Research Project to Examine Unions’ Relationship to Student Learning, Engagement 

BLOOMINGTON, IN – The Association of College Unions International (ACUI) recently partnered with Indiana University (IU) to expand research in the college union and student activities field. The goal of the partnership is to start with a single project in hopes of building upon initial success and expanding research efforts into the future. The first project to be pursued is a qualitative, multi-campus study that will examine student engagement in the college union and how college unions contribute to student learning and success. 

“I’m excited about the potential of this project,” says ACUI’s Chief Executive Officer Dr. John Taylor. “We know that college students don’t just learn in a classroom setting, and this is a way to further explore and understand how many of their co-curricular experiences in the union contribute to their education and engagement.” 

Six site visits to U.S. campuses will be conducted in the next six months, and initial findings are likely to be published in early 2019. 

To facilitate the project, IU’s Center for Postsecondary Research will provide academic resources to ACUI in conducting research, analyzing data, and connecting outcomes with other projects the center oversees. The center conducts and disseminates research on student access, assessment, engagement, and persistence, including the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE).

Data collection and analysis will be modeled after the Documenting Effective Educational Practice (DEEP) project, using a qualitative case study design to discover the conditions within a physical space that influence student learning and student success. The use of physical space, student employment, programming, campus partnerships, policies, and practices will be documented to gain an understanding of the outcomes students gain from the college union.

“By collecting data at several institutions, we’ll be able to see similarities and differences of how student center facilities and programs influence student success at each campus,” says Dr. Danielle DeSawal, the study’s principle investigator and IU clinical associate professor. “We look forward to using that information to broadly improve students’ experience in the years to come.” 

ACUI is the professional home to thousands of campus community builders around the world. Primarily focused on the work of those within the college unions and student activities field, the Association strives to provide an inclusive, welcoming community for all those who choose to belong.

Featured

  • Springfield Breaks Ground on $53.7M Pipkin Middle School Rebuild

    Construction is underway on a new, state-of-the-art Pipkin Middle School in Springfield, Mo., a major step in Springfield Public Schools’ (SPS) long-term facility improvement plan, according to local news. The $53.7-million project officially broke ground in early June, following years of planning and community input aimed at modernizing aging infrastructure and addressing student capacity concerns.

  • ProTeam Launches GoFit 6 HEPA Backpack Vacuum

    Technology leader Emerson recently introduced the new ProTeam GoFit 6 HEPA backpack vacuum, according to a news release. The vacuum was designed to capture 99.97% of particulates down to 0.3 microns—including atmospheric hazards like lead dust, mold spores, and other particulates—through an advanced filtration system.

  • California High School Starts Construction on New CTE Building

    Analy High School, part of the West Sonoma County Union High School District (WSCUHSD) in Sebastopol, Calif., recently broke ground on a new Career Technical Education (CTE) Building, according to a news release. The 15,000-square-foot facility will offer specialized facilities for students in engineering, welding, culinary arts, agricultural sciences, and design thinking.

  • modern college building with circuit and brain motifs

    Anthropic Introduces Claude for Education

    Anthropic has launched a version of its Claude AI assistant tailored for higher education institutions. Claude for Education "gives academic institutions secure, reliable AI access for their entire community," the company said, to enable colleges and universities to develop and implement AI-enabled approaches across teaching, learning, and administration.

Digital Edition