Chapter 6
Campus Culture

 

6.4 Student Life

Students express a high degree of satisfaction with SVSU. In Student Satisfaction Surveys and focus groups, they have expressed appreciation for the small class size, the accessibility of the faculty and staff, and the physical environment for classes. They also praise the instructional support services. The Writing Center, the Math Resource Center, the Academic Advisement Center, tutoring services, and the Student Technology Center are well used, although those students most at-risk academically are less likely to use these services than those already doing well and seeking to improve. A newly-awarded state grant, College Transitions, will facilitate efforts to better integrate introductory course work, instructional support services, and student support services into a more comprehensive first year program to help retain at-risk students.

Overall, students are also highly satisfied with services offered outside of the classroom. Students are especially pleased with new on-campus residences, health services, and recreation/intramural programs. Student input was sought and students were actively involved in the planning of the new Student Center, which opened at the beginning of the 2003/2004 academic year. The President of the university also holds regular open forums with students to discuss campus issues.

Student support services contribute significantly to the University’s goal of creating and sustaining a culture that “fosters and supports the personal, social, and intellectual growth of its students.” Student support services, including Residential Life units, were recently brought into the Division of Student Enrollment Management. Offices in this area consider attention to diversity as a strong indicator of a successful operation. Training existing staff on diversity and recruiting new staff from diverse backgrounds is viewed as a priority in these units. All Resident Hall Assistants receive diversity training. Through career-focused volunteer activities and other co-curricular events, student support services “improve and sustain a campus culture that values diversity and practices freedom of inquiry, respect, and integrity in human relationships.”

The offices for Minority Student Services, Disability Services, and Student Counseling are geared to meet particular needs, but the departments in this unit try to ensure a welcoming environment for all students. Although many units do not have formal assessment measures in place, there is a strong interest in these units to develop additional student satisfaction surveys and other outcome assessment measures to gauge their effectiveness.

The departments in this unit collaborate with other units across campus to deliver their services. These services have changed significantly over the past decade with the changing student demographics. Resident Life services have expanded to address the needs of the expanding on-campus population, and the student orientation program has extensively revised its format to better serve on-campus students. The Office of Career Planning and Placement was developed as a direct response to a recommendation made in Next Steps 2000-2005.