Staff Connection to SA

Strategic outcome

Student Affairs staff feel a sense of connection with the larger Student Affairs organization.

Measures

(knowledge about SA, collaboration, and sense of community)

  • How much do you know about Student Affairs as an organization (such as its structure, department function and program/service offered, etc.)? (scale: not at all, a little, somewhat, quite a bit, a great deal)
  • In the past academic year, how often did you collaborate with SA colleagues outside of your own department/unit? (scale: never, rarely, sometimes, often, very often)
  • How comfortable do you feel reaching out to SA colleagues outside of your own department/unit for support? (scale: not at all, a little, somewhat, very, extremely)
  • [Display if collaboration takes place] Thinking about your experience working with SA colleagues outside of your own department/unit in the past academic year, how often did you feel … (scale: never, rarely, sometimes, often, very often)
    • … respected?
    • … you are treated as a valued member of your work group?
    • … people in your work group listen to you even when your views are dissimilar?
    • … comfortable expressing opinions that diverge from your work group?
  • Sense of community ([SOC] Peterson et al., 2008 1): An individual’s sense that their community serves as a resource for meeting key physiological and psychological needs such as the need for affiliation, influence, and connection.
    • How much do you feel that… (scale: not at all, a little, somewhat, quite a bit, a great deal)
      • … Student Affairs helps me meet my goals
      • … I can get what I need from Student Affairs
      • … I feel like a member of Student Affairs
      • … I belong in Student Affairs
      • … I have a say about what goes on in Student Affairs
      • … People in Student Affairs are good at influencing each other
      • … I feel connected to Student Affairs
      • … I have a good bond with others in Student Affairs
      • … I feel that my Student Affairs colleagues really care about me

Footnote

[1] Peterson, N. A., Speer, P. W., & McMillan, D. W. (2008). Validation of a brief sense of community scale: Confirmation of the principal theory of sense of community. Journal of Community Psychology, 36(1), 61–73.