student Affairs field has been a uniquely rewarding experience. It is also one that I am acutely cognizant of, given that many of my fellow students may not enjoy the same access and experiences that I have. I can only hope that in ten or fifteen years, I will be able to provide the same level of encouragement and development to the next great generation of student life professionals.

With this in mind, if you take one thing away from this article, let it be an appreciation that some of the students we work with will eventually fill our shoes as student life practitioners, entering the field with an unprecedented level of intentionality given the changing landscape of Canadian Higher Education. Allow opportunities for these students to flourish, give them the tools to succeed, create opportunities for them to find one another (See: studentaffairs.sa.utoronto.ca), but most importantly push them to their limits with policy, practice, and performance to be the best student-practitioners they can be. And above all, continue the great work being done across all of our institutions to ensure the right to education is realized in its fullest form.

References Robinson , N. (2011). Values of Canadian Student Affairs Practitioners (Doctoral dissertation, University of Toronto)

Eric Schwenger is the Student Life and Leadership Program Coordinator with the Student Life Enhancement Division, Student and Community Engagement at Centennial College in Toronto, ON. He is also a master’s student at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education studying Higher Education and Educational Policy. Eric can be reached at eschwenger@centennialcollege.ca.

Pre-Conference Workshops at CACUSS 2017!!

If you are joining us for the conference or if you just want some PD for the day, consider registering for one of our highly anticipated pre-conference workshops!!

Two-Day (Saturday, June 10 & Sunday, June 11) • Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) Full-Day (Sunday, June 11) • Strengths-Based Resilience: An Evidence Based Approach to Make Student Service Work Meaningful & Effective • International Student Career Development: A Whole-campus Perspective • The Way is Made by Walking • Canadian Student Affairs Assessment Institute • Senior Student Affairs Officers Forum Half-Day (Sunday, June 11, morning or afternoon) • Be where the students are: Online training programs for student leader groups • Innovative Strategies for Promoting Student Wellbeing in Teaching and Learning Environments • Canada’s 150th Birthday in context: What does reconciliation mean for PostSecondary Institutions in light of this landmark milestone for Indigenous peoples and settlers Pricing and registration details available online at www.cacuss.ca/conference. Space is limited so register today!!

www.cacuss.ca

Is It Worth It, Really?

A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Students’ Participation in Postsecondary Institutional Governance at the Individual and Organizational Levels

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by Eric Schwenger

he experience of the student leader at the tertiary educational level is one that is highly varied but critically important to the mission and success of postsecondary institutions. This is especially true for students formally involved in university governance, where a heightened level of involvement is demanded of students through their interactions with the university (LuescherMamashela, 2010; Menon, 2003). I will take as my focus a distinct breed of student leader – those formally involved in university-level governance directly or by virtue of some other role (namely, an executive role with their institutions central students’ association) – and evaluate whether this small but significant subset of student officials can effectively translate their experiences beyond the academic institution once their undergraduate tenure concludes. I will take as my starting point the significant role afforded to such students across institutions in Canada and will assess the costs and benefits of the experiences of formal inclusion of students in the governance processes through a juxtaposition of their roles as democratic representatives and the participatory benefits conferred unto them by virtue of their roles. These positives will be contrasted against both the negative perceptions of an over-inclusion of student leaders in the policy crafting and management of the university, as well as the effects that might be conferred onto these students due to the strenuousness of their roles. Finally, a competency framework will be employed, with institutional acumen at its core, in assessing whether it is indeed aggregately valuable for this most dedicated and passionate group of students to navigate the political undercurrents of the university while jeopardizing much of their own university experience in the ultimate interests of other students. To conclude, implications for a variety of student services professionals will be addressed and potential directions forward will be discussed.

To begin, it is necessary to understand exactly the role that this distinct level of student leader plays within their institutions, as well as how this unique enclave of

student leadership came to be carved out in the first place. While a map of the entire historical framework is well beyond the scope of this article, an important distinction should be made in differentiating pre-1960’s student involvement, where students were “largely objects of university governance” (Luescher-Mamashala, 2010), from post1970’s student involvement, where the student voice took on a story of its own – one disentangled from that of administration and faculty (The Carnegie Commission, 1973; Klopf, 1960). The state of student involvement in governance (and beyond) is shifting rapidly, and the information asserted here should be taken in the light of a dynamic institutional sphere. Student leaders, for the purposes of this article, will denote those involved at the highest levels of decision-making at their schools, who are able to have an audience with senior administration and effect institutional change because of it. As stipulated by Kuh and Lund (1994), “scales are difficult to interpret because it is not possible to determine clearly which experiences contributed to various outcomes of college or university life” (7) and, as such, a wide variety of roles can be seen to either fall into or out of this general category of student governors, but the implications will hold nonetheless.

Models of shared governance give rise to myriad benefits for both students and their institutions through the engagement of student leaders in the government and policy processes at institutions of higher learning (Menon, 2005; McGrath, 1970; Klopf, 1960). On the institutional level, increased transparency (Menon, 2005), heightened campus unity (McGrath, 1970), civic engagement (Klopf, 1960), preemptive issue intervention (Lizzio & Wilson, 2009) and a variety of other system-level improvements follow from the active relationship between governing entities and their student “subjects.” As such, tertiary educational government bodies should both work together and be proactive (Zuo & Ratsoy, 1999) in engaging with campus stakeholders (namely, students) in the pursuit of shared goals and mutual educational or intellectual interests, including the advancement of the university mission. These small-scale benefits can be loosely grouped into those that spur political savviness and institutional awareness (Klopf, 1960) and those associated with a heightened sense of civic engagement (The Carnegie Commission, 1966), while also creating a direct jump into the job market as “it should be no surprise to find ex-union officers occupying positions of significant influence, power, and responsibility later in life” (Denton & Brown, 2010). Ultimately, the high calibre of expectation, steep learning curves, and “unparalleled” skill development opportunities for student leaders make it hard to suggest that these experiences do not pay a handsome dividend in the professional sphere (N. Robinson, personal interview, 2016), but looking forward, “tracking student COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 15

leaders after graduation and assessing the long-term effects of their experience and their thoughts after a period of reflection of might be revealing” (Robinson, 2004).

A number of issues, however, surround the engagement of students as governors, co-providers of services, or policy makers in the execution of the universities mission.

These setbacks can also be characterized as loosely twofold, arising with the students’ involvement for the sake of the institution on the one hand, and for the sake of these students themselves on the other. The latter set of concerns can be further distilled into two subsets. Firstly, there is a “laundry list” (Robinson, personal interview, 2016) of day-to-day, ground-level restrictions with regards to time, energy, etc. that students in high-level positions must navigate due to the stress and responsibility of their roles. Secondly, there exists the risk of the students’ experiences in these roles not translating beyond their time with the student organizations or at the institution.

With regards to institutional considerations, McGrath (1970) elucidated the main concerns that faculty or administration harbor with regards to student governance participation flowing from 1) their potential control of boards and formation of administrative monopolies, 2) their lack of maturity, 3) conflict of interest, and 4) absence of professional values. However, these are combatted given that students can sometimes be found to perform better on boards than their nonstudent counterparts (Zuo & Ratsoy, 1999), while also behaving within customary academic decorum (McGrath, 1970), which dissuades the narrative that including student leaders in the governance process somehow jeopardizes it. On the contrary, it seems only natural that students should be included for the institutions’ sake as key stakeholders, and given that students will be able to provide insight that other groups simply will not (Amaral, Jones & Karseth, 2002). Indeed, as outlined by Robinson (2016), the skills developed in response to the high levels of responsibility that these students face are almost certainly translatable beyond their time as undergraduates. It is simply a matter of being able to present the unique experience of these proven leaders in a way that employers (within the institution or beyond) will understand and appreciate.

Of the competencies outlined in the CACUSS Student Affairs and Services Competency Model (Fernandez, Fitzgerald, Hambler & Mason-Innes, 2016), a case for at least five different competencies can be seen to play into the experience of student governors. “Emotional and interpersonal intelligence,” for example, would theoretically play into virtually every interaction an elected student leader or student organization representative has on a daily basis, insofar as they exist as both service providers/representatives but also political figures. “Leadership, management and administration” and “Strategic planning, research and assessment” can both also be said to contribute to the heightened diplomacy and access students in the upper echelons of governance might find themselves privy to. However, the “Post-secondary acumen” competency is arguably the most pertinent to the student leadership experience as it has been explored throughout this article.

Post-secondary acumen, as defined in the CACUSS competency framework, entails “the understanding of the institutions’ unique organizational and governance structures, and its intersections with government at all levels, which includes law, policy, and history.” It also includes the “knowledge, skills, and dispositions relating to policy development processes used in various contexts, the application of legal constructs, compliance/policy issues, and the understanding of the history of, and contemporary issues within, post-secondary education within the Canadian context.”

(Fernandez, Fitzgerald, Hambler & Mason-Innes, 2016). Within a discourse of student leadership, few students are better primed for the acquisition of at least a minimum level of acumen than students directly involved in the governance of the university, simply by virtue of their interactions with the internal processes, policies, and politics to which bureaucratic operations are consistently exposed. Moreover, this exposure is not insignificant; indeed, only a tiny fraction of students might ever gain access to the internal processes of the university in the same way that those formally involved in governance do. This relatively rare experience lends itself to the development of a correlatively rare set of competency dispositions through the appreciation of the bureaucratic mechanisms underlying the governance process. In this sense, student 16 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

governors are not only able to gain the political consciousness of extrapolating their engagement with university governance to that of “real-world” politics (N. Robinson, personal interview, 2016), but these very students may be the best equipped to enact social change at their institutions.

The implications of this analysis are numerous and far-reaching for student services staff. What may be a unique consideration with regards to these students’ experiences specifically is that the engagement of administration with student representatives stands to have an impact on a breadth of functional staff units – not just those governing alongside students or supporting them directly in their work. Insofar as many of these high-level student leaders are granted access to senior administration and given a seat at many important tables (Lizzio & Wilson, 2009), the possibility exists that student services staff across the university might be affected by the actions and experiences of these students. In this way, there are two unique responsibilities for student services staff in the face of a changing democratic landscape that sees student voice at its core. Firstly, it is the duty of these practitioners to make themselves as aware as possible of the governance structures of their institutions, the political landscape, and campus environment that their schools might be traversing in any given year, and the policies and practices that weigh on their specific portfolio directly, as well as others around them with which they interact (this could also carry implications for the professional development of various units in learning about how their institutions operate). Secondly, student affairs practitioners should be cognizant of the differing levels of support these students may need in their work. The role of these student governors as both representatives and service co-providers is a unique one that student affairs practitioners should be prepared to work with when presented the opportunity. Many times, the greatest change can be enacted in reaching other students through the medium of these student leaders themselves.

It would be pragmatic for student affairs practitioners to adjust their work in acknowledging and accommodating for these hyper-engaged students through an increase in both familiarity with these students’ experiences and a heightened accessibility to them in times of stress. As educators, student affairs practitioners have a duty to help facilitate the student participation within the governance process (Zuo & Ratsoy, 1999), working to proliferate election visibility, service knowledge, and campus community. If this is taken at a policy level, practitioners will have to become more knowledgeable about the intricacies of these full-time staff-type roles that elevated student leaders are undertaking, working alongside them to help further their inquiries and realize their goals (Robinson, 2016). It goes without saying that the successful collaboration between these student leaders and student affairs professionals will amount to a more wholesome campus environment for all students, and put in place the adequate safeguards such that students remain involved and stay involved in a meaningful and rewarding capacity as community role models (Morison, 1970).

Personally, there was never a question of whether the benefits conferred unto student leaders through their governmental interactions with their postsecondary institutions outweigh the day-to-day realities that come along with high-level student leadership positions. Instead, I think that the literature reviewed here carries very interesting and somewhat unexpected implications for both the accessibility of leadership positions and the nature of these leadership positions themselves (both conversations beyond the scope of this article). It was rarely addressed in any of these pieces that many students are not able to access the experiences detailed above for a number of different reasons, and so a third underlying responsibility that may follow for student affairs educators is to fully engage as much of the student population as possible and ensure that when students are being included in these conversations and subject to experiences from which this high level of acumen is derived, all students are being included in these processes and conversations, especially those traditionally left out. I would also be interested to see the dynamics of governance bodies with the inclusion of more non-senior or front-line staff, given they are almost certain to bring their own perspectives with them in the same way students and faculty do.

While much work needs to be done in this area and more research should be

completed to ensure a proper understanding by the university community of these exceptional student leaders, Canadian higher education stands to maintain its role as a leader and role model in engaging student stakeholders in the issues that directly affect them. As a new professional, I look forward to playing a small role in maintaining this trend and helping students to “help students… build capacity” (N. Robinson, 2016) in their development as societal leaders.

References Amaral, A., Jones, G. A., & Karseth, B. (2002). Governing higher education: National perspectives on institutional governance. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic.

Boland, J. A. (2005). Student participation in shared governance: A means of advancing democratic values.

Tertiary Education and Management, 11(3), 199-217.

Carnegie Commission on Higher Education. (1973). Governance of higher education: six priority problems: A report and recommendations. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Committee of Presidents of Universities of Ontario. (1968). Student participation in university government.

Toronto.

Denton, S. and Brown, S. (Eds. 2010) A practical guide to university and college management: Beyond bureaucracy (2010). New York: Routledge.

Duff, J., Berdahl, R. O., Canadian Association of University Teachers & Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada. (1966). University government in Canada. Toronto: Published for the Associations

by University of Toronto Press.

Klopf, G. J., & Klopf, G. J. (1960). College student government. New York: Harper.

Kuh, G. D. and Lund, J. P. (1994). What students gain from participating in student government. New Directions for Student Services, 1994: 5–17 Lizzio, A., & Wilson, K. (2009). Student participation in university governance: The role conceptions and sense of efficacy of student representatives on departmental committees. Studies in Higher Education, 34(1), 69-84.

Luescher Mamashela, T. M. (2010). From university democratisation to managerialism: The changing legitimation of university governance and the place of students. Tertiary Education and Management, 16(4), 259-283 Lunn, H. H., & American Council on Education. (1957). The student’s role in college policy-making: A report prepared for the Commission on Student Personnel of the American Council on Education.

Washington: American Council on Education.

McGrath, E. J. (1970). Should students share the power?: A study of their role in college and university governance. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

Menon, M. E. (2005). Students’ views regarding their participation in university governance: Implications for distributed leadership in higher education. Tertiary Education and Management, 11(2), 167-182.

Menon, M. E. (2003). Student involvement in university governance: A need for negotiated educational aims. Tertiary Education and Management, 9(3), 233-246.

Morison, R. S., Macneil, I. R., & Cornell University. (1970). Students and decision making. Washington: Public Affairs Press.

Mortimer, K. P., & Sathre, C. O. B. (2007). The art and politics of academic governance: Relations among boards, presidents, and faculty. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers Planas, A., Soler, P., Fullana, J., Pallisera, M., & Vilà, M. (2013). Student participation in university governance: The opinions of professors and students. Studies in Higher Education, 38(4), 571-583.

Olssen*, M., & Peters, M. A. (2005). Neoliberalism, higher education and the knowledge economy: From the free market to knowledge capitalism. Journal of Education Policy, 20(3), 313-345.

Ratsoy, E. W., & Bing, Z. (1999). Student participation in university governance. The Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 29(1), 1-26.

Renn, K. A. & Jessup-Anger, E. R. “Preparing New Professionals: Lessons for Graduate Preparation Programs from the National Study of New Professionals in Student Affairs.” Journal of College Student Development, vol. 49 no. 4, 2008, pp. 319-335.

Robinson, N. (2004) “The Experience of Elected Undergraduate Student Leaders in Canada” Masters Thesis Robinson, N. (2016, November 24) Interview Seifert, T & Billing, M. “Competencies for Student Affairs Practice: Crafting a professional development plan” Communique, vol 11 no. 1, 2010, pp. 20-22

Eric Schwenger is the Student Life and Leadership Program Coordinator with the Student Life Enhancement Division, Student and Community Engagement at Centennial College in Toronto, ON. He is also a master’s student at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education studying Higher Education and Educational Policy. Eric can be reached at eschwenger@centennialcollege.ca.

Investigating the Long-Term Impact of Student Leadership Roles

by Alena Boczek, Janet Miller, Natasha Reynolds, Mark Keller, & Kathleen O’Reilly

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ike many post-secondary institutions across Canada, Mount Royal University (MRU) is focused on engaging students in meaningful educational experiences. We value peer-to-peer service models, which actively engage students in our community, and believe these experiences make a significant contribution to developing students as leaders. This study aimed to investigate whether or not there are lasting benefits to this kind of engagement.

The Residence Life program is one of the oldest and largest staff-supervised peer-topeer leadership programs at MRU, employing approximately 35 students as Resident Advisors (RAs) each year. Substantial resources are invested in the training of these students, so they can successfully provide services and support for residents. In turn, RAs have the opportunity to build lasting relationships, find a sense of belonging within the broader MRU community, support their peers, develop as leaders, and gain invaluable skills applicable to all careers. … Right?

We are fairly confident that being an RA has a profound impact on individuals, but how accurate is this common assertion? Anecdotal evidence can be motivational, but it can also be unreliable. As university employees who work with student leaders, seek funding to maintain leadership programs, and believe in the value of these experiences, it is vital to be able to articulate a return on investment in concrete terms. The increasing shift towards evidence-based practices in post-secondary culture challenges us to document our outcomes.

Study Overview Informal discussions relating to best practices in Residence Life training inspired this study, which investigates the lasting impact of the student leadership role. Does involvement with the MRU Residence Life program create a foundation of academic, personal, and professional success?

The literature revealed little evidence on long-term impacts of student leadership roles, negative or positive. Search terms like “leader,” “undergraduate,” and “long term” yielded few salient results. Through consultation with Residence Life staff, we developed a list of questions aimed to investigate students’ experience in the Residence Life program as well as its impact on careers, personal relationships, and connection to the institution (MRU). We then created an online survey using a mixed-method design combining quantitative and qualitative questions. Follow-up interviews with participants are underway. Our study received approval from the MRU Human Research Ethics Board (HREB), and we were very thankful for the CACUSS Special Projects Research Grant.

In addition to questions about training and the role of an RA, the survey included several questions that correspond to Kouzes and Posner’s (2004; 2014) five practices COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 17

of exemplary leadership, namely: inspire others to take action, inspire others to create a shared vision, be a role model of good leadership, challenge systems or processes, and encourage others to follow their passion. The questionnaire guided participants to indicate, using a five-point Likert scale (ranging from “1=not at all” to “5=a great deal”), how well they felt suited to demonstrate these characteristics, given their experience as an RA. The exemplary leadership practices as put forth by Kouzes and Posner (2004; 2014) were not strategic outcomes intended to be acquired through RA training. However, we were curious to see if the RA experience inadvertently helped participants to develop these behaviours.

Scope Once approved by HREB, we reached out to former students who held RA positions at MRU from 2005-2015. Across this ten-year period, the Residence Life program was relatively stable; training had minimal variance in terms of timing, duration, content, and number of RAs. The online survey was distributed through social media channels, as well as email. The questionnaire contained 36 items aimed to gather demographic information, self-ratings for the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, feedback on specific elements of RA training, and information about belongingness (see Figure 1).

Figure 2. Respondents’ self-ratings of the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership.

Long-Term Impact Nearly all participants from this study indicated the RA experience had a long-term positive impact on their life, both personally and professionally (see Figure 3), even up to ten years after the role had ended.

I use the skills that I learned in training and on the job every single day at work. I used to be terrified of conflict, and now I am superb at handling conflict scenarios. My interpersonal skills are exceptionally better.

It improved my leadership and people skills as there was an enormous focus on personal development. It brought into my life a community of friends that have supported me in both my personal and professional life.

Figure 1. Scope of the study.

Findings With a response rate of approximately 39% (n=74), respondents included 17 (24%) males (one of whom identified as a cisgender male) and 56 (76%) females. The age of respondents ranged from 20 to 34 years. Most (59%) fell between the ages of 25 and 29. Our results revealed that students who were RAs did experience long-lasting positive effects that they attributed to their role. Results reflected evidence of leadership behaviours that align with those described by Kouzes and Posner (2004; 2014). Further, we found that former RAs had a graduation rate higher than the national average, experienced connection with and a sense of belongingness to the university that has persisted over time, and believe that the RA role was formative to their personal and professional success. Highlights of these findings are presented below.

Figure 3. Reported long-term impact of the RA experience.

Lasting Leadership

Academic Success

As depicted in Figure 2, former RAs saw themselves as being effective role models for others and believed that they are able to encourage others to follow their passion. The lowest-rated leadership element was the ability to challenge systems, which perhaps was not as relevant to the RA experience, which often involves setting boundaries or reinforcing systemic rules. One participant commented:

Data indicated 91% of these former RAs graduated with a post-secondary degree, with only one person indicating they dropped out prior to graduating, and eight others indicating they were still in school. This graduation rate far exceeds national average, which typically falls around 75% (Millar, 2007).

These [Practices of Exemplary Leadership] are things that I do in my everyday job actually. I do not feel like I would have pursued a job doing such things if I had not been involved in the RA experience.

Being an RA let me interact with many different people, all who had a different and unique story. Meeting those people allowed me to see that not every conflict solution works the same for everyone so challenging the ‘norm’ became acceptable to me.

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Connection & Belongingness Former RAs were asked to indicate whether being an RA increased their sense of belonging to the Residence Life team, to residence, and to the university as a whole.

They were also asked to indicate when they were last on campus. Our findings (see Figure 4), are especially impressive given that most students who live in residence are not residents of Calgary and that MRU does not offer graduate programs, which could draw students back to campus.

In all, 75% of participants reported that being an RA increased their sense of

belonging to the university by a “great deal” or “considerably”. Furthermore, 89% indicated a strong connection with their former RA team (see Figure 4). A qualitative analysis of the data found the following words and phrases to be some of the most common among responses: belongingness, community, impact, skill development, and long-lasting relationships. Looking at specific elements of training, comments included professional and personal reflections linked with confidence, professional development, leadership, and learning. Specifically, we found confidence was linked with experiential learning and hands-on components that allowed for opportunities to practice and develop skills, as opposed to lecture-style training. Recommendations for future training curriculum included: • Increased refresher-training throughout the year • More emergency-specific training (first-aid training, Verbal Judo, mental health training, conflict resolution training, etc.)

• More team building • Personality-specific training

Limitations Overall these results clearly show that being an RA has a long-lasting, positive impact, but this study is not without its limitations. We know RAs are often highly involved across the institution and thus cannot determine if there is a causal relationship between the development of leadership practices and the RA role specifically. Do we happen to hire students who are destined to achieve? Do we hire students who are already amazing leaders? Also, due to both the anonymous and crosssectional nature of this study, it is difficult to discern which RA experiences led to which results. For example, in some years we offered more in-depth suicide intervention training or incorporated first aid training. Leadership traits were also self-reported, and we have no means to assess these skills objectively. As well, we have no measures of job performance as it relates to experience and impact on personal and career success. Finally, we cannot know how much of a respondent’s experience can be best explained by a halo effect: Nostalgia could colour a respondent’s experience as more positive than it actually was, particularly if that respondent is now very successful.

• Inclusion of alumni in the program/training

Recommendations for Future Research

When asked about the “most memorable moments” from the RA experience, training was mentioned most often, followed by team, community, time, and events. Lastly, we asked respondents to share any other reflections that might help us to understand the value of being an RA. Responses reflected the importance of relationships, the people, skills, and training. These were linked with growth in personal and professional aspects of their lives.

Despite these limitations, we are encouraged by the findings of this study. We feel compelled to further investigate leadership skills among students who have not been RAs, as well as the long-term impact of other student leadership roles. If you are interested in replicating (or extending) this study within your own institution, please do! Evidence-based studies showcasing effective practices in Canadian post-secondary institutions would be a welcomed addition to the literature in higher education.

Having up-to-date contact information (institutional and personal emails) proved invaluable to this survey process. We believe we had a strong response rate because of the ongoing connections maintained between supervisors and staff. It was also beneficial to have people assisting in the study who were not directly involved in the program under investigation. These “fresh eyes” added more objectivity into this study, meaning we could provide more clarity and context to questions, and avoid significant bias during our data analysis. Having a multi-disciplinary team, which included Residence Life and non-Residence Life professionals, would be an approach we would strongly recommend.

Summary Key Outcomes This data suggests being a Residence Advisor in a post-secondary setting has a positive long-term impact on one’s personal and professional life. Former RAs remained connected to our institution as evidenced by recent visits to campus (21% had been on campus within the past week, 61% in the past year), and strong ties to their former RA team. Former RAs who participated in this study saw themselves as leaders, especially through their ability to inspire others to follow their passion and to lead the way through strong role modeling. Former RAs held many positive memories of their experience on campus, even ten years after they left the role. They praised the experiential training, which they said led to skills, abilities, and confidence that has aided them in the personal and professional aspects of their life.

We now feel confident in asserting that being an RA has positive long-term impacts on our students, including leadership development, belongingness, and academic success. We speculate other leadership programs would have similar outcomes and we are eager to investigate this hypothesis.

Conclusion

Figure 4. Respondents’ connection to campus, connection with former team members, and sense of belonging.

In order to address some of the limitations stated above, we have begun surveying RAs prior to RA training to obtain baseline data in some areas that can be compared (such as sense of belonging, connection to campus, and The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership). Follow-up interviews are in progress, and we aim to submit a manuscript for publication to a peer-refereed journal in the upcoming term. We believe this will be a meaningful contribution to the literature about student leadership roles and support the notion that these positions provide a foundation for success. We have begun sharing our data with the Executive Leadership Team at MRU, and we are COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 19

committed to using the data to continue to improve MRU’s Residence Life Program.

We would like to thank CACUSS for their support through their Special Projects Research Grant program, which provided us with the opportunity to conduct this study while also giving research experience to two incredible undergraduate students.

We are grateful to have been able to track the impact of these RA student leadership roles, and hope our research can support other professionals working with students in similar positions to better articulate their program’s long-term value. For more information about this project, please contact any member of our research team or watch our webinar, Unpacking the Impact of the RA Experience, presented by CACUSS (youtu.be/4jGSkidoMFo). If you would like more information about the study, or a copy of our survey, please do not hesitate to ask.

References Kouzes, J.M., & Posner, B. Z. (2014). The Student leadership Challenge: Five Practices for Becoming and Exemplary Leader (2). San Francisco, USA: Wiley, Jossey-Bass Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. Exemplary Leaders. Executive Excellence, 21(6), p. 19.

A Nursing Practicum in Student Affairs: An Unexpected Journey

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by Karen Morse

s Student Affairs professionals, mentoring students is a big part of what we do, and seeing them develop leadership skills is one of the best parts of our job.

Students also have an uncanny way of challenging us to think outside the box, and to approach things in unconventional, innovative ways. Indeed, I have learned that we often have as much to learn from our students as we have to teach them. My recent experience with UPEI (University of Prince Edward Island) Nursing students served as a reminder of the benefits of such relationships.

In the summer of 2014, I was asked if I would be a preceptor for a fourth-year student in Nursing 401 - Nursing and Population Health. For this clinical placement, students are tasked with developing programming to target health issues that impact the specific population of their practicum.

At first, I was not sure what to think. What kind of experience could I provide for a Nursing student? The last Biology course I took was in 1988, so how could I guide and mentor a Nursing student in a “clinical” setting? Did Student Affairs even qualify as a “clinical” setting? But I was thinking inside the box, and could not get past needles, drugs, and white coats. With some trepidation, I agreed to participate, and Heidi MacDonald (one of our counsellors) and I acted as preceptors for two students.

It was a decision that led to a productive partnership in ways we never could have imagined. That first year, our Nursing students’ project focused on student perceptions around sexual assault at UPEI. This produced valuable research that in part led to the implementation of the “Bringing in the Bystander” program and was one of the catalysts for the creation of our Sexual Assault Protocol. Last year, our students worked on a project on alcohol awareness and education, and they studied the viability of 20 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

Millar, E. (2007). More students to go post-secondary, but one in seven drop out. Macleans, November 2007.

Alena Boczek is a Program Advisor at the University of Calgary, formerly a Residence Life Coordinator at Mount Royal University. Alena can be contacted at alenaboczek@gmail.com or @alenaboczek on Twitter.

Dr. Janet Miller is a Registered Psychologist and Professor at Mount Royal University. Janet can be contacted at jbmiller@mtroyal.ca.

Natasha Reynolds is the Manager of Operations in Residence Services at Mount Royal University. Tash can be contacted at nreynolds@mtroyal.ca.

Mark Keller is the Director of Residence Services at Mount Royal University.

Mark can be contacted at mkeller1@mtroyal.ca.

Kathleen O’Reilly will be graduating with a BA honours degree in Psychology from Mount Royal University in June 2017. Kathleen can be contacted at korei921@mtroyal.ca.

an online self-assessment tool that is used on campuses all over North America.

This year, our two students, Emily MacNeil and Kendra O’Hanley, have chosen a public health topic particularly relevant to students today: sleep. Emily and Kendra have developed a healthy sleep campaign for UPEI, and because I often talk to students about the importance of sleep and healthy sleep habits (for good emotional/mental health, and strong academic and athletic performance), I am really excited to see the launch of this campaign. Emily and Kendra have created posters and table toppers for the campus Sample poster created by Emily MacNeil and dining hall; planned workshops Kendra O’Hanley to deliver in residence, at our annual health fair, and in classrooms; and have designed material to appear on the web. Emily and Kendra recently presented their campaign idea at the East Coast Student Leadership Conference at St. Francis Xavier University and hopefully have inspired other student leaders to help promote healthy sleep habits.

Working with these “almost” full-fledged professional students has been such a pleasure. They give me confidence in a health care system that I know someday I will need. This partnership has also reminded me that diverse skills in a workplace is what we should always be aiming for. The more we can collaborate with co-workers with diverse educations, backgrounds, and skill sets, the better the end product. Period.

The partnership between Student Affairs professionals and Nursing students may have been unexpected, but in the end it has proved to be valuable for all involved.

Karen Morse works as an Academic Coach at the University of Prince Edward Island, but often finds herself involved in the many unexpected tasks that make up the world of Student Affairs. Karen can be reached at Kmorse@upei.ca.

First Canadian Student Affairs Assessment Institute!

The Research, Assessment and Evaluation Community of Practice invites you to join us for a day of learning at the fi rst ever Canadian Student Affairs Assessment Institute. Your co-hosts for the day are Rick Ezekiel, Lesley D’Souza and Jeff Burrow, and our keynote and special guest for the day will be Dr. Brian Bourke from Murray State University.

Where: St George Campus, University of Toronto When: Thursday, May 18, 2017 9:00am-4:30pm Why? 3 reasons to attend: • Develop and enhance existing assessment skills • Increase your confi dence to engage in assessment • Build your network of assessment-orientated Student Affairs Professionals in Canada The day will include a keynote, 3 hands-on, practical breakout sessions, catered lunch, tea/coffee, and a Senior Student Affairs Offi cer “fi reside chat”.

Registration will open in late March. Got questions? Contact rae@cacuss.ca or contact@cacuss.ca

Coming soon in November, 2017: Two new Professional Development opportunities from CACUSS! CACUSS New Professionals Institute A four-day institute designed with new professionals in mind, the New Professionals Institute is open to all professionals including those new to the profession, those with new or changing responsibilities, and academics or seasoned professionals looking to expand their understanding of core issues, competencies, and context of the student affairs and services profession in Canada.

Program highlights: • Sessions on a broad range of topics delivered by experienced Student Affairs Professionals • Opportunities to network with fellow new professionals, experienced colleagues, and Senior Student Affairs Offi cers • A capstone project, which allows participants to put their new learning and experiences to use

CACUSS Senior Student Affairs Officers Summit A two-day summit for Senior Student Affairs Officers, this exciting event will offer an opportunity for Senior Student Affairs Officers to participate in professional development, network with colleagues, and re-engage with CACUSS. Program highlights: • Relevant professional development offering at advanced competency levels, based on feedback collected in January 2017 • An opportunity to collaborate, share, and network with SSAO colleagues from across Canada • An invitation to meet and network with participants of the fi rst annual CACUSS New Professionals Institute • Access to an online community of Senior Student Affairs Offi cers for ongoing sharing, support, and networking.

• Exciting social opportunities to build a network of colleagues from across the country Details about both programs will be released soon.

• Access to an online community for ongoing sharing, support, and Contact: megan@cacuss.ca networking

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Understanding Accessibility in Graduate Education for Students with Disabilities in Canada: A Summary

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by Kathleen Moore & Mahadeo Sukhai

s the number of students with disabilities entering graduate education in Canada continues to increase, disability service providers, financial aid administrators, student life professionals, students themselves, graduate departments, deans and student services directors, and universities as a whole are having to develop new strategies to facilitate their success.

This effort is also driven in part by the need to be responsive to evolving provincial legislative landscapes in Canada.

However, institutions are often driving policy and practice guidelines on limited, anecdotal, and/or local experience.

Until recently, very limited research on this population has been undertaken globally. In this environment, several myths and misperceptions have arisen, which can lead policy and practice in potentially inappropriate directions. Therefore, there is a significant need to have a detailed understanding, both quantitative and qualitative, of the experiences of students with disabilities in graduate studies.

Addressing a Gap In the past few years, two key studies have taken place to address this gap in our understanding. The first study took place between 2012 and 2016 and involved a national study by the National Graduate Student Experience Taskforce (GSET).

This taskforce was empanelled by the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) to investigate the experiences of graduate students with disabilities across Canada, with a specific focus on time to completion, academic integrity, accommodations, and essential requirements. The GSET completed key informant interviews, focus groups, and consultations with various stakeholder groups, as well as surveyed the graduate students with disabilities population. The survey specifically yielded 330 responses from graduate students with disabilities from across Canada (National Graduate Student Experience Taskforce [NGSET], 2016).

Through this multi-pronged approach, the research team developed a series of 25 recommendations that were grouped into four areas. These four areas included: 1) Incorporating reasonable accommodations, 2) Levelling the playing field, 3) Building knowledge, 4) Next steps. For the purpose of this article, we turn now to a summary of some of the themes and topic areas relevant to a student affairs professional audience. We also provide a summary of the recommendation that we proposed for each of these topic areas.

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Student-supervisor relationship. Our findings showed that, while most graduate students with disabilities have solid and functional – even strong – personal and professional relationships with their supervisors, and that their supervisors were for the most part understanding of disability and accommodation issues, there were some broad categories of scenarios where the student-supervisor relationship had the potential to break down, such as where the definition of accommodations was unclear, there was a need for clarification of expectations around accommodations. For this reason, we argue that there is a need to continue building the bridge between student affairs and faculty members, to share the responsibility for successful adaptation and implementation of accommodations.

Recommendation: We recommend that efforts be undertaken to educate both students and supervisors about their rights, obligations, and responsibilities, in particular those that pertain to disability in the context of graduate education, in order to foster strong relationships and student success.

Essential requirements. In the context of the accommodation plans for students with disabilities, faculty, service providers, and students themselves must consider what the student needs to perform, in order to demonstrate their competency unaided in their field. This in turn requires an appropriate understanding of both what the student’s accommodation needs are as well as what the requirements of the discipline are. However, no one party may be knowledgeable in all areas. Indeed, the importance of informed faculty working in collaboration with the student and the disability service provider cannot be understated in this context.

Recommendation: We recommend that efforts be undertaken to educate both students and supervisors about essential requirements and their relationship with disability and accommodation.

Accommodation framework. The survey data showed that students were often developing or modifying their accommodations. This occurred for two reasons. The first being that the graduate programs evolved over time, and thus, accommodation needs changed as well. The second reason was that students came to recognize that the graduate environment translated into significantly different accommodation needs in comparison to the undergraduate setting. This is expected, given the variety of in-class and out-of-class learning environments found in graduate education, in both research-stream and professional-stream programs.

Recommendation: We recommend that the accommodation framework and models in use for the graduate setting be examined and improved to better ensure the success of graduate students with disabilities.

Disclosure. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the survey data showed that disclosure of accommodation needs is not an issue that pertains solely to undergraduate students.

Indeed, disclosure is an area of significant concern for graduate students, where some students are hesitant to disclose because they are unsure of whether there are accommodations that can meet their needs within a program structure that greatly differs from the undergraduate environment, or because of a fear of stigma being accrued in the context of the academic training environment.

Recommendation: We recommend that efforts be undertaken to provide educational materials and supports related to disclosure to service providers and students transitioning into graduate school. These supports are intended to ensure the full awareness of the nuances of disclosure in the graduate environment.

Alternative formats. The project’s survey and discussions identified availability of and access to class and research materials as a challenge encountered by many of the participants. There may be a lack of understanding among faculty and library/ archives professionals of what constitutes accessible formats and who is eligible to receive them. Alternative formats may include Braille, electronic documents, or any other format that provides students with the access they require. Among the professionals who participated in the project, there also seemed to be some confusion around who is responsible for providing the accessible formats – whether it is the supervisor, department, library, or IT staff.

Recommendation: We recommend that academic departments and university libraries work together to determine ways to enhance the provision of alternative format materials to graduate students with disabilities.

Part-time enrollment, remote residency, and leaves. Based on our survey of student and service provider experiences, these solutions are viable alternatives to more expensive, perhaps less feasible options to accommodate students with disabilities. The issues of part-time enrollment, remote residency, and online learning are linked to issues of disability-related leaves while in graduate education, as many scholarships, fellowships and institutional awards and academic employment programs have not yet taken these possibilities into consideration in their eligibility requirements.

Recommendation: We recommend that policies and practices around accommodating graduate students with disabilities provide for creativity and flexibility in accomplishing graduate degree requirements, and that eligibility guidelines for scholarships, academic employment opportunities, and other components of the graduate student environment take this flexibility into account.

Academic employment. The provision of accommodations in the academic employment environment vs. the academic program environment, and navigating the differences between “student as employee” and “student as trainee,” can often create stressful situations for the student, due to the potential for confusion and the lack of clarity around these disparate yet essential components of graduate education.

Also, the tension between the employment expectations and academic expectations of one’s supervisors can be challenging, and students may be unprepared for the complexity that may arise when these two sets of expectations begin to interfere with one another. This may also lead to confusion regarding accommodations not only in the student’s academic program, but in the employment context as well.

Recommendation: We recommend that steps be undertaken to appropriately clarify or develop policies and practices around disability, disclosure, and accommodation in the academic employment setting, and that these be disseminated to students, union staff, faculty, and departmental administrative staff, as appropriate.

The second key study was influenced significantly by the work that led to the Understanding Accessibility in Graduate Education for Students with Disabilities in Canada report, and is the Canadian Graduate and Professional Student Survey (CGPSS). For the first time since its inception, the 2016 CGPSS inquired about the number of respondents who self-identified as having a disability. Of the 46,978 valid responses, 5% of participants (n=2,327) self-identified as having some type of disability or impairment (Canadian Association of Graduate Studies [CAGS], 2016a). The most frequently reported disability or impairment was mental health, with 42% (n=976) graduate students selecting this option (CAGS, 2016a). These data contribute to a critical gap in the research regarding the prevalence of graduate students with disabilities. Now that data pertaining to disability have been collected, further analyses can be done to understand comparisons can be made between students who identify as having a disability and those who do not identify as such, as well as to further understand differences based on whether the student is a PhD or master’s student, in a research or professional stream program, the discipline, and type of disability identified.

Discussion According to CAGS (2016b), the number of graduate students across Canada continues to increase. In the five years from 2009 to 2013, full-time master’s enrolments increased by 12,249, from 77,484, representing a 16% increase. At the doctoral level, full-time enrolments increased by 5,568, a 13% increase between 2009 and 2013. As the number of graduate students continues to increase, so too does the number of graduate students identifying as having a disability; however, there is

a limited understanding of how institutions can support graduate student success for this specific population. With this in mind, there is an ongoing need to further develop the understanding of this group. Until the 2016 CGPSS data were collected, our study provided the most comprehensive understanding of the experiences of students with disabilities in Canada. An important goal of our study was to develop a “landscape snapshot” of the current system issues faced by graduate students with disabilities. While doing so, we uncovered a critical lack of data pertaining to this population. We therefore recommend that coordinated efforts be undertaken at the national and institutional levels to gather relevant demographic information about this population, as well as information about the student experience, on an ongoing basis. Though the addition of disability questions to the CGPSS is a step in the right direction, we challenge institutions to increase their data collection efforts and their understanding of this student population. From the recommendations that have been provided here, we invite you to consider the following: 1. In your position, how is your programming geared towards meeting the needs of graduate students with disabilities, if at all?

2. At your institution, what dialogue has taken place regarding the needs of graduate students with disabilities? Who has driven these conversations?

3. In your disability service office, what challenges do you face in terms of accommodating graduate students with disabilities?

4. In what ways do student services professionals, faculty, and students work together to further their understanding of disability issues and accommodations?

For further information about the study and for a detailed copy of the final study report, please visit neads.ca/en/about/projects/graduate-taskforce.

Acknowledgments The Taskforce gratefully acknowledges the support and participation of all its current and former members, whose efforts and dedication shaped the project and its outcomes. Additionally, the Taskforce wishes to acknowledge the participation of all students, faculty, and professionals who contributed to the research in this project.

References Canadian Association for Graduate Studies. (2016a). Canadian Graduate and Professional Student Survey - 2016: Summary report. Ottawa, ON: Author. Retrieved from http://www.cags.ca/documents/cgpss/2016/ NATIONAL_CGPSS_2016_REPORT_ALL.pdf Canadian Association for Graduate Studies. (2016b). 42nd statistical report. Ottawa, ON: Author. Retrieved from http://cags.ca/documents/stats/42ndSTATISTICALREPORTFINAL.ENG.pdf National Graduate Student Experience Taskforce. (2016). Understanding accessibility in graduate education for students with disabilities in Canada: Overview of approach and methodology, National Educational Association for Disabled Students. Retrieved from http://www.neads.ca/en/about/projects/ graduate-taskforce/pdf/NEADS-National-Graduate-Experience-Report_OVERVIEW-OF-APPROACHAND-METHODOLOGY.pdf

Kathleen Moore is a PhD candidate in Higher Education at the University of Toronto where her research focuses on postsecondary student mental health and how institutions can support graduate student success. She is also a Research Associate at the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) and is working on the Landscape of Accessibility project.

You can reach her by following her on Twitter @kathleenmoore_ or by e-mail at kathleen.moore@mail.utoronto.ca.

Mahadeo Sukhai is Director of Research at the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) and Head of the Variant Interpretation Group in Genome Diagnostics at the University Health Network. He serves as the Principal Investigator on the Landscape of Accessibility project. Reach him by email at m.sukhai@utoronto.ca or on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/mahadeo-sukhai.

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Mount Royal University Academic Strategist Program: Empowering Learners to Succeed through Strengths-Based Academic and Life Skills Development

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by Janalee Morris

he Academic Strategist program operates under the umbrella of the Accessibility Services Office. It is designed to offer non-content-based academic strategies to students with disabilities. Academic Strategists endeavor to develop a holistic mentoring approach and to tailor information to the needs and learning style of the student, focusing the program to overcome the functional limitations and barriers the students face as a result of their disability.

Theoretical Foundations Over the past three years, Mount Royal University (MRU) has focused on raising the quality of this service through professional development activities for the Academic Strategists that are based on the theoretical foundations of Student Development Theory and Disability Studies. Rodgers (1990) defines Student Development as “the ways that a student grows, progresses, or increases his or her development capabilities as a result of enrollment in an institution of higher education” (p. 27). There are several types of Student Development theories, and the Academic Strategist Program has borrowed from many of these theories as they apply.

According to Forney, Evans, and DiBrito (1998), typology theories reflect individual stylistic differences in how students approach their worlds. They are used to measure how one’s personal attributes and learning style relate to learning, decision making, relationships to peers, interests, and comfort level. Some examples include the Myers Briggs Type Indicator or “MBTI,” which is based on Carl Jung’s theory of psychological types, or Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual/spatial, bodily/kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical/mathematical). Neil Fleming’s VARK (Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, and Kinesthetic) model is another example that categorizes people according to the type of modality they are best able to process information by, and one that we use in our program.

It is important to understand the controversy surrounding the validity of using “learning styles” as a teaching tool: “…at present, there is no adequate evidence base to justify incorporating learning styles assessments into general educational practice” (Pashler et al. 2009 p 105). In fact, the evidence has debunked the idea that individuals can actually have a particular “learning style.” However, many of our students come to us with detailed psycho-educational assessments in hand that outline in great detail their relative weaknesses, and it is easy to see a connection to Fleming’s categories, in particular. For example, students may be diagnosed with visual-spatial processing disorders or deficits in auditory working memory. Therefore, we have chosen to follow Goswami’s (2008) conclusion that 24 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

… if children are taught new information using a variety of their senses, learning will be stronger (that is, learning will be represented across a greater network of neurons connecting a greater number of different neural structures, and accessible via a greater number of modalities) (p.389).

In MRU’s Academic Strategist Program, typology tools are used to help students shift from deficits-based thinking about learning (based on individual disabilities around learning) and to focus on their areas of relative strengths to build on success.

For example, if we identify that a student has a tendency toward intrapersonal intelligence, we might suggest that a student seek out a study partner or a study group to prepare for midterms. If a student seems to prefer acquiring information in an auditory format, we might suggest that student record their study notes and listen to them during their daily commute.

Psychosocial theories, such as Chickering and Reisser’s Theory of Identity Development (1993), predict that students pass through stages of ever-increasing complexity in their self-awareness, leading to a state of established identity, purpose, and integrity. Cognitive-Social theories, such as Perry’s (1968) Scheme of Intellectual and Ethical Development, describe a student’s progressive ability to critically evaluate information and progress to a relativistic understanding of the world. Our program strives to support students on their journey of academic self-discovery through skills training in metacognition, goal setting, basic study skills, stress management, critical thinking, and self-advocacy. These approaches vary considerably depending on the experiences, age, and program of the student. For example, a student who is “testing” their aptitude for university may have a goal of simply passing a class and may focus on basic study skills. A student entering their fourth year may want to achieve a high grade point average so that they may apply for a graduate program, and they may take a more sophisticated approach to integrating their goals with critical thinking abilities and metacognition.

Person-Environment Theories, such as Tinto’s (1987) Retention Theory, have examined the impact of the institutional environment on student success. Tinto’s theory suggests that the best way to mitigate retention issues is to ensure that students are connected to campus resources and are integrated into campus life. In this way, the program ensures that students are aware of various campus services and supports, and in fact does provide a weekly opportunity for students to connect to these supports through their Academic Strategist.

Kuh et al. (2006) present a picture of student engagement that includes pre-college experiences, student behaviours, institutional conditions, outcomes, and post-college indicators. It also considers economic, social, political, and demographic factors that influence student success. Academic Strategists work with students to identify some of the pre-college experiences that may influence their success while at university.

For example, if a student had a negative learning experience in high school, that student may not consider themselves to have the skills to succeed at university. The Academic Strategist works directly with the student to modify their student behaviours to maximize those skills that will enable them to be successful.

Identity theories consider the impact that a student’s multiple ways of being in the world impact them as students. In our case, students will identify with having a disability. However, not all students have a clear understanding of how their diagnosis impacts them as a learner, and certainly not all students willingly identify themselves (at least not publically) as students with disabilities. It is often left to the Academic Strategist to help the student understand the impact their disability may be having on both their identity and their ability as a learner. In addition, students may hold many different, intersecting “identities” related to, for example, their indigenous heritage, sexual orientation, gender, ethnicity, etc. We continue to explore the impact identity has on our program and seek additional ways to acknowledge and support students to express their identities in a way that leads to their success as students.

The Program The Academic Strategist Program employs 10 to 13 strategists every year on a contract basis and serves over 200 active students at any given time, serving approximately 300 students throughout the year. The program has had an increase in requests for service each year, and in September it is typical that we have a waiting list.

Students are referred to the program by their Access Adviser based on their documented disabilities. Staff and student are matched based on their mutual strengths. Academic Strategists typically meet with students individually once a week to provide skill building and support in ten key areas, including general post-secondary readiness (organization, stress management), reading, note taking, writing, test preparation, memory, attention/concentration, self-advocacy, and critical thinking.

Students ascertain their strengths in and barriers to learning, and identify the goals they wish to achieve. The Strategist must then prepare each week to provide skills training in the areas identified, while taking into consideration the student’s strengths, learning preferences, and any learning barriers that need to be accommodated.

Students often come to their sessions with specific assignments to work on with their Strategist so that they can test their new skills in action.

Academic Strategists join the team from a variety of backgrounds and are expected to participate in numerous professional development activities including in-person and online training in the areas of disability awareness and learning strategies.

Modules for each skill area have been created and Academic Strategists are expected to work their way through each module, time permitting.

Impact The transition from high school to post-secondary is a difficult time for most students, and for those with disabilities, this transition can be made even more complicated as they are expected to navigate not only the university setting but also be responsible for arranging their own disability-related supports. Research shows that the first semester results in the highest drop-out rate for post-secondary students. The Academic Strategist Program empowers students with the skills they need to succeed in university and to overcome the barriers they experience as a result of their disabilities.

Students are surveyed twice each year regarding the Academic Strategist Program.

The results indicate overwhelming satisfaction with the program, as illustrated in

these student responses: … this service… has helped me blossom, not just as a student in my studies, but also as a human being. I am able to identify my strengths and weaknesses better and know what type of learner and student I am.

I do not think I would be where I am without these services.

Having a Strategist has been so valuable to me this semester. It is my first semester back after many years and the value of [the Strategist’s] assistance is immeasurable to me.

Since working with [the Strategist] my GPA has been above 3.5 which is the highest it’s ever been.

My Strategist helped me adjust to my first semester of post-secondary education very effectively. I now feel confident going into 2017 after learning all the skills I need to thrive at Mount Royal.

References Forney, D. S., Evans, N. J., Guido-DiBrito, F. (1998). Student development in college: theory, research, and practice. The Jossey-Bass higher and adult education series, 1st ed.

Goswami, U. (2008). Principles of Learning, Implications for Teaching: A Cognitive Neuroscience Perspective. Journal of Philosophy of Education. Vol 42, No. 3-4.

Kuh, G. D., Kinzie, J., Buckley, J.A., Bridges, B.K., & Hayek, J.C. (2006, July). What Matters to Student Success: A Review of the Literature. Commissioned Report for the National Symposium on Postsecondary Student Success: Spearheading a Dialog on Student Success. National Postsecondary Education Cooperative.

Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., & Bjork, R. (2009). Learning Styles: Concepts and Evidence.

Association for Psychological Science Vol 9 No 3.

Rodgers, R.F. (1990). Recent theories and research underlying student development. In D.G.Creamer & Associates, College student development: Theory and practice for the 1990s (pp.27-79). Alexandria, VA: American College Personnel Association.

Janalee Morris, M.A. is the Coordinator, Academic Strategist Program (Accessibility Services) at Mount Royal University, and can be reached at jmorriswales@mtroyal.ca and on Twitter @janalee40.

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Bridging Co-Curricular and Curricular Learning in Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness

by Nora Sobel and Bradley West

“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

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his quote from Martin Luther King Jr. is a good reminder that just because something is not happening to you, and you are not contributing to it, it does not mean that you should just sit idly by. It is important to speak up against oppression and take action. This is what one of our Red River College (RRC) colleagues have shared after completing the Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Course, a new online educational resource developed and implemented by RRC’s Diversity and Intercultural Services that is helping the organization to advance our efforts in inclusion, accessibility, sustainability, and meeting curricular outcomes.

Introduction Established in 2010, the LGBTT* (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, TwoSpirit) Initiative at Red River College (Winnipeg, Manitoba) provides educational opportunities and resources to build communication, understanding, and respect for gender and sexual diversity throughout the College, including in-class two-hour LGBTT* Awareness Workshops for students to discuss gender and sexual diversity in their intended professions, and one-day Awareness and Ally Trainings for both students and employees, which have already developed over 300 Allies across campuses, programs and services.

Based on the success of the in-person educational sessions and the ongoing demand for more trainings and workshops, RRC decided to make a qualitative jump and further expand their LGBTT* learning opportunities by developing a Gender and Sexual Diversity (GSD) Awareness Course that could provide a 24/7, online, sustainable, and flexible option for students, faculty, and administrative staff to increase their awareness and understanding around LGBTT* matters.

With this course, RRC intended to expand their learning options for part-time, distance, and regional students, as well as for faculty and administrative staff that could access the online course at the classrooms, offices, or any remote location.

Another important goal was supporting students in developing their LGBTT* 26 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

awareness and understanding not only for the College environment but also for their future workplace environments and the broader community.

Course Design Funded by a RRC Project Innovation Fund (PIF), this project developed six 50-minute online modules that cover LGBTT* Terminology; Cultural Considerations; Manifestations of Homophobia, Biphobia, Transphobia, and Heterosexism; Strategies for Inclusiveness; History of Pride and LGBTT* Rights; and College, Local, and National Resources. The project also developed an introductory module featuring student and staff testimonies from other areas of the College that provide different perspectives about the importance of LGBTT* awareness. Finally, an additional Ally Module, with supplementary activities for participants who completed the previous six modules and would like to become Allies, was also developed as part of this project.

All these modules are organized within an online course housed in the Brightspace learning management system (called LEARN at Red River College). In addition to video lectures, the course also includes accompanying self-reflection activities and resources, separate discussion boards for students and employees, and transcripts and closed captioning of all videos for enhanced accessibility.

The course is fully scalable; each module was created as a stand-alone module that can function as a 50-minute independent learning experience in the classroom or remotely, for individuals and/or cohorts of students. The modules are also linked to offer a one-day learning experience. The exploration of the additional resources can provide a 30-hour-plus program.

The end result is a course that is dynamic in both its content and navigation, and gives users full control of their learning experience. Users can choose if they wish to watch videos, read transcripts, activate the closed captioning, or take advantage of all formats to enhance their learning journey. Users can also go as deep as they would like into the subject matter or they can focus on specific content areas of interest over time in a manner that best meets their individual learning needs and styles.

In-House and Cross-Departmental Approach One of the aspects that makes this course very unique is that it was developed

by College staff and is offered as supported co-curricular programming by College staff, as opposed to trainings developed by Student Associations or offered by external community stakeholders.

The GSD Course was inspired by the content of the awareness trainings developed by the Rainbow Resource Centre (the local LGBT social agency) and the Sexuality Education Resource Centre (SERC) of Manitoba. Having access to in-house expertise of Bradley West (gender and sexuality educator for over 17 years, who was previously employed by both organizations), the course content was structured and customized based on the specific College learning needs of students, faculty and staff.

A successful collaborative approach was also a highlight of this project, especially with the RRC Teaching Learning Technology Centre (TLTC) that supported our work through regular consultations with instructional designers and LEARN trainers, as well as the recording and editing of the video segments led by the College eTV Studio media technicians.

The initiative also brought the opportunity for new cross-departmental initiatives feeding into this project and creating synergy among College areas. Some examples include the implementation of new video closed captioning software at the RRC eTV Studio that was piloted with this project, the development of a customized design for the LEARN course site that can serve as a model for other courses, and the recording of testimonies with guest speakers from other areas of the College (Human Resources, Counselling, Faculty, Students’ Association) to provide different perspectives about the importance of developing educational tools to enhance awareness around Gender and Sexual Diversity.

Meeting Curricular Objectives

Embedding Diversity at the Leadership Level

As part of the implementation process, this course brought forward the opportunity for innovative connections between co-curricular and curricular content, which is an emerging field of interest in post-secondary education as a way to support successful student learning outcomes. The RRC Nursing program is the first career program seeing value in the Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Course and linking some of the curricular outcomes in their Therapeutic Conversation course to the GSD modules related to LGBTT* Terminology, Cultural Considerations, and Strategies for Inclusiveness, that would support the Nursing curricular outcomes.

This initiative was run as a pilot with 171 Nursing students in Fall 2016, and as part of the work with the GSD course, students were asked to write self-reflections in the online discussion boards for the modules they had to complete. Reflection activities are an essential part of the instruction methodology in the Nursing program, and students reported via their comments on the discussion boards that these self-reflections helped them explore personal beliefs and how those intersect with professional obligations and ethics, consider communication strategies for different patient constituencies, and realize the importance of creating safety for patients from all walks of life. These types of learning outcomes would not have the opportunity to develop in this manner without access to resources like the GSD Course.

Discussions are underway with the Nursing program to apply the same approach to coursework on their Life Cycle Development course, and interest in the Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Course has also been expressed by the Allied Health Sciences programs (Paramedicine, Medical Laboratory Sciences, Medical Radiologic Technology, Magnetic Resonance Imaging/ Spectroscopy Program) along with Community Services programs (Early Childhood Education, Disability & Community, and Child and Youth Care).

As part of the initial implementation process, a plan for a Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Training for RRC leadership has been recently developed, with a Stage I including the College Senior Leadership Team (President & CEO, VicePresidents and Executive Directors) and Leadership Council (Deans and Directors).

This plan proposes a blended method, with screening of the online Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Course and attending a one-day in-person training to connect the course to the College’s strategic goals and priorities for future action.

Training to the entire College leadership allows for imbedding gender and sexual diversity as a dimension of diversity in policy, processes, and practice. In colleges and universities, having leadership “walk the talk” of diversity and inclusion is critical in creating and supporting access to information, resources, and tools for staff, faculty, and students. Programming and support around gender and sexual diversity for staff and faculty in order to enhance student success is an emerging need. Creating resources that are institutionally accessible for students, staff, and faculty, whether they are from different countries around the world, a regional area, or the suburb right next door can specifically address the complexity, diversity, and universal humanity of LGBTT* individuals. It underlines our community-building role as educational institutions.

This blended method – an online course plus in-person training – will enhance participants’ understanding of not only the content of the course but the intent of the programming that is fostering an understanding of the complexity and diversity within the LGBTT* community and how that connects directly and indirectly to their programs, their students and employees, their industry stakeholders, and their communities. It allows leadership to imbed the expertise and insight of the GSD course into their own areas, thus allowing for customization of content in a manner that is dynamic, achievable, and rigorous.

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Advancing Social and Economic Sustainability The Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Course, and their developers Nora Sobel and Bradley West, are being recognized with the RRC Sustainability Leadership Award. This award recognizes and celebrates the outstanding contributions and cooperative efforts of employees who advance environmental, social, and/or economic sustainability in a meaningful and enduring way at Red River College. It recognizes how we can enhance the College’s culture of sustainability by contributing to research and education for sustainability, leading the way in everyday activities, and/or advancing sustainability in governance and operations of the college.

The development and implementation of this course allowed us to offer an online learning opportunity with 24/7 remote access, employing a technology that was already available at the College, and presenting course content and navigation that allow for different learning needs and styles, with enhanced accessibility as a strong organizational goal.

Furthermore, through the development of this learning resource in collaboration with local LGBTT* community organizations, we have the opportunity to further expand the awareness and educational impact regarding LGBTT* rights and inclusiveness in our broader community.

Opportunities After completing the development and initial roll-out, we are now beginning to present our course and the journey on how we created the course with other RRC departments, post-secondary educational institutions, and community organizations, as they consider developing similar programming. There are also many opportunities for further extending the use of this resource with both students and employees.

On the student end, given that we have already begun to bridge this co-curricular resource to meet curricular outcomes, in the future we hope to explore the possibility of having the GSD course approved for elective credits in academic programs that could offer this course as an option for an elective seminar. On the employee end, to build on our initial work with College leadership, we also hope to explore the possibility of employing this course as a component of the onboarding training for new faculty and staff.

With this work, we hope that the Gender and Sexual Diversity Awareness Course will continue to support our efforts in solidifying RRC’s position of leadership within the Post-Secondary Education landscape of our province and indeed the country, as it relates to co-curricular LGBTT* educational opportunities.

Nora Sobel is the A/Manager of Diversity and Intercultural Services at Red River College (RRC) and holds a Master of Education (Concentration in Adult and Post-Secondary Education), specializing in diversity awareness, intercultural competence, and citizenship education. Nora can be reached at nsobel@rrc.ca.

Bradley West is a Diversity Initiatives Coordinator at Red River College (RRC). He is a Chartered Professional in Human Resources (CPHR) and a Certified Coach Practitioner (CCP), and he is pursuing Master’s-level studies in human sexuality. Bradley can be reached at bcwest@rrc.ca.

28 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017

Changing the Culture of Mental Health on Campus: Facilitating Positive Cultural Change

by Andrew Szeto, Debbie Bruckner, & Ashley Humeniuk

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he promotion of mental health and well-being on campuses is strongly supported in Canada. It is widely accepted that health and wellbeing are essential elements for effective learning (Anasari, 2010). High levels of distress can negatively impact the student experience and satisfaction (Cotton, Dollard, & De Jonge, 2002), and adversely impact academic success (Eisenberg, Golberstein, & Hunt, 2009; Kitzrow, 2003).

Research-intensive universities often promote cultures of excellence and achievement, demanding high performance from students, faculty, and staff. These cultures may exacerbate mental health issues or lead to increased stress and stigma in the work and school environment.

Canadian data from the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) shows growing numbers of post-secondary students experiencing mental and emotional health concerns (American College Health Association, 2013, 2016). This data in addition to the lived experience of the student services field have led to strong support for promoting mental health and well-being on campuses. Responses include the development of institutional specific strategies, expansion of services, and the growth of community partnerships and communities of practice (CoP) (CACUSS and provincial CoPs such as Healthy Minds, Healthy Campuses and Healthy Campus Alberta). Mental health information has been integrated into significant strategy documents, including the Postsecondary Education Partnership – Alcohol Harms strategy (Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse, 2016), the Post-Secondary Student Mental Health: Guide to a Systemic Approach (Canadian Association of College & University Student Services and Canadian Mental Health Association, 2013), and the Okanagan Charter for Health Promoting Universities & Colleges (2015). In Alberta, post-secondary institutions have been working with the Ministry of Advanced Education to develop a common provincial framework for mental health and addictions services and metrics for quantifying results.

Within this national and provincial context, the University of Calgary joins campuses across Canada committed to enhancing the mental health of the campus community, including students, faculty, staff, and postdoctoral scholars. Through the work of the Mental Health Strategy Task Force, and as a result of a broad consultation process, 28 action-oriented recommendations were generated to address expansion, enhancement, or development of initiatives in six strategic focus areas (see Figure 1) (University of Calgary, 2015). Our Strategy takes a whole-campus and settingsbased approach. Therefore, the Strategy applies to the entire campus community with the six focus areas addressing mental health at multiple levels, specifically at the individual level (Raising awareness & promoting wellbeing, Personal resilience and self-management), programmatic level (Early identification & response, Direct

service & support), and university/cultural level (Institutional policies, processes, & procedures; Supportive campus environment, physical spaces). Strategically, we also considered how partnerships and CoPs can facilitate positive change in mental health on campus. Through the Strategy, the University of Calgary commits to fostering a caring campus culture where students, faculty, staff, and postdoctoral scholars are supported, valued, included, connected, and flourishing.

The University of Calgary Campus Mental Health Strategy was launched in December 2015. One and a half years later, where are we? What work has been done with the implementation committee and the 28 recommendations from the Strategy? How has the campus ensured that the Strategy is a living document, pivotal in changing the cultural climate?

One of the 28 recommendations of the Strategy was to create an implementation committee to oversee the implementation process, guide implementation, and work towards fulfilment of specific recommendations. A broad-based implementation committee was formed in the summer of 2016 from various campus stakeholders. One of the first tasks of this committee was to prioritize the 28 recommendations into short (1 year), medium (3 years), and long-term (5 years) goals using a paired prioritization “dotmocracy” exercise. Through this process, a set of recommendations have been identified as early priorities and currently being worked on by the implementation committee and subcommittees: • Develop a robust evaluation strategy to measure the long-term impact and sustainability of the collective mental health and well-being initiatives.

• Increase availability of programming and training for students, faculty, staff, and postdoctoral scholars to build personal resilience and wellness and to promote academic and professional success.

• Develop a centralized website to provide efficient and effective access to mental health information for all campus community members. Incorporate on-campus champions in programming, planning, and marketing initiatives.

• Establish supportive response mechanisms to check in with students, faculty, staff, or postdoctoral scholars in cases of concern or unreported absences.

Figure 1. University of Calgary Framework for Mental Health

There were many important factors that contributed to the development of our Campus Mental Health Strategy with many of these factors continuing to be critical to the implementation phase: • Multidisciplinary involvement: ensuring broad campus representation on working committees, including research, clinical, teaching and learning voices, student services, and student groups.

• Senior leadership buy-in and support: sponsorship by the Provost and strong endorsement by the President and Senior Leadership Team.

• Dedicated resources: a budget to support the development and promotion of the Strategy, the implementation committee, expanded mental health services and programming, and a position to steward and direct the implementation of the strategy.

• Student voice: representation from student governments, students with lived experience, and student clubs.

• Commitment to evidence-based best practice: links with faculty-based research, financial support for graduate students to evaluate the effectiveness of mental health and addiction services.

• Understanding and learning from experience: debriefing following crises and emergency response events to provide timely and relevant feedback regarding services, support, and processes.

• Partnerships: recognition of the power of partnerships, including ongoing campus events and initiatives, collaboration with community organizations, and membership in a new and vibrant provincial Community of Practice (www. healthycampusalberta.ca).

• Strengthening the institutional context: reviewing all new policies with a mental health lens, engaging campus planning resources.

• Work with external partner organizations to expand support in faculties, alternate locations, and through various modalities and hours of services including the provision of 24-hour access to mental health resources on campus and within the community.

• Optimize referral protocols in counselling and case management systems.

• Enhance training in crisis management for managers and campus leaders.

• Promote broad-based training and provide guidance on compliance with policy and legislative requirements.

A second action the implementation committee has taken was to form various subcommittees that will address specific or sets of recommendations (e.g. a Teaching and Learning subcommittee, an evaluation subcommittee) or carry out strategyrelevant tasks or provide supports (e.g. a communications subcommittee). For example, the Teaching and Learning subcommittee has recruited widely from faculty that are seen as leaders in curriculum and pedagogy on our campus to tackle how to create course content, structure, and pedagogy that are supportive of mental health in students. As well, this group will examine the creation of a for-credit resiliency course available for students on campus. The Evaluation subcommittee is responsible for evaluating the Strategy and its outcomes. This subcommittee has taken the approach of examining various levels and outcomes related to strategy implementation, including examining program level outcomes (e.g. whether a workshop on resiliency increases resiliency), whether we are fulfilling the recommendations, monitoring mental health and wellbeing at a university level (e.g. NCHA data, EAP usage) and at the process level of the strategy (e.g. efficiency and structure of the implementation committee).

Although our journey to creating a caring and supportive campus culture via the Strategy has just begun, we have made significant progress towards fulfilling the 28 recommendations, with work started on most, if not all, of the recommendations.

Despite this quick start, the implementation of such a foundational document in a complex context with various stakeholders can create some challenges along the way.

One current challenge is how to take a broad university-level document and make it COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 29

relevant for individual campus community members. Some options being explored to address this challenge are having faculties, departments, and units commit to the implementation of the strategy. Another option may be to tailor messaging to specific groups, such as academic staff or graduate students, as opposed to having a general message to all campus members. With increasing awareness of the Strategy, and more generally, mental health on our campus, we are seeing many individuals or groups that are passionate about the topic and would like to get involved. Although this in itself is great and speaks to the evolving culture on our campus, it also leads to questions of how to engage and mobilize these individuals and groups in a timely and stimulating fashion.

In general, the Campus Mental Health Strategy has been well received and is being supported at all levels within the University of Calgary. Since the launch of the Strategy, we have made significant progress on the 28 recommendations. From an anecdotal level, the Strategy has had an impact on it overarching goal of creating a caring campus community. As our journey continues to fulfil this goal and the goals specified in the 28 recommendations, we look forward to reporting on our progress and witnessing a developing supportive culture at the University of Calgary.

References American College Health Association (2013). American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment II: Canadian reference group data report Spring 2013. Hanover, MD: American College Health Association.

American College Health Association (2016). American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment II: Canadian reference group data report Spring 2016. Hanover, MD: American College Health Association.

El Ansari, W., & Stock, C. (2010). Is the health and wellbeing of university students associated with their academic performance? Cross sectional findings from the United Kingdom. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 7(2), 509-527.

Canadian Association of College & University Student Services and Canadian Mental Health Association.

(2013). Post-Secondary Student Mental Health: Guide to a Systemic Approach. Vancouver, BC: Author.

Retrieved from www.cacuss.ca/_Library/documents/CACUSS_Handbook.pdf Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (2016). Reducing the harms related to alcohol on Canadian campuses. Ottawa, ON: Author. Retrieved from http://www.ccsa.ca/Resource%20Library/CCSAPostsecondary-Education-Partnership-Alcohol-Harms-Strategy-2016-en.pdf Cotton, S. J., Dollard, M. F. & De Jonge, J. (2002). Stress and student job design: Satisfaction, well-being, and performance in university students. International Journal of Stress Management, 9(3), 147-162.

Eisenberg, D., Golberstein, E., & Hunt, J. B. (2009). Mental health and academic success in college. The BE Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, 9(1), 1-37.

Kitzrow, M. A. (2003). The mental health needs of today’s college students: Challenges and recommendations. NASPA Journal, 41(1), 167-181.

Okanagan Charter: An International Charter for Health Promoting Universities and Colleges (2015).

Retrieved from https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/53926/items/1.0132754 University of Calgary (2015). Campus Mental Health Strategy: Creating a community of caring. Calgary, AB: Author. Retrieved from http://www.ucalgary.ca/provost/files/provost/15-unv-018-mental_health_ strategy_final.pdf

Andrew Szeto, PhD is the Director, Mental Health Strategy (Office of the Provost) at the University of Calgary and can be reached at aszeto@ ucalgary.ca.

Debbie Bruckner, MSW, RSW is the Senior Director, Student Wellness, Access & Support at the University of Calgary and can be reached at dbruckne@ucalgary.ca.

Ashley Humeniuk, MPH is in the Cumming School of Medicine Class of 2019 at the University of Calgary and can be reached at amhumeni@ucalgary.ca.

CACUSS Memories and Reflections: Baby CACUSS is Born

C

by Nancy Willihnganz

ACUSS conferences always meant the official beginning of summer, and I believe I have been a CACUSS member since 1973. Every conference I have attended has been memorable. At some conferences it is a keynote speaker; Joey Smallwood, Justice Murray Sinclair, and W.O. Mitchell stand out in my memory. At some it was the food, like the elegant University of Toronto soiree or the lobster supper in Prince Edward Island.

At others it has been for the hospitality experienced (University of Calgary and Université de Sherbrooke). There were always consistently engaging presentations from colleagues doing similar work with students in innovative and interesting ways, pre-conference workshops to provide depth, and opportunities to learn about programs in other student services units than my own.

My first CACUSS connection was in Banff in the 1970s. I was a grad student helping to train residence staff at the Banff School of Fine Arts, and I was invited to join in with some social activities. I was hooked on the combination of learning about programs for students across Canada, and attending the conferences to see parts of Canada that I would not have seen.

One year I flew from St. John’s to Victoria on Canada Day and tried unsuccessfully to earn double air miles for my sea to sea flight on that day.

The depth of friendships and the opportunities to know, work, and play with colleagues across Canada is what I value most. In the pre-electronic era, connections were face-to-face, around meeting tables and dinner tables. In the 70’s, there were provincial representatives, regional representatives and Divisional representatives to CACUSS. I had the honour to serve in these roles for many years and my mission was to put the “College” into the College and University organization.

My most memorable CACUSS conference was when I made a presentation at the 1980 conference in Victoria, British Columbia. I was responsible for the CUCCA (counselling association) program and my husband, Bob, was the CACUSS conference chair. Planning, of course, begins years before the event, but as the June conference approached, I was pregnant with a due date for mid-conference. My plan was simple: get through the conference and then have the baby. I attended the opening reception and an uncomfortable first day of the conference. “Baby CACUSS” was born on the morning of the second conference day, much welcomed by friends from across the country. In years to come, I was always happy when the annual conference didn’t fall on June 17 to complicate birthday parties. Coincidently “Baby CACUSS” is now a practicing midwife in Vancouver!

Nancy Willihnganz works in Counselling Services at the Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia.

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COMMUNIQUÉ / VOLUME 17 / ISSUE 3 / WINTER 2017 / 31

Conférence ASEUCC 11 juin – 14 juin 2017

CACUSS Conference

June 11 – 14, 2017

Hosted by Carleton University, the 2017 conference will be heading to Ottawa.

The conference will explore the theme of Our Past, Our Future.

Organisée par l'Université Carleton, la conférence de 2017 aura lieu à Ottawa.

La conférence explorera le thème, Notre passé, notre futur.

Ouverture de l'inscription hâtive!

Early Bird registration now open!

• Ouverture de la réception au Musée Canadien de la nature

• Opening reception at the Canadian Museum of Nature

• Grandes idées: Présentations PechaKucha

• Big Ideas: powered by PechaKucha

• Exposition et séances d’affiches (deux jours)

• Two-day Exhibitor Showcase

• Présentation d’un conférencier principal, Frank O’Dea

Nous attendons avec impatience de vous voir à...

• Keynote speaker, Frank O’Dea

We look forward to seeing you in...

Ottawa, Ontario!

Pour plus de renseignements veuillez visiter...

For more details please visit...

www.cacuss.ca/conference 32 / COMMUNIQUÉ / TOME 17 / NUMÉRO 3 / HIVER 2017