Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work

Assessment Committee

 Chair/Co-chairs: Katherine Magnuson 

Fall 2021 Committee Members: Committee or Group: Jooyoung Kong, Marah Curtis Yang Xiong, Steph Van Pay, Latoya Kirton, Laura Zimmerman, Elizabeth Premo, Michelle Helmer, Sarah Valencia, Cindy Waldeck  

2021-22 (December) Report Out 

Goal:  

#1 Increase the diversity of our students, staff, faculty, and other governing bodies is a priority for our committee.  

Objective(s): Revise Rosenbaum Scholarship and Fall Competition questions to prioritize applicants from historically underrepresented groups, who contribute to the diversity of our community and remove barriers to apply. 

Current & Future Action Steps/Timeframes: 

  • Implement revised questions to Rosenbaum and Fall Competition 
  • Evaluate effectiveness of changes 
  • Determine if additional changes are needed  

Strategic Plan Progress Report April 2021

Committee Name: Assessment & Outcomes Committee

Committee Members:  Tally Moses, Audrey Conn, Ellen Smith, Russ Portier & Rachel Reynders

Strategic Plan Goal 2:  Improve a sense of inclusion for students, faculty, and staff.

Objective 1: Continue to refine the implicit curriculum measures–See Below

Objective #2: Better dissemination of implicit data for faculty and staff to use in making decisions moving forward.–No progress yet

Objective #3: Solicit and prioritize data requests from committees in support of their DE&I efforts.– No progress yet

Progress on goal since February 2021

With respect to Objective #1: As we revised implicit curriculum (IC) items in the CAPE, we considered the following (related to DEI):

  1. Soliciting information about this year’s CSWE expansion of the option field in place of employment so that the student data can be used to advocate for continued access to this option–which works in favor of students who must work substantially during their BSW/MSW programs. We added an item to identify those who took advantage of this option in 2021 and will use it to assess differences in field experiences overall, and program satisfaction:
  • “Did you complete your field placement in your place of employment during this academic year?”
  1. Measuring the following student DE&I experiences:
  • Students’ experiences of self-representation in the School (in addition to experiences of inclusion and respect). We took and built on a suggestion made by Amanda Ngola and added 2 items:
  • “ I see myself, my family, and my community represented in the classroom curriculum.”
    • I see myself, my family, and my community represented among the students, staff, and faculty in the School.
  1. Exposure to ‘sufficient’ content on DE&I in courses:
  • “My courses contain sufficient content on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion.”
  1. Understanding of systemic oppression in the program as well as gained explicit skills to address systemic racism and injustice:
  • “While in the program, I have developed more awareness and understanding of systemic oppression (e.g., using abolitionist ideas or critical race theory), such that I am better prepared to notice oppression and understand it.”
  • “The social work program has helped me to develop skills to address systemic racism and injustice (e.g., advocacy and community organizing).”
  1. Refining measures of student characteristics:

Gender identity:

Which of the following best describes your current gender identity? (select as many as apply)  

___ Cisgender female/woman

___ Cisgender male/man

___ Genderqueer, gender non-binary, or gender fluid

___ Transgender male/man

___ Transgender female/woman

___ A gender not listed here; please specify ___________________________

___Prefer not to answer

Sexual identity:

Which of the following best describes your current sexual orientation? (select as many as apply)

___Asexual

___Bisexual

___Gay or Lesbian

___Straight or Heterosexual

___Pansexual

___Queer

___Questioning

___Not sure

___ A sexual orientation not listed here; please specify ___________________________

___Prefer not to answer

Race/ethnicity:

Separated ‘Black’ from African American’.

Economic hardship:

We added a new item asking “how hard has it been for you to pay for the very basics like food, housing, utilities, and transportation?” We are not sure how we will use it yet, but it seems important to gauge students’ economic challenges throughout the year.

Debt load: refined debt questions to cover overall student debt, debt from BSW or MSW program, federal/public loans vs. private loans.