When I taught an assessment and evaluation course, one of my favorite activities was to ask students to create an assessment metaphor. Over the years,…
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For years, I rode by bike past this random marker in the middle of the country, just east of Bloomington-Normal, Illinois. I did a little…
Here’s the bottom lines: This data looks at the 2013 ISU graduating class and follows their incomes for 10 years after graduation. Holding an on-campus…
Belonging is associated with student success. We often think of student success and belonging as something shaped by experiences outside the classroom. However, effective teaching…
Sentiment analysis is a natural language processing (NLP) technique used to determine the emotional tone or attitude expressed in text. Text responses are placed into…
Moving Into Town—and Moving On by Cliff Adelman should be required reading for anyone interested in student success and retention. Even though it focused on…
The bottom lines for ISU is that institutional emphasis on well-being has decreased at ISU over the last 10 years. This trend mirrors trends in…
Yesterday’s Inside Higher Ed article highlighted increasing anxiety among graduating seniors about the job market. Another article outlined three strategies colleges can employ to empower…
When alumni reflect on their college experiences, few recall their course schedules and weekly assignments. Rather, it is the interactions and relationships they had with…
The American Council on Education released a report today highlighting why students stop out of college. The reasons can be distilled to the following: This…
by Chad Kahl & Lindsey Skaggs, Milner Library Milner Library has always been interested in what library users think about our services, resources, spaces, and…
The most recent Gallup poll on higher education found that more Americans have some/very little confidence in higher education than high confidence. Historically, Americans expressed…
A recent article in Inside Higher Ed noted positive changes in retention and persistence for colleges and universities. Significant gains were made for students enrolled…
Anecdotally, I have noticed a large increase in open-ended responses to all surveys at ISU over the last six years or so. For me, “Anecdotally”…
The traditional narrative is that students who “drop out” of college don’t study enough. Let’s put that myth to rest. In our NSSE retention study,…
When a first-year student says they’re going to enroll for their sophomore year, I would believe them. As the figure below shows, intentions are more…
An article in Inside Higher Ed cited a study indicating that 92% of faculty members were asked for career advice in the past year. My…
An article in Inside Higher Ed highlighted research showing college students are increasingly uncomfortable sharing political opinions. I don’t know about comfort levels, but we…
Improving college student retention and persistence requires an empirical foundation and framework for translating research into action. That’s where assessment comes into play. This study…
Disconnects in general education are common in higher education. One disconnect is between the value many students place on general education outcomes (which is high)…
Benchmarking is comparing and evaluating survey results. We recently created a visualization for NSSE data comparing 1) ISU to peer institutions and 2) first-year to…
My colleague in student affairs, Dr. Erin Thomas, and myself were invited to present about student engagement at the monthly RSO and student affairs executive…
by Dr. Kevin Ahlgrim & Dr. Joan Brehm Dr. Ahlgrim, Chair, Finance, Insurance and Law The reason I participated in this session is to help…
Assessment planning and program review planning are part of a process of continuous improvement. It’s just a process of continually evaluating and improving a program…
By Amanda N. Fisher, Graduate Student, Department of Psychology; Maria K. Anchacles, Undergraduate Student, Department of Psychology; and Dr. Dakesa Piña, Staff Counselor, Student Counseling Services It is…
By Laura Frey, Administrative Clerk, Student Health Services Student Health Services (SHS) has a full staff of providers including licensed/board certified physicians, nurse practitioners, psychiatrist, and…