Priorities

The Division of Student Affairs supports the university-wide commitment to student success through the following priorities and initiatives:

ACCESS

Objective

  • Ensure students have access to and receive support in transitioning to WSU.
  • Help create a sense of belonging among all students of diverse backgrounds.
Strategy Initiatives Measures
Enhance support services and expand engagement with traditionally underrepresented pre-college students. Strategically structure, and brand, programs, and activities during the first four weeks of each semester with the "Wildcat Welcome" label, including Saturday and evening hours, to ensure that WSU is engaging a broad range of students in a coordinated way. 1. Branded materials created. 2. Hold Sat. hours. 3. List additional efforts that "expand engagement to trad. underrep. students."
Engage with students during the time between being admitted to WSU through the first semester. Work with multiple areas within the division and across the university to market programs and services specifically to incoming students, at key points in their transition to WSU and throughout the first year. Track the marketing of programs & services, and set baseline for student reach.
Expand First Generation initiatives. Better virtual connection with membership by having publicly known 1st Gen graduates virtually meet with members of the club and by hosting virtual game nights.  Club membership: AY19-768. AY20 - 1007. AY21 - 1200.
Program new student space in the SSC. Work with student constituent leaders to provide input on the final design of the new space. Space programmed and activated.

LEARNING

Objective

  • Engage students in meaningful learning experiences
  • Role model effective management of virtual programs and services
  • Assist in university efforts to increase student retention and graduation
Strategy Initiatives Measures
Enhance WSU's Peer Mentoring efforts. Increase/diversify outreach and incentives to colleges, departments, etc. to expand the reach of peer mentoring beyond student affairs. Match (15) or increase presentations to non-SA areas. Increase mentors to over 100 (10%). Increase mentees to over 200. Increase retention of mentors by 2% above rolling 5 year average. Demonstrate learning gains of students in the program.
  Incorporate Student Learning Assistants into courses. Increase the number of SLAs by 10%
  Enhance engagement between international students and domestic students through intentional programming and collaboration. Increased engagement rate measured by surveys and focus groups.
Enhance student employability opportunities and experiences. Enhance student employability skills by intentionally designing and measuring student learning through on-campus student employment, and REAL projects. Increase the number or percentage of on-campus student employment positions by 3%. Increase the number of REAL students by x% & projects by y%.
  Explore ways to provide opportunities for students to gain digital fluency skills including providing student digital learning fellows through the Writing Center. Increase the number of digital learning fellows by 10%. Provide support to the Digital Corridor project.
Provide resources and best practices information to division staff Enhance Student Affairs programs and services provided through online mediums, with a particular focus on online students. Resources created for students and staff. Hours of service are extended and virtual program delivery is enhanced.
Enhance first-year communication strategies Begin marketing signature events in each department to students and the university community, and begin to identify programs/ events that can be discontinued. Purchase Mail Chimp. Identify/track signature programs.mrktg strategies. List programs/events that can be discontinued.
  Assist in university-wide initiatives to contact unaccounted for students by contacting individuals directly tied to our depts. Create a baseline of students returning to WSU based on these contacts.
  Provide stop out assistance through Financial Literacy. Increase # of presentations to more than 50, one on one meetings to more than 135, & programs/services  adressing FAFSA to more than 160.
Continue to develop and enhance use of software products such as ENGAGE, and the Starfish platform including increasing referrals made, utilizing the prospective students function, notes, and allowing students to schedule online appointments (where possible). Ensure we are effectively capturing data to tell the stories of student success. By utilizing Starfish, and other related technologies. Create metrics for which software packages are being utilized, to what extent. Build metrics over time.
  (RFP almost complete) as the primary cocurricular engagement tool. Track downloads and usage.

Community

Objective

Provide leadership on P-20 initiatives and work with local employers to identify workforce needs to create programs to assist students in gaining the skills and knowledge needed to be successful in today's employment environment

Strategy Initiatives Measures
Help lead WSU's P-20 committee(s) Volunteer to chair or co-chair P-20 initiatives and related sub-committees. P-20 initiatives will be put in the field with SA as key partners.
  Formally seek advice and specific needs from employers.  Compile data gathered from employers and share with students, faculty, staff, and other appropriate constituents.