THE SECOND YEAR AT EMORY PROGRAM: ASSESSING A RESIDENTIAL SECOND-YEAR INITIATIVE

Ben PerlmanJohn LynchBrett Page

Emory University

15th National Students in Transition Conference 2008

GOALS FOR PRESENTATION

Explain the basics of building a living-learning community for second-year students

Understand the history of Emory’s program

Learn about different ways to assess your new initiative

Identify implications for student affairs practice

SNAPSHOT OF EMORY UNIVERSITY

Private, selective, research university w/an undergraduate population <6,000

2-year live-on requirement Undergrad students admitted to

liberal arts college Some students pursue education

in business or nursing school after 2nd year of college

Many of our students are interested in pre-health or pre-professional majors and programs

THE SECOND YEAR AT EMORY PROGRAM

Living-Learning Community dedicated to second-year student success

4th year of program Programs

Career Planning Academic Advising Faculty Interaction Life Skills Traditions

SYE TIMELINE @EMORY

• Nov 2002: support and approval of the Campus Life Committee of the Board of Trustees

• Nov 2003: SYE Committee formed• Fall 2004: began pilot program in

predominately sophomore hall• Summer 2005: extensive renovation of

Woodruff, home to the program• Fall 2005: official start of the program• Fall 2007: Incorporation of second residence

hall• Fall 2008: Expansion to all of second-year

housing

SOPHOMORE STUDENT DEVELOPMENT MODEL

Staged model in which second-year students move through 4 different stages: Random Exploration Focused Exploration Tentative Choices Commitment

Student focus on these stages in three areas: Peer relationships Self Academic choices

Schaller (2005)

SCHALLER (2005)

Friendships Self Academics

Stage 1Random

Exploration

Accepts friendships as they come, may be very unhealthy

Wanders through life choices, not sure of

what to believe

Has not yet considered

academic/major choice

Stage 2Focus

Exploration

Is disenchanted with friendships,

frustrated with options

Recognizes problems within self,

bothered but not clear what to do

Looking for major or career idea that might fit with self

Stage 3Tentative Choices

Decides to keep some relationships and leave others

Begins to make statements about beliefs, desires, describes self

Found major or career, but still not

clear how it will “work out”

Stage 4Commitment

Makes healthy choices, “college

buddies”

Firm in description of self, knows what

wants

Sees how future will unfold, committed to

career

SCHALLER (2006)

Implications for Community Colleges Financial Issues

Use of credit/loans Loss of first-year aid

Developmental Education Not directed enough in educational choices to

make a choice of major Transfer Preparation

EMORY NEEDED TO PURSUE SYE

Gap between wealth of services for first-year students and absence of services for upperclassmen

Concerns about students transferring and satisfaction issues

New second-year living requirement

STAFFING

2 Buildings Woodruff Hall Clifton Tower

Area Director Full-Time Post-master’s degree Live-in

Graduate Student Hall Director Part-time Live-in

Hall Director Fellow Full-time Post-bach Live-in

Academic Advisor Part-time Graduate student Live-in

STUDENT STAFFING

1 Senior Resident Advisor (Senior) 17 Resident Advisors (Juniors and

Seniors)

26 to 1 - Resident to RA Ratio

SEMI-SUITE STYLE

APARTMENT STYLE

WOODRUFF SPACES

Grilling Area

Study Rooms

RA Office

Grilling Area

Study Rooms

RA Office

Smart ClassroomsSmart Classrooms

Exercise RoomExercise Room

WOODRUFF SPACES

Drop-In Spaces

Professional Staff Offices

Drop-In Spaces

Professional Staff Offices

Academic Advising OfficeAcademic Advising Office

Dining FacilitiesDining Facilities

ASSESSMENTS WE’VE DONE

ASSESSMENTS

• National instruments:– Educational Benchmarking Incorporated (EBI)– National Study of Living Learning Programs

(NSLLP)• Local instruments:

– Sophomore specific survey– SYE registration form– ResLife Rewards program– Program evaluations

EBI

Measures resident satisfaction and perceptions of learning experiences and climate

Distributed online 3,000 undergraduate residents

sampled 25% response rate EBI provides an in-depth statistical

analysis accessible online and in paper format

HIGHLIGHTS FROM EBI

Sophomores in SYE residence halls were much more satisfied than sophomores not in SYE residence halls

Sophomores in SYE residence halls reported higher perceptions of learning than sophomores in other SYE residence halls

Students, in general, reported higher satisfaction and learning when they reported going to programs “often”

NSLLP

• Relatively new national instrument• Uses the I-E-O model of assessment• Measures input variables, environmental factors,

and learning outcomes• Distributed online• Compares students in living-learning programs

to students not in living-learning programs• 17% response rate• NSLLP provides a statistical analysis accessible

in paper format

HIGHLIGHTS FROM NSLLP

Significantly higher than other LLP participants in terms of: Influences on signing up for program:

wanted to live in a specific residence hall Perceived growth in cognitive complexity Perceived confidence in college success Confidence in problem-solving ability

SOPHOMORE SURVEY

Asked about learning, perceptions, and feedback

Locally developed questions based on anecdotal feedback

Distributed online Sent to all sophomores 30% response rate

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOPHOMORE SURVEY Second-Year students want more support from

Residence Life Where students live as a second-year greatly

impacts their perception of and participation in SYE.

Programming for and interactions with second-year students must be different from those with first-year students

Second-Year students want a stronger cohort identity/community

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOPHOMORE SURVEY More programming on…

SYE REGISTRATION

• Locally developed• Originally used as an “application” into the

SYE program• Online• All rising sophomores were required to

complete the form if they wanted to live in the SYE designated buildings: Woodruff and Clifton

• 85% participation

SYE REGISTRATION

• Name, student ID #• Please mark if you are interested in any business or

graduate school programs: Pre-BBA, Pre-Health, Pre-Law, PhD or Master’s, Pre-MBA

• Please mark any majors you are currently pursuing or are interested in: (60 majors listed)

• Please mark the topics you would be interested in learning about at future SYE programs: Choosing a major, Health and Wellness, Career decision-making/Internships, Academic advising, etc.

• How would you contribute to or participate in the Second Year at Emory program?

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SYE REGISTRATION Interest in professional or graduate

programs

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SYE REGISTRATION Top five majors:

1. Business Administration2. Economics3. Psychology4. Biology5. Chemistry

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SYE REGISTRATION Top five programming interests:

1. Study Abroad2. Career Decisions & Internships3. Community Service4. Planning for Junior & Senior Year5. Choosing a Major

ADAPTATIONS OF SYE REGISTRATION

Require all rising sophomores to complete form as part of their housing sign-up process

Make some questions more specific Ask about extracurricular involvement Use the form as a tool to get students

to think about their sophomore year and future plans

RES LIFE REWARDS

• Stemmed from our finding that more engaged students generally were more satisfied and reported higher levels of learning

• Attendance at events is carefully tracked• For every six programs a student attends he/she receives

a reward– Water bottle, hydro-clock, t-shirts, journals, etc.

• Analyze what types of programs students are interested in• Analyze demographics and residence hall location

associated with high attendance at programs• Eventually we will analyze differences associated with high

engagement versus low engagement

PROGRAM EVALUATIONS

Distribute online Normal satisfaction questions (how did

you like this program?) Learning outcome related questions

USING THE DATA

SHARING AND INTERPRETATION

Share data with RA’s and Hall Directors for programming and Coke Conversations

Share aggregate data with other offices (particularly the Career Center, Business School, and Academic Advising) to assist them in their own planning

Ask students and RA’s to interpret the data

IDENTIFIED A NEED FOR CHANGE

Sophomores felt left out of SYE programs

Students did not have a clear sense of the purpose of SYE

Students wanted more support and programming

Residents felt disconnected from their student staff (Coke Conversations felt awkward)

DEVELOPED PLAN FOR SYE

• Form partnerships with more campus offices• Offer programs and services that all sophomore

residents can utilize• Offer programs and services that support student

development so that the students:– Develop greater self awareness – Define goals for their Emory experience– Utilize campus resources – Connect with others through meaningful relationships

• Use assessment to plan and evaluate programs and show what learning occurs as a result of participation in SYE programs

SYE LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Developing Self-Awareness Demonstrated self reflection skills Identify personal strengths

• Setting Goals Articulating their goals Choosing a major Think about possible career fields

SYE LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Finding Resources Identify required classes for their major Creating and maintaining a resume Identify co-curricular and extracurricular interests Identify university resources

• Connecting With Others Displaying social skills necessary to live and work Forming meaningful relationships with students,

staff, faculty, and alumni Feel stronger ties to the university

ASSESSMENT PARADIGM SHIFT

Old assessment model: Compare students in SYE to students not in

SYE (“experimental group” vs. “control group”)

New assessment model: Use involvement in SYE programs

FUTURE ASSESSMENTS

Research project: long term outcomes of the SYE program

Development of a pre- and post- test survey instrument for sophomores

Connecting assessment with 1st year program and upperclassmen experience to do a longitudinal analysis

DISCUSSION GROUPS

CONTACT INFO

Ben Perlman ben.perlman@emory.edu

John Lynch jwlynch@emory.edu

Brett Page btpage@learnlink.emory.edu