Assess & Profess The First Step Is Always The Scariest
By: Maralis Mercado
To many the word “assessment” is a nasty four-‐letter word, but to some assessment is the icing on the cake! Let’s talk about how even a simple assessment plan can help you achieve your programming, professional or personal goals and how to encourage others to get on the assessment bandwagon. It’s all about perspective. If you look at assessment as an opportunity to showcase your (fantastic) work and demonstrate how effective (or not) your program is versus feeling like you’re doing it because your supervisor told you to or worse they are trying to keep tabs on you, then it won’t feel like something extra that you have to add on to your to-‐do list. Also, the return on your investment will be well worth it. Many professionals have saved their jobs or attained grants due to their assessment practice. Continued on Page 2
Assessment An Interview In Action With Clay Adams internship experiences to nutritional counseling, the students of From Duke University are offered a variety of services and opportunities. But how can we determine the success of these initiatives and continue to build upon those achievements? By putting assessment into action. Three years ago Clay Adams, Director of New Student Programs and Assistant Dean in Residence Life, started partnering with the Assessment and Professional Development Office to determine the success of the pre-‐orientation programs offered by the university. Each year, since the 1974 with the introduction of Project WILD (Wilderness Initiatives for Learning at Duke), students have come together before the start of their first-‐year to build lasting bonds, learn strategies for easing their transition to college and discover new things about themselves. Along with Project WILD, four other programs emerged including: Project Waves, Project Change, Project BUILD (Building Undergraduate Involvement in the Life of Durham), and Project Search. Together, they provide opportunities for almost 300 first-‐year students each summer.
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January 2013 Office of Assessment and Professional Development, Student Affairs Duke University
In This Edition The First Step Is Always The Scariest………………..…1 Assessment In Action…………….…………......1 Space Needs Inventory…..4 Culture of Evidence Inventory………………………4 Alliance Update ………..…...5 What We’re Reading………5 Congratulations……….…….5 Calendar……………………….6 Contact Us…………….…...….7
“…institutional
assessment efforts should not be concerned about valuing what can be
measured but, instead, about measuring that which is valued.“
-‐ Assessment in Practice: Putting Principles to Work on College Campuses
The First Step Is the Scariest…. (Cont.)
By: Maralis Mercado
My motto is “Document EVERYTHING!” You never know what information you may need later but its always best to have more than not enough. Also, as you begin to get your thoughts together, ask yourself some key questions about your program/event that you would want your assessment to answer. One should never do a program just to do it. Again, think about the return on investment. What is the point of it all (goals)? What do you want to have accomplished in the end (outcomes)? Once you know what you would like you’re end result to be, what steps do you need to take to get you there (objectives)? Starting really is this simple! Now, the more into you get, the more complex it can become. However, there are plenty of resources and professional development opportunities right here at Duke that can help you out! Here are a couple of resources: • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAhs-‐m6cNzY (GREAT FREE training on Goals and Objectives!) • http://www.eval.org/evaluationdocuments/progeval.html • http://www.wkkf.org/knowledge-‐center/resources/2010/w-‐k-‐kellogg-‐ foundation-‐evaluation-‐handbook.aspx • http://www.wkkf.org/knowledge-‐center/resources/2008/01/facilitators-‐guide-‐ for-‐participatory-‐evaluation-‐with-‐young-‐people.aspx • http://www.programevaluation.org/ (Interactive site!) • http://www.hillel.org/campus/guides/plan/default (This one is program specific!)
Need more? Try these search words: simple program plan, program evaluation, assessment, college assessment, and/or program goals.
Assessment In Action…. (Cont.)
An Interview With Clay Adams
After several years of surveying students who participated in these programs, Mr. Adams was able to determine that each of the programs were providing “tangible outcomes” including the ability to establish community and help ease the transition to college. He was also able to determine several adjustments that could be made to the programs to help improve their overall success including updating the communication methods used to connect with students prior to their arrival at the program and after program completion. With the data collected, Mr. Adams was not only able to discover methods for improving the programs, but he was also able to collect valuable data that could be utilized by other universities. With his peers at Washington University in St. Louis, Mr. Adams presented at the National Orientation Director’s Association Conference (NODAC). Held this past October in Las Vegas, Nevada, NODAC provided Mr. Adams with an opportunity to share how pre-‐ orientation programs offered by Duke University are reaching their mission of building communities for first-‐year students and making it easier for them to adjust to college. His colleagues at Washington University at Saint Louis, who also offer several pre-‐orientation programs, shared additional information related to program participation and retention. Mr. Adams, in partnership with Assessment and Professional Development, assessed the programs offered by his office and put that information into action by making needed adjustments to his programs and sharing that data with other orientation professionals working throughout the U.S. by presenting at a professional conference. Is your office ready to assess or even better, put your assessment into action? If so, schedule a consultation with A&PD by calling 919.684.4186. For more information about his presentation, the assessments conducted, or the pre-‐orientation programs, please contact Clay Adams at clay.adams@duke.edu or visit the new students page on the Student Affairs Website at http://studentaffairs.duke.edu/new-‐students.
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Space Needs Inventory Survey The Division of Student Affairs is taking an inventory of the space needs for events of 75+ people from Division departments/offices over the next 2.5 years. In particular, the Division is considering how it can best respond to upcoming closures to the Library, West Union Building, and Von Canon Rooms. Please take a few moments to identify and share your area’s needs from January 2013 through August 2015 for larger programs/events that would typically be held in the aforementioned locations. Please submit your information by February 1st (this is a hard deadline) by visiting the following link: http://studentvoice.com/duke/divisionofstudentaffairsspaceneeds
Culture of Evidence Inventory
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The Office of Assessment and Professional Development in partnership with the Division's Assessment Alliance is interested in facilitating discussion and reflection on the current culture of evidence. Please carefully read each statement below and check all the statements that apply to our Division of Student Affairs. If you have examples of how the statements are enacted, please share in the text box provided at the end of the checklist. This checklist is not designed to be a test but instead a tool that can be utilized as a foundation for dialogue. Thank you. Please complete this inventory by Friday, February 8, 2013. http://studentvoice.com/duke/cultureofevidencereadinessreview
What We’re Reading “Learning Charisma” Publication: Leadership Exchange Publisher: NASPA Publication Date: Winter 2013 Originally published in the 2012 Harvard Business Review, “Learning Charisma” discusses whether being a charismatic leader is a skill that can be taught or if it is naturally a part of a leader’s personality. “Student Affairs at Division I Institutions” Publication: Leadership Exchange Publisher: NASPA Publication Date: Winter 2013 Through a series of interviews with student affairs leaders at various universities, this article discusses ways in which student affairs staff can build partnerships with the athletics departments at their institutions. The article shares methods for making connections, handling conflicts, and tips for transitioning to a Division I school.
Congratulations
On December 13, 2012, the Assessment Alliance held their latest bi-‐monthly meeting. Below is a list of highlights from the meeting. -‐ Members of the Assessment Alliance signed up to contribute to the Assess & Profess Newsletter. -‐ The group worked in teams to review existing assessment tools to determine which tools could be valuable to various departments and how they aligned with the strategic plan. -‐ Maralis Mercado shared that she recently presented at the American Public Health Association Conference along with her office colleagues. -‐ The Office of Assessment and Professional Development shared that they are interested in beginning an assessment on the experiences of student workers within the division and on exploring methods to share assessment data on a more regular basis. The Assessment Alliance will have their next meeting on February 14, 2013. For more information about the alliance, including minutes from past meetings and a list of current members, please visit: http://studentaffairs.duke.edu/ra/assessm ent Page 5 of 7
Have you presented at a conference recently? Finished an assessment project? Submitted a paper to a journal? The Office of Assessment and Professional Development would love to share your success in the next newsletter. To be included in the February edition of Assess and Profess, email austina.white@duke.edu by February 20th.
Assessment Alliance Update
Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities & Assessments Space Needs Inventory Due Date: Friday, February 1, 2013 Responses to the Space Needs Inventory are due online on this date. More information about the inventory can be found on page four of the newsletter.
Culture of Evidence Inventory Due Date: Friday, February 8, 2013 Responses to the Culture of Evidence Inventory are due online on this date. More information can be found on page four of the newsletter.
Assessment Alliance Meeting Date: Thursday, February 14 ,2013 Time: 11:00am – 1:00pm Location: Griffith Board Room Members of the Assessment Alliance will be meeting to discuss issues pertaining to the assessment goals, strategies, and projects of The Division of Student Affairs.
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A Date With Data Date: Thursday, February 14, 2013 Time: 12:00pm to 1:00pm Location: Griffith Board Room On numerous occasions, we've heard Division employees say, 'I wish we had ABC data,' or 'If we only had ABC data, we could XYZ.' Well, your wait is over! This power packed lunch will provide opportunity for you share exactly what you desire in terms of data, consider the data bank we presently have and how you may 'double date' with other colleagues on data collection and analysis. You will also have opportunity to interact with members of the Assessment Alliance. Show your love for data and show up!
Soup and Scoop Date: Thursday, February 21, 2013 Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm Location: 201 Flowers In April of 2011, Dartmouth College and the National College Health Improvement Project (NCHIP) convened 32 universities to collectively address student health problems by bringing evidence into practice and measuring outcomes, focusing first with the Learning Collaborative on High-Risk Drinking. Since then, a team from Duke University has worked to expand upon its current efforts towards assessment and the reduction of harms related to high-risk alcohol use. In this dashboard style presentation, we will share a summary of the data, processes, and plans for the future.
Office of Assessment and Professional Development Of Student Affairs Division Duke University Stephanie Helms-‐Pickett, Director Email: Stephanie.helms.pickett@duke.edu Phone: (919) 684 -‐ 4582 Cole Taylor, Assistant Director Email: cole.taylor@duke.edu Phone: (919) 684 -‐ 4286 For More Updates and News, Like Our Facebook Page!