Sara J. Finney Randy L. Mitchell Peter J. Swerdzewski Cultivating Common Ground: Determining Division-Wide Student Learning and Development Outcomes Sara J. Finney Randy L. Mitchell Peter J. Swerdzewski

Overview of Program The Call for Common Outcomes Creating a Strategy to Uncover Common Outcomes The Logistics of Implementing the Strategy The Final Product Epilogue: How this Benefits the Division

The Call for Common Outcomes Divisional history of departmental objectives based on learning outcomes Lack of knowledge about outcomes across departments and across the university Divisional strategic plan objective We will identify, articulate and communicate throughout the campus community shared divisional learning outcomes for students. Objective came from staff, not leadership Associate VPs suggested use of annual retreat for workshop to identify common outcomes Long-term relationship between departments and CARS

Importance of common outcomes Strong desire to have something in common Opportunities for collaboration Criteria for decision-making, planning, and budgeting Opportunities for assessment Increased accountability for use of resources Increased credibility for the division regarding its contribution to student learning and development, internally and externally

Creating a Strategy to Uncover Common Outcomes The need for division-wide communications It was important that all programs heard about all other programs Full-day retreat Important that the facilitators had the outcomes prior to the retreat Forced divisions to think about their outcomes months prior to retreat Essential to the discovery of common outcomes by facilitators Aided in ordering presenters Important that the facilitators uncovered what they believed where the common outcomes prior to the retreat

The Logistics of Implementing the Strategy The Outcomes Template Instructions Examples Preliminary examination of received outcomes by facilitators

Blank template / directions

Examples Example: Orientation

Example from Judicial Affairs Example: Judicial

CMSS

Preliminary Examination of Outcomes by Facilitators Four assessment specialists initially reviewed all outcomes Task was to find commonly-held outcomes across programs A commonly-held outcome does not need to be shared across all programs Program-specific outcomes (those not shared across more than one program) were not the focus of this activity Individual examination of outcomes to uncover commonalities Group discussion and comparison of findings Took one full day Majority of individually-defined common outcomes were common across reviewers Importantly, some programs had undeveloped or poorly-worded outcomes that could not be grouped with other programs’ outcomes

The Retreat Morning Session: Over Lunch: Afternoon Session: Each program was given five minutes to discuss their outcomes Outcomes were projected behind them Commonalities were mentioned as the morning session progressed Over Lunch: Assessment specialists “uncovered” the commonalities Made some minor adjustments to our preliminary list of common outcomes Afternoon Session: List of common outcomes and programs that support them shared with group and discussed Final list of agreed-upon common outcomes

Uncovering Three Broad Types of Outcomes Learning outcomes Attitudinal / developmental outcomes Behavioral outcomes

Common Outcomes and Programs that Support Them Created document with all programs’ outcomes Grouped common-sounding outcomes from various programs Named each general outcome

Learning Outcomes How to Learn Alcohol-related

An Example of Shared Attitudinal Outcomes Feelings of relatedness Academic motivation

An Example of Shared Behavioral Outcomes Decrease in maladaptive behaviors Civic engagement Behavioral Outcomes

The Final Product Directors had to present to their VP Reiterate not common to all programs These are just outcomes that appear across multiple programs Whereas this list of common outcomes is useful to communicate student affairs outcomes both internally and externally, the previous tables linking the programs to the outcomes is useful for the AVPs in that they know which programs support each of the outcomes.

Epilogue: How These Common Outcomes Benefit the Division Identification of outcomes was the first objective in the divisional strategic plan to be completed Divisional directors meet regularly to operationalize the outcomes Departments are using the common outcomes to develop objectives Outcomes will be published on the division’s website, distributed to all division staff, and shared with campus public relations for dissemination in the fall Outcomes have been utilized as a part of new employee orientation along with vision, mission, and values Outcomes have been used in planning and decision making