Addressing Graduate Student Wellness through Climate Committees Dr. Irice Castro, University of California-Irvine/University of Southern California Genia Nizkorodov, University of California-Irvine Cortney Simmons, University of California-Irvine Dr. Jennifer Craig Welti, University of California-Irvine Monday, March 5, 2018 Convention Center, Terrace Ballroom 3 Area 1 JENNIE

Session Roadmap 1. Learning Outcomes 2. About & Context 3. Initiatives 4. Student Perspective 5. Activity: Build Your Own! 6. Q&A JENNIE

Learning Outcomes Ability to explain the value of climate committees for the overall well-being of graduate student populations Ability to initiate new, or modify existing climate committees JENNIE

Departments and Programs Student Demographics About the School of Social Ecology Departments and Programs Student Demographics JENNIE

JENNIE N = 5,196 N = 356

N – 5,196 N – 356 Jennie 72% white alone 6.5% Black or African American 1.7% American Indian and Alaskan 14.8% Asian 0.5% Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 38.9% Hispanic or Latino N – 5,196 N – 356

History 1) Why it was founded 2) Composition 3) Evolving purpose of our Climate Committee JENNIE

Intellectual development Initiatives - JENNIE

Emotional development Initiatives - JENNIE

Student Perspective- Role and Responsibilities Student liaisons to faculty and administration Learning about the needs of SE students Developing strategies to address the needs and concerns of students Key Goal: Providing student perspective 10 minutes Cortney 1. Anonymous surveys, townhalls without administrators or faculty present, offer meetings with students, social media, meeting over coffee, taking courses with other students. Want to help students without identifying them and without feeling singled out. 2. Developing strategies Soundboard of the effectiveness of existing strategies– lived experiences Develop new initiatives with student input (surveys, discussions, etc.) Examples Genia: Student wellness workshops Genia: Women in academia. 3. In the room when decisions made Concerns are shared with key decisionmakers

Student Perspective- Benefits Committee Effectiveness Perceived Student Benefits Equal opportunity to participate in conversations Learning about the ins/outs of campus administration Student-driven initiatives Staying informed Diverse representation 10 minutes Cortney

Student-driven options Student Perspective- What can be improved Power dynamics  Evidence-based Funding Student-driven options Meeting structure Establishing norms Low visibility Event attendance Member transition s Student stipends ower dynamics between students and faculty members.  Typically a safe setting to air grievances However, there have been times where students' concerns or ideas were met with mockery or disdain.  As though these concerns were not legitimate or did not fall under the scope/responsibilities of the CC Organization of meetings.  Spend too much time re-visiting old topics.  One meeting per quarter-- may be more helpful to meet more than once, or have better communication between members during the quarter Visibility Student representatives need to do more to make their roles and the Committee more visible within their department Something I definitely did not do.  Role does not need to be the main priority, but still should've tried more.  Website needs some work Possibly add an anonymous comment box to allow students to air their concerns.  Member transitions Committee Members at Large stay the same Faculty members seem to change often (at least within PSB) Student members also change Spending too much time orienting new members to what the CC is, has already achieved, and is currently working on.  Not dedicated to the position or the goals of the committee-- more of a CV filler or service requirement.  Poor meeting attendance Attendance at events Could be improved with visibility of committee

Build Your Own! 1) Makeup of Committee 2) Launching the Committee 3) Collect and Analyze Data 4) Initiatives 5) Evaluation Irice

Questions? ALL

References Tompkins, K. A., Brecht, K., Tucker, B., Neander, L. L., & Swift, J. K. (2016). Who matters most? The contribution of faculty, student-peers, and outside support in predicting graduate student satisfaction. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 10(2), 102-108. Stanton-Salazar, R. D. (2016). Contributions of social capital theory and social network models in advancing the connection between students’ school-based learning and community-based opportunities for pursuing interest-driven learning. Building Youth Social Capital through Connected Learning, University of California, Irvine. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/CA

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