Publications
- Accreditation and the Role of the Student Affairs Educator
- Assessment in Practice: A Companion Guide to ASK Standards
Past Webinars
Recordings are available by registering your name and email address.
Considerations for Gender Demographic Questions in Research and Assessment (Link coming soon!)
Presented by: D. Chase J. Catalano, Ed.D., Jeananne Knies, Ph.D. & Chelsea Lyles
Have you encountered difficulties in asking about gender expression and/or gender identity in surveys, interviews, or focus groups? Join Chase Catelano, Jeananne Knies, and Chelsea Lyles for a conversation about challenges and considerations for designing gender demographic questions for assessment and research projects. We will briefly define gender expression and gender identity and offer practical examples of some of the challenges we encountered as assessment professionals and researchers in higher education and student affairs. We will discuss reasons for (and for not) asking about gender expression and/or gender identity, practical considerations for data collection and data analysis, what it means to do engage in inclusive assessment and research, and provide resources for future use.
This webinar was offered through a collaboration by ACPA’s Coalition for Women's Identities and the Commission for Assessment and Evaluation. The Coalition for Women’s Identities supports, develops, and empowers the spectrum of women- and female-identified people and those in solidarity with us through advocacy and activism, engaging community, and scholarship. The Commission for Assessment and Evaluation promotes assessment skills and knowledge to facilitate and support student learning, development, and effective student affairs practice.
Presenters: Jen Wells, Noah Henry-Darwish
During this 40th anniversary year of the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS), the 10th Edition of the CAS Professional Standards for Higher Education includes significant and timely changes. A brief sneak peak of the changes includes alignment with guiding principles, reorganization of the parts, and a new section. During this webinar, we will provide a brief overview of CAS, discuss the updates, and review the many uses of CAS.
A Storytelling Approach to Data Visualization
Presenters: Kristen McKinney, Matt Venaas, Sherry Woosley
Student affairs professionals are beginning to understand more clearly the need to better visualize data for results to be put to good use. However, even the most beautiful visuals will have little effect if not part of a cohesive and compelling story. Are there lessons that we can take from great storytellers when thinking through our visuals? This webinar will connect storytelling elements to data visualization to provide practical lessons for effectively communicating the stories in our data.
Assessment from a Vice President’s Point of View
Join us for a one-hour webinar panel discussion with three Vice President’s for Student Affairs presented by ACPA’s Commission for Assessment and Evaluation. This webinar will feature Dr. Zebulun Davenport, Vice President for Student Affairs at West Chester University, Dr. Cathy Akens, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, and Dr. Laura Bayless, Vice President for Student Affairs at Fitchburg State University. This discussion will be moderated by Dr. Allison Kanny, Assistant Director for Assessment and Strategic Initiatives in Student Affairs at Southern Methodist University.
This webinar will provide participants with the opportunity to hear from and engage with the three panelist in discussing their perspective of the role of assessment in Student Affairs, creating a culture of assessment, and how assessment professionals can work in tandem to support their Vice President’s for Student Affairs.
Assessing Experiential Learning with VALUE
Many departments within and outside of Student Affairs create employment and leadership development opportunities for students. As beyond the classroom educators, we should view these contexts for what they must be—highly effective learning experiences. However, assessing this learning in a meaningful manner can be difficult. Attend this webinar to learn how departments at the University of Southern Mississippi have enhanced the educational potential of these experiences using intentional learning-focused conversations, AAC&U’s VALUE Rubrics, and sound pedagogy.
Featuring Amy Homkes-Hayes and colleagues. University of Michigan's Student Life has advanced research and practice on student learning using integrative learning pedagogy. Integrative ePortfolios measured by action based research have demonstrated significant gains in student learning. The scope of research has widened to include content analysis and controlled experiments. Integrative outcomes have also served as models for measuring student life wide student learning outcomes. In this session, practitioners and researchers examine both effective approaches to measuring student learning, and the practical implications of the research.
Assessing Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education
Many colleges and universities across the United States have created committees, departments, and leadership roles dedicated to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion on campus. As we experience a surge of diversity and inclusion efforts in higher education, how should campus officials approach assessment and planning in ways that demonstrate value and improvement in these areas?
In this webinar, Ryan J. Davis, Director of Assessment and Educational Programs at Purdue University, will provide an overview of a variety of approaches that campus officials may employ to fit their institutional and departmental missions, values, goals, and cultures. Specifically, participants will be able to identify multiple approaches to assessment and planning that enable campus officials to demonstrate the breadth and depth of their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts within and across each campus unit.
Recruiting Strategies Across Generations
The work environment is composed of a multi-generational landscape (Silent, Boomers, Gen X, Y, and soon Z). Each generation has different work values and preferences impacting employer recruitment efforts. This session will examine recruiting strategies across generations collected via an online survey. Participants will examine their work values and motivations through a generational lens and have the opportunity to engage in thoughtful discussion about recruiting strategies for the various generations and how they can assist both students and employer partners.
Narrative inquiry is a form of qualitative research that privileges participant stories. It is a complex methodology widely in educational research. However, it is rarely leveraged by administrators in student affairs. During this session, participants will hear from and be able to ask questions of a panel of two doctoral candidates and one faculty member who used narrative inquiry as the methodology of study for their dissertations. Challenges and strengths of narrative inquiry will also be identified and discussed.
Assessing Cultures of Assessment
With increasing calls for accountability, assessment has become a staple function for all divisions of student affairs. Ad hoc assessment occurring in pockets must be transformed into a culture where assessment is embedded into daily practice. Based on a chapter in the forthcoming ACPA/NASPA publication entitled Coordinating Divisional Assessment, participants attending this webinar will describe characteristics of cultures of assessment, use a tool to assess a division’s culture of assessment, and develop steps to cultivate such a culture.
Results from the National Student Financial Wellness Study
The National Student Financial Wellness Study (NSFWS) is a national survey of college students which examined the financial attitudes, practices, and knowledge of students from all types of institutions of higher education across the United States via an online survey. The purpose of the 2014 NSFWS was to gain a more thorough and accurate picture of the financial wellness of students throughout the United States. The NSFWS was administered by The Ohio State University in collaboration with co-investigators from Cuyahoga Community College, DePaul University, Iowa State University, Oberlin College, Ohio University, and Santa Fe College.
The Journal of Student Affairs Inquiry is an online, peer-reviewed publication for inquiry (i.e., assessment, evaluation, and research) in student affairs. Intentionally comprehensive and flexible, The Journal of Student Affairs Inquiry aims to advance the scholarship of assessment practice in student affairs and engage practitioner scholars in thoughtful and critical discussions of inquiry in order to improve student experiences, promote equity and access, and advance the field of assessment in student affairs. Additionally, the editorial board encourages engagement and feedback by publishing letters to the editor and responses to published pieces. The Student Affairs Assessment Leaders (SAAL) in partnership with Oregon State University, invite you to a new space for conversation about inqiury in Student Affairs - the Journal of Student Affairs Inqiruy.