Students that live on campus are more likely to engage in academic activities relative to their off-campus peers regardless of important factors like race, parental education, and finances. That’s according to the latest research from The Association of College and University Housing Officers - International.

While student success is more likely to occur because of residence life, there are steps that some colleges take to better support students’ sense of belonging and enrich their academic experience. To recognize the impact that data-driven programs have in supporting on-campus living, Skyfactor Benchworks, a Macmillan Learning company, has named the 2023 Assessment and Impact Awards for Housing and Residence Life.

“By harnessing the power of data, colleges gain invaluable insights into students' needs, preferences, and challenges, which helps to create tailored experiences that truly make a difference for students -- especially those in their first year of college. For the fifth year, we’re proud to recognize colleges that are using surveys and data to create a transformative experience for students that helps them feel supported and engaged in campus life,” said Steven Ray, Vice President of Enterprise Solutions for Macmillan Learning.

The return of students to campus following the pandemic has led many of this year’s nominees to redesign their programming and update their facilities to build even stronger student communities. Proximity to other students can help create connections between students as well as between students and staff that help to build the foundation for future interactions, create more inclusive experiences and enhance learning outcomes.

Research from Skyfactor announced in May 2023 found that higher levels of program participation in residence life were associated with greater perceived gains in six areas of skill needed in a community setting, particularly skills related to interacting with diverse others as well as respecting and trusting others and feeling accepted by them. The results come from a national dataset constructed from the 2021-2022 administration of Skyfactor’s ACUHO-I/Benchworks Resident Assessment of over 150,000 college students from nearly 200 colleges and universities in the United States.

The 2023 Assessment & Impact Awards in Housing and Residence Life winners are:

• Lafayette College was recognized for significant improvement in survey scores related to student staff and creating a sense of community. Using student feedback, Lafayette’s Resident Life department has implemented new programs to increase student connections and foster a student-forward housing experience through personal interactions.
• University of Akron was recognized for significant improvement in survey scores related to diverse interactions. Using student feedback, the University Housing department has helped ensure that inclusion is an everyday experience. To do this they bolstered resident assistance (RA) training and created diverse activities that matter to its students.
• The University of Texas at Dallas was recognized for high performance on survey scores related to satisfaction with facilities. With its goal to better serve student needs, UTD’s Housing department increased its reactivity to students’ needs, upgraded communal spaces, and expedited repairs to reduce inconvenience to residents.

The 2023 winners were selected this spring through the company’s data-driven analysis of nominees and the 17 finalists. Macmillan Learning’s Analytics & Research Team analyzed multiple years of data from the ACUHO-I/Benchworks Resident Assessment to identify programs with both consistently high scores and those that have seen significant improvements in their survey scores. The team then interviewed staff from these campuses to learn about the efforts and initiatives in place at each program. Each finalist was given a blind review by an external team of experts to determine final scores.

The Assessment and Impact Awards for Residence Life recognizes colleges that demonstrate intentionality in using insights from data to improve their residence life programs. Skyfactor Benchworks recognized three housing programs in 2022, ten housing programs during the pandemic (seven in 2021, three in 2020) as well as four housing programs in 2019.

Skyfactor also has an Assessment and Impact Award for nursing education programs; winners will be announced this summer. The self-nominations for next year’s housing and residence life awards will launch in early 2024.

About Skyfactor Benchworks

Benchworks provides research-based program assessments and benchmarking for a variety of Student Affairs programs, as well as Business Education, Engineering, Nursing, Teacher Education. With robust analytics Benchworks empowers programs to identify areas of improvement for maximum impact on program success. Benchworks assessments are rooted in research and mapped to accreditation and professional standards.

About Macmillan Learning

Macmillan Learning is a privately-held, family-owned company that inspires what’s possible for every learner. We envision a world in which every learner succeeds. Through our content, tools and services, we aim to make that a reality. To learn more, please visit macmillanlearning.com or join our Macmillan Community.

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