Listening session for administrative and professional staff members
hosted by Deborah Campana and Andria Derstine
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
4:00–5:00pm
King 337
25 members present
Summary
Deborah Campana and Andria Derstine offered a brief welcome, letting attendees know that notes from the session would be taken and posted online without attribution. The mission of the committee is to review the landscape of higher education and make recommendations for a plan for the future to the Board of Trustees by December 2015. Marvin Krislov and Diane Yu are chairing the process.
The steering committee, comprised of 12 trustees, 7 Arts &Sciences faculty, 4 Conservatory faculty, 2 members of administrative and professional staff, 3 members of senior staff, 2 alumni, and 3 students, has formed three working groups:
- Education Futures, focusing on the learning environment at Oberlin;
- Students of the Bicentennial, addressing who we teach, the make up of the student body; and
- Resources & Sustainability, how we support the mission.
Each group will be reading literature, talking with people within and outside the group, and developing recommendations for the steering committee to present. All members of the committee are serving not as advocates, but as Oberlin citizens, working for the collective interest. Attendees were also invited to Strategic Plan Speaker Series events.
Staff were invited to give their thoughts on two prompt questions—1) what current or future challenge is most important for Oberlin? 2) In light of this challenge, what is the most important opportunity for us to explore?
Themes that emerged (note that some comments have been rearranged chronologically to cluster topics for this summary):
Post-Oberlin jobs/opportunities for students. Oberlin did not fare well in a ranking that evaluated students’ salaries in their first jobs. Students not planning to go immediately to graduate school seem lost and it appears that Oberlin does not encourage discussion with students about this. Students should be encouraged to apply for and accept internships including those abroad and in general students should be given more guidance. Oberlin students are bright but need help in learning practical things including how to find a job.
There are careers that rely heavily on skills students learn as a result of a liberal arts education. We can all participate in the mentoring of our students and there can be ways to encourage development of the practical skills as well. It is important to have “difficult conversations” with students to help them succeed. Technology is a big opportunity; if students have skills in this area, it will position them well with potential employers.
Students need help to integrate more entrepreneurial thinking into their educational experience. We should look at our marketing and focus more on marketing to parents.
Value and cost. We need to consider a balance between value [of a liberal arts education] and cost, which is very high. Such high cost makes it difficult to recruit an adequately diverse class, necessary for a good educational environment.
Diversity. We need more support for student and faculty of color and we need to be more proactive in our support of students.
Technology. Oberlin is very behind: no unified computer system, inadequate space, we need to be more efficient.
Students arrive with technological skills we can’t currently support. Troubling that there was no mention of technology in the 2005 plan.
Another area of technology to pay attention to: communications/security.
Haverford’s financial aid packages include funding for computers and tablets, for example.
Technology is very weak here; some offices’ use of technology is limited to not functional; some offices rely on paper records. Our ability to support students with disabilities (20 percent of our students currently) is limited because of our weak technology. The number of students with disabilities is expected to continue to grow and we need to be able to offer such students appropriate accommodations.
Environmental sustainability. We have opportunities such as the Oberlin Project [connect education with experience] to remain relevant as a private, four-year, residential college. We could become a flagship for diversity, inclusion, and sustainability. We could do a better job showing that we support idealism e.g., environmentalism as this is a major drawing factor.
We have an opportunity to be a top leader in sustainability but we need more organization [to make this happen].
We may want to look at partnerships with private industry, such as those developed by MIT.
A transdisciplinary degree that includes active learning and real-world applications [would be useful to examine].
We should build [intentional] bridges between faculty and staff members and cultivate mutual respect between these two groups.
Admissions. There appears to be no attention to admissions this time. In the 2005 plan the charge to admissions was to take in more tuition revenue; what are the priorities this time? Response: two of the three working groups will be looking at admissions.
Administrative and Professional Staff equity issues. There is no investment in professional development for people supporting the mission.
Many A&PS and OCOPE members are nearing retirement. We need staff development and succession planning. During its strategic planning process, UC Berkeley examined their staffing.
There is pay inequity across the College including OCOPE/A&PS. Examining issues of pay inequity is important.
We don’t take advantage of potential collaborations with other institutions; there is a reluctance to collaborate.
Listening session for administrative and professional staff members
hosted by Deborah Campana and Andria Derstine
Thursday, October 30, 2014
12:00–1:00pm
King 337
29 members present
The meeting was hosted by the two A&PS members of the Steering Committee: Deborah Campana and Andria Derstine. There were 29 A&PS members in attendance.
The steering committee members gave a brief welcome, letting attendees know that notes from the session would be taken and posted online without attribution. The mission of the committee is to review the landscape of higher education and make recommendations for a plan for the future to the Board of Trustees by December 2015. Marvin Krislov and Diane Yu are chairing the process.
The steering committee, comprised of 12 trustees, 7 Arts &Sciences faculty, 4 Conservatory faculty, 2 members of administrative and professional staff, 3 members of senior staff, 2 alumni, and 3 students, has formed three working groups:
- Education Futures, focusing on the learning environment at Oberlin;
- Students of the Bicentennial, addressing who we teach, the make up of the student body; and
- Resources & Sustainability, how we support the mission.
Each group will be reading literature, talking with people within and outside the group, and developing recommendations for the steering committee to present. All members of the committee are serving not as advocates, but as Oberlin citizens, working for the collective interest. Attendees were also invited to Strategic Plan Speaker Series events.
Staff were invited to give their thoughts on challenges and opportunities for Oberlin, including their own personal experiences, adding that additional thoughts could be submitted to the Strategic Planning website. Note that some comments have been rearranged chronologically to cluster topics for this summary.
The discussion began with staff asking student-centered questions:
- As statistics on job placement are being given greater emphasis recently, is anyone on campus collecting this data about Oberlin graduates, aside from anecdotally? Will tracking graduates more closely be part of the plan; is the Career Center looking into this?
- From an admissions standpoint, odd to see that so much of the previous plan was focused on discount rate and revenue. When thinking about building a class, Admissions begins with academic achievement, score profile, what we value as a community. Need to bring these perspectives together and consider what are the financial costs as well as to the community. Twenty years from now, who’s going to be academically eligible for this type of education? 4
- The residential living spaces may not be competitive, especially twenty years from now. Students will want more amenities, more comfort, more privacy for some, as well as better community spaces. Considerations of student living spaces should be a long-term goal. Additionally, the residential living spaces may not be competitive in terms of the College's ability to sell them, via Conference Services, to outside groups for summer events.
- Being able to apply learning will be what makes students successful. Should consider experiential education, community-based learning, such as having students apply what they’re learning in economics or environmental studies, and look at options for old (residential) buildings. Also, since a lot of Oberlin graduates go into education, would like to see better marketing of the education concentration here.
- When the larger dining halls were constructed, other places were closed down. While this may be more financially efficient, there are still students who find smaller scale dining options preferable, more comfortable.
- In terms of residential and security concerns, more cameras and more ID card access (vs keys) should be considered.
The discussion turned to financial considerations:
- The term discount rate was explained. The cost of tuition, minus the amount of aid, equals how much a student is actually paying. For example, if a student is paying 20%, that would mean an 80% discount rate.
- How do we reconcile a drive to increase revenue and lower the discount rate with students who need greater financial assistance? How are those decisions made?
- What are things that we can put into place to diversify the student body not just racially but economically as well?
- It was acknowledged that balancing diversity with providing financial aid is a critical concern to the steering committee.
- Mike Frandsen’s presence was noted. He was asked about the components of revenue for the College: tuition, endowment, and alumni donations? Mike responded that student charges, including room and board, represent about 80% of annual revenue, and that Oberlin is more tuition-dependent than its peers.
- There is a need in the Conservatory for more available scholarship funds. Most Con students are on aid, and can spend thousands on instruments. As the Con is the most expensive conservatory in the country, scholarships are extremely valuable in helping to recruit the highest possible candidates. Tuition is high because it is tied to the College. Not advantageous to de-couple, because so many students pursue double degrees, but is a serious challenge. The Con tries to fill the gap between its tuition and those of its peers.
- When asked about the impact of off-campus financial aid, it was noted that outside scholarships are usually on a much smaller scale (a few thousand dollars, versus tens of thousand) so have less significant impact than the internal discount. Scholarship dollars are not matching the rise in costs.
There was a discussion of articulating Oberlin’s value:
- Regardless of the financial situation, we still need to be able to articulate why students should choose Oberlin. There should be a list of what distinguishes Oberlin. Not sure if something that happened in 1835 resonates or is as relevant for students today. The Conservatory is an incredibly important part of distinctiveness.
- While most people know we’re a residential college, it’s not explained well on the web. Why do we value being a residential college, and what does that mean for a student? We need to tell prospective students why that is important.
- In 20 years, will Oberlin still even be a residential college? Should it be? Is there another model for how to do things? We need to think fundamentally about what the next two decades are going to bring, and be creative about thinking in new ways. Most of the topics discussed here are assuming a same model. What kind of opportunities will be available and how do we incorporate them? Need to not be afraid of asking crazy questions about how to evolve in the future!
A need for better communication and integration was expressed by many:
- While there’s already lots of talk about connecting curriculum and departments, this should be even broader, community-based; connecting things that are particularly useful within a residential environment. Would like to see a more integrated academic environment. How does a student come in and get to where they want to go. How might what is explored in a liberal arts education be applied in a real life setting? How can students make the most educationally strategic decisions to help them in the future? What are the paths that successful alums have taken? When they didn’t move from point A to point B, what went into their thinking process, how did they regroup?
- Also thinking about connecting the physical and virtual. Our physical environment is very separated. Different sides for different aspects of the college, and even within departments. Things are laid out administratively, but students and faculty are not interested in being entrenched in that way.
- The art museum needs to be emphasized more as part of the mindset of what encompasses the residential experience. There is also a very big disconnect between staff and faculty. The College could make better use of staff to contribute to the academic experience, who could act as advisors on student projects, and would like to be paid to do so. There could be more communal interaction.
- A good example is the ObieMaps project, where anyone can add their information. Currently renewing efforts to get that populated, and it is a matter of interest to other colleges. Many students don’t seem to know about it, but are excited once they discover it.
- About 2,400 users logged into Blackboard in a 24-hour period. Could use Blackboard to advertise things like ObieMaps. Instead, everyone does their own thing.
- The College website is better now than before, more standardized, but still using the same system. There’s no central place for communication.
- The concept of staff working together across departments, access to information, having an elevator speech, etc. was addressed in UC Berkeley’s strategic plan. It incorporated all levels of staff. Anyone who worked there was involved in the mindset change, so everyone felt important. There was recognition that that contribution was important. Here it feels like we’re all in our own world.
- We have used ObieMaps when trying to identify faculty with particular resources, and also used when doing research with a student. A good way of dipping into the intellectual pool.
- Hope that the silos issue will be addressed. Often people are doing the best they can but recreating the wheel, which is not efficient, a loss for the college and students. Need to reach greater levels of collaboration.
Issues of staff training were discussed:
- Will there be a focus on staff, on the people who are taking care of students? How diversity impacts staff? What about an aging work force? Automatic replacement, or a chance to reevaluate the structure?
- Re staff development, recognizing an aging work force, would like to see more emphasis on developing skills needed for the future, for succession planning from within, instead of having to look outside the organization.
- There is a connection between admissions, development, alumni, and diversity. No one taps into that. Alumni of color who feel “that’s who I was” are not asked. People who came with financial aid feel isolated, during college and afterwards. Who’s courting them? A student who struggled who’s now very successful wouldn’t think twice about giving money, but hasn’t been tapped. He’s going to give a donation when he’s valued. For example, a student could do a winter term with him. People contribute to the undocumented student fund; how can that impact admissions and diversity?
- In response to this, people were encouraged to contact alumni or development offices if they knew of someone in this situation. Development and admissions do not have enough staff to do what is needed, with already much on their plate.
- It was suggested that a significant proportion of people here could be mini ambassadors for development if they had guidance. Why not get basic training and become empowered to have those conversations?
Two last points in closing, as meeting time came to an end:
- Need to go back to original mandate: how and who are we going to be educating?
- As we approach Oberlin’s 200th anniversary, something that hasn’t been raised yet, but Jeff Sachs talked about, is huge shifts in social and environmental justice, and that’s a strength in Oberlin. How can we embrace the place? Our location makes this no less of a world class facility or experience. Also Oberlin is one of the only places in the world that is trying to be climate positive. But very few people talk about it or know about it. The Oberlin Project needs to do more with social justice. This is one of the things that makes Oberlin distinctive. Would behoove us to integrate the Oberlin project. That’s the way of the future. How do we learn to live as humans where we give more than we take.
1:00 end.
