and Analytics August 30, 2019

Office of Institutional Effectivenessand Analytics

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cshults

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August 30, 2019

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cshults

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BMCC Designing for Success: Strategic Planning Phase I Spring 2019 Focus Groups

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Report on the Spring 2019 Focus Groups

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Introduction

As part of BMCC’s efforts to gather information from faculty, staff, and students to develop its 2020-2025 strategic plan, the College conducted a series of focus groups during the 2019 spring semester. A total of 26 Charette-insprired focus groups were conducted under the guidance of the Listening Tour subcommittee of BMCC’s Equity and Inclusion Taskforce. In partnership with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Analytics, 7 faculty and staff members were trained and facilitated sessions that included 155 participants. In contrast to the first phase of focus groups, these sessions included members of purposefully selected populations of faculty, staff, and students (affinity groups). The sessions lasted between an hour and 90 minutes. A semi-structured protocol was used to guide the sessions and they were audio recorded. The recordings were then transcribed through the use of software to ensure the anonymity of responses. The transcripts underwent a three-stage coding process that analyzed the conversations and resulted in this report.

The four questions asked during the spring focus groups were the final four codes that emerged from an analysis of the fall focus group data. These codes provided insight into how BMCC could become a more equitable and inclusive institution. For the spring focus groups, the goal was to gather suggestions on how the College could achieve this goal. Utilizing culture of care as a framing mechanism for this analysis, the transcripts provided more than 500 unique initial codes (open codes), 83 secondary codes (axial codes), and 4 overarching themes (selective codes)1. The full inventory of coding can be found in the appendix and the four selective codes are provided below.

Theme 1: Embracing a Culture of Care Requires the College to Understand and Meet Student Needs

Theme 2: Growing a Culture of Care Requires Administrative Commitment and the Support of Faculty and Staff

Theme 3: BMCC must be Intentionally Designed to Provide a Culture of Care to Students and those who Support Students

Theme 4: Faculty and Staff Attitudes and Behaviors Communicate whether there is a Culture of Care

The remainder of this report provides information on the secondary codes that fall under each of the themes. Some of the unique codes, especially direct quotes, are used to provide context as well.

1 Given that this is a qualitatively driven report, it is important to point out a few points. The information provided was gathered from purposefully selected groups and is not generalizable to the college community. Additionally, this information does not reflect correctness, but rather perceptions. Some information will be demonstrably accurate while some reflects the valid experiences of the participants. This report is important because it offers insight into how faculty, staff, and students interpret the adequacy and effectiveness of efforts to provide a supporting environment to the college community. Not all suggestions can or should be implemented for a variety of reasons, but the report offers important information that should be used to help guide planning efforts. Statements provided within quotations represent word-for-word direct quotations.


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Embracing a Culture of Care Requires the College to Understand and Meet Student Needs

Among the most important topics that emerged in this analysis is the feeling that the college doesn’t truly understand the needs, desires, or lives of the students. Participants felt that there are serious issues which the College is unprepared to address, including the transition from high school to college. There were numerous statements reflecting students not feeling as though they belong in higher education, having ineffective preparation from high schools, possessing deficit mindsets, and holding idealized views of higher education. Some quotes reinforcing these statements include:

“First semester students are struggling to stay”

“Not everyone is always ready for school”

“I didn’t know that tutoring was free”

Students suggest frequent workshops to “provide information on how to survive college”

“Not a lot of people feel comfortable going to a counselor”

Two other important topics that emerged during the analysis were that a culture of care is only possible when students trust that the College has their best interests at heart and that showing care requires mandatory support. Students explained that they and their peers can see the benefits of wraparound services and support, but that given their lives, they will only take advantage if they trust the intentions of faculty and staff and if they are required to do so.

Student life needs emerged as an essential topic within this theme. There are concerns from both faculty and staff that the College does not understand the scope of student needs. Many of the conversations led to discussions about issues of transportation, food insecurity, housing insecurity, family responsibilities, and poverty. Clearly BMCC needs to more effectively address these issues if the College is to demonstrate a culture of care. Some statements include:

“The Panther Pantry is great, but it is not meeting student food needs”

“Our students can’t afford to eat at Fiterman”

“You should be able to use the card to get you into the building in the lunchroom to get one free meal a day”

“All student should be receiving MetroCards”

“BMCC should partner up with somebody to create housing for students”

Some students are “sleeping on subway cars to avoid the shelters”

The College “needs to be open for 24 hours to provide safe space for students”

“College is a second home” Students taking multiple classes can’t afford all their books

BMCC needs to “expand financial support for economically disadvantaged students”

Students are looking for opportunities to earn money on campus

Some students only have access to computers here at the college

Faculty have encountered students with undiagnosed hearing problems

Students in need of glasses have never had eye exams

Work schedules force some students to sleep in class

Students need emergency/short term childcare


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Students need more flexibility with childcare options

“Retention is low because students have to work”

“I don’t have a dad and I am the oldest daughter in the family and I have to take care of my mom and brother and sister”

In addition to understanding student needs, it is important to also understand what students are looking for from the College. Students indicated that faculty who understand that their lives are difficult and are willing to assist by developing relationships, limiting homework, and offering honest demonstrations of compassion and empathy help students understand what a culture of care truly is. Students are also looking for BMCC to provide explanations for why they are required to take certain courses, why certain courses are required for their majors, as for how the coursework will align their future career. Some statements include:

Students note that if they understand how the curriculum firs together, they will commit more to coursework

Students don’t understand why they have to take so many courses outside their major

“I shouldn’t have to pay for any classes that don’t count towards my degree”

Students believe that students don’t take classes with no credit seriously

“Not giving credit is a disincentive to work hard”

“We need to figure out a way to eliminate the remedial classes”

“The College needs to communicate the importance of careers”

Students want class assignments to prepare them for their future careers

There are concerns that curriculum is occasionally out of alignment with future careers

Growing a Culture of Care Requires Administrative Commitment and the Support of Faculty

and Staff

Several participants indicated that they don’t believe that BMCC is currently ready to fully embrace a culture of care. Some of the statements indicating changes that need to be made include:

Long-term staff with negative attitudes are defining departmental and unit cultures

The “College takes suggestions as criticisms”

The culture needs to become one that supports individuals who ask for assistance

Staff who want to increase their impact on students’ success are often told to “stay in your lane”

“There is still too much resistance to change at the College”

Too many individuals are “tone deaf” to the concept of care

Students are sent from office to office too often

“Departments that don’t pick up phones” send the message that “they don’t care about students”

Openly complaining about the college to students communicates the message the BMCC does not care about them

Other comments reflecting BMCC’s unpreparedness to embrace a culture of change reflected feelings that the administration is not effectively supporting this transition. Numerous individuals indicated that while the College knows what successful practices are, the administration is not


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making the decisions and taking the actions necessary to support student success. Some statements included:

Faculty and staff want to see “culture of care rhetoric backed up with action”

The College needs to put solutions in place to address the gaps that have been found

Solutions to addressing equity gaps should be put in place immediate

Continually sharing bad news without implementing action is lowering morale

Administration should find ways to involve more staff in improving student success

Participants also noted that there is too much acceptance of the status quo from administration. The pointed to an unwillingness to question and change policies, continued usage of problematic language, failure to provide equitable resources, and inability to equitably support night and weekend students as examples. Some statements include:

The college is too hesitant to question and address policies and practices

The College allow policies that negatively impact students to continue

“It doesn’t cost anything to change policies”

“Language is important and BMCC must be conscious of who is impacted or marginalized by the wording of policies”

“The term probation is problematic and stigmatizes students”

“All CUNY resources should be available to all students”

“When everything is closed, there is a different atmosphere”

On the weekends, the campus is “a scary, scary, scary, scary place for LGBT students”

Communication often emerges as a point of concern when speaking with the college community. In this case, participants noted that the college should rethink ineffective communication strategies with students and examine the effectiveness of communication college-wide. Additionally, several individuals targeted Buildings and Grounds for a perceived lack of communication regarding construction projects across the College.

A well-established issue noted throughout the transcripts was a desire for greater clarity of information and support for the faculty and staff who interact most directly with the students. Noting the impact on morale, faculty and staff members opined on the lack of opportunities to move up at the college and staff expressed displeasure at the reclassification process. There were also concerns about the hiring practices and priorities, evaluation processes, diversity of faculty and staff, treatment of adjunct faculty members, and sufficiency of staff to provide a true environment of care to students. Statements include:

Hiring practices for faculty need to be more transparent and shared in and across departments

“We need to put into place a set of policies that demand people explain or articulate the ways in which diversity informs their work.”

“The College should hire fewer administrators”

“The burden for meeting and getting to know our students is too high without more support from the College

“You can’t focus on cultures of care when you are understaffed”


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Academic departments have “a mixed record of hiring for diversity”

“To feel like a community, students need to see more people like them”

“The faculty evaluation process is unfair to adjuncts”

Students would like a secret shopper style program for student support unit evaluations

The lack of succession planning leaves departments in trouble when people leave

“There’s a lot of turnover [and] I just got to find my point person, but I wish that wasn’t the case…”

“We should have an adjunct appreciation week so that we can acknowledge their efforts”

Adjunct faculty feel they are treated as “expendable”

Treatment of adjunct faculty varies greatly by department

Participants also felt that the administration needs to be more intentional in supporting those who are being asked to deliver a culture of care to students. Staff members indicated that for students to be prioritized, faculty and staff need to be prioritized by administration. One respondent stated, “If we want to make the necessary changes, we need to fix the problems and policies and the structures while simultaneously loving the faculty and staff in support of the students.” Not placing the entire burden on administration, however, participants noted that faculty and staff must show respect to each other and to other groups throughout the college while also working to build a culture of care within their units and departments.

Finally, participants expressed a strong belief that professional development has to be at the center of implementing a culture of care. Faculty and staff expressed concern about how to effectively assist students inside and outside the classroom as well as inside and outside the college. They are looking for targeted, intentionally designed professional development opportunities. Some statements reflecting these issues include:

Faculty need guidance on “how to work with students who fall asleep in class”

Faculty believe they are “unprepared to work with students who are dealing with mental health issues”

Faculty members feel unprepared to “support students with food insecurity issues”

“The College doesn’t foster an environment where faculty and staff are supported in being student centered”

Faculty and staff need help learning how to support students during fasts

The College needs workshops on gender and sexual identity

The College needs more diversity workshops to assist faculty and staff with understanding different religions

Staff need help learning how to handle life crises

The college needs “mandatory sensitivity training for staff and faculty”

In addition to the professional development specific to a culture of care, respondents appreciate the importance of professional development at the College. There were statements about the importance of the faculty and staff development institutes, suggestions for addressing departmental and institutional barriers to professional development, requests to both grow the number and increase the equitability of professional develop opportunities (“There’s no secret about it, advancement is very


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much based on favoritism”), and requests from students for professional development that would enhance faculty teaching practices.

BMCC must be Intentionally Designed to Provide a Culture of Care to Students and those who Support Students

Among the most pressing concerns regarding intentional design and culture of care is the need for the College to evaluate and make changes to the institutional operations. Faculty and staff feel that having antiquated processes and systems are incongruent with culture change. Specific examples include:

“More automation at the College will allow more time with students”

The College needs to transition from the paper based HR processes

BMCC has “created numerous unnecessary hurdles” to student success that should be removed

Streamlining processes will free up time for faculty to connect with students

Reimbursement for travel takes too long and is a disincentive to engage in professional development

“Not having an online timekeeping system is antiquated”

Staff feel that job descriptions don’t change to match changing jobs

“Non-RF purchasing regulations limit the use of grant dollars”

“The bureaucratic fear of auditing gets used as leverage for denying professional development for faculty”

Alternately, a positive sentiment that was widely shared across groups was that cohort programs are successful in supporting students at the College. Participants noted that all students should have the opportunity to participate in cohort programs due to the difficulty of creating a sense of community in such a large institution. They also found value in access to peer support, wraparound services, and the integrated, systematic approach to care in the cohort programs. While ASAP was held as a model, there were concerns that it “is creating a two-tiered support system for students.” Students shared perceptions that the ASAP advisors provided better support, ASAP students are prioritized over other groups, and that BMCC maintains both an ASAP and non-ASAP college. They want the institution to try and provide “equitable support for all students.”

One specific support unit mentioned frequently was the Learning Resource Center. In general, the center is seen as an important support for students, but some concerns included:

Need to scale up the opportunities of one on one tutoring

Students want more opportunities for one on one tutoring

The layout of the tutoring center doesn’t support student learning

The LRC does not have enough space to support all the students

The College needs to redesign the LRC space

There are not enough tutors in the LRC

There are not enough classes covered by the LRC

Students in developmental education should receive individualized support from the LRC


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More broadly, respondents believe that BMCC has to intentionally design its support services to ensure that all students can be equitably and effectively supported. There were concerns that educational support and co-curricular programming are not available for students attending during off hours and that the Safe Zones are ill equipped to fully meet student needs. Some statements include:

Student life need to find ways to expand co-curricular opportunities to off-hours

Students need the same access to services regardless of when they are taking classes

Student activities need to be available during non-traditional hours to provide opportunities to full-time working students

Equity and inclusion requires reorienting college operations to meet student schedules

Need to expand the childcare hours to accommodate working students

The tutoring and writing center hours don’t support working students

Students need safe spaces to have difficult conversations

“There are not enough safe spaces on campus for students”

“Safe zones need to be open and available every hour that the College is open”

A theme shared throughout the sessions was concern about the myriad policies at the college that introduce barriers and prevent a culture of care. Faculty and staff suggest that BMCC evaluate all institutional policies against the mission statement to determine the degree to which they support students. There was general consensus that too many of the College’s policies negatively impact students, that the policies lack transparency and are poorly communicated, and are unequally applied. Statements include:

Preventing students from reenrolling due to holds reduces their drive to attend college

Placing holds on students “creates an isolation situation” that makes future success less likely

Preventing students from registering “prevents them from accessing supportive communities”

BMCC needs to careful review policies to ensure that student opportunities for success are not restricted

Students placed on probation need attention and specialized assistance

“The probation policy tells student they don’t belong here”

“Academic probation disproportionately impacts minority students”

“Need to have public commenting sessions for all new policies”

“I don’t understand the reasons behind why anything happens here”

“Policies are hidden…and because it’s really bureaucratic, it’s like fiefdoms and power and gatekeeping and just adds to the toxicity of the environment for faculty”

College procedures that are not part of written policy lead to confusion and frustration

“The hiddenness of policies takes away any agency that faculty have”

“There are different policies or procedures that apply to some and not to all”

Policies need to be “enforced equally regardless of who they impact”

As was the case with the philosophy on cohorts, faculty, staff, and students believe that the College needs to work on intentionally designing opportunities to build communities. The suggestions not


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only include inter-group community building, but also creating formal opportunities for greater cross-connection and collaboration. Some statements were:

“BMCC is a big place and many people don’t know each other”

Need more formal opportunities for individuals from different buildings to interact and connect

“I’ve been very surprised in a very positive way by how approachable cabinet members are”

“There is no time to talk to colleagues”

“More opportunities for cross-departmental co-requisite courses”

Need more opportunities for team teaching

“The teaching demands and the scholarship demands eliminate the chances for social interaction”

“We need a better community of faculty and we need to see ourselves as a community and this needs to be across departments and across full and part-time and other divisions”

Faculty want colleagues to “let them in” to their teaching approaches and knowledge

The College should develop more opportunities for staff to teach each other

Staff need more formal opportunities to interact with staff with similar responsibilities in other units

Staff want more formal mentoring opportunities

Staff would like to work on cross-departmental projects

There were numerous comments directed at the need for the College infrastructure to better communicate and support a culture of care. There were two distinct topics related to infrastructure – the facilities and the physical space. It is important to note that the physical elements of the College are essential to growing a culture of care, so these comments offer tangible insights into the faculty, staff, and student experience. The first category, which is specific to the infrastructure, includes the following:

“Students are in Fiterman all day and there is no place to sit and they can’t afford to eat and there is this beautiful space that they can’t access”

The information desk could be friendlier looking and more welcoming to students

Staff would like to see a “celebration of the college” at the entrance on 199 Chambers Street

Placement of the gender-neutral bathrooms communicates inequality and non-inclusion

“It’s a problem that the first interaction you have in any of our buildings is with police”

“What does the school expect from its student because there’s tons of security”

“The temperature inconsistencies make it difficult to concentrate on work when you are either freezing or burning up”

The aesthetics of the building would be improved with more color

“We don’t have a service elevator so you’re constantly in there with trash”

The reflection space is not meeting the needs of Muslim students

“Staff and faculty would benefit from a reflection room”

Students would like better maps to direct them around the buildings

The elevators at Fiterman are consuming to students

The College schedule doesn’t account for travel between buildings

Travel between buildings is difficult for students with disabilities


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The entrance ramp to the college is “dangerous for disabled students”

“Fiterman is an awful building for faculty and students with disabilities”

The sessions resulted in a number of comments, including both concerns and suggestions, about how to improve the utilization and design of space to better support a culture of care. Sentiments include:

“[Fiterman] is their building and it’s not welcoming at all”

“They try to make [the art gallery] unwelcoming to our students because it’s a private entity…they don’t like to have students in there and they are so unwelcoming to our students”

The space at the College is not equitably distributed among the faculty and staff

The distribution of space communicates “which programs are prioritized”

“The College needs an LGBT center”

Functionality and efficiency are both reduced by the lack of strategically designed space

Campus learning spaces should be constructed with more faculty, staff, and student input

“Staff space has been reconstructed without input and the redesign is problematic”

“They weren’t thinking about pedagogy, they weren’t thinking about effective learning environments”

BMCC needs to provide more comfortable, congregating space for students

Students are “tired from jobs and lives and need a place to sleep”

Students need better space to have “embarrassing conversations”

Faculty and staff want more quiet space to interact with students

“There is no space in the College for students transitioning from work”

The Single Stop setup does not allow for private conversations

“The setup of offices does not ensure the confidentiality of student conversations”

“There aren’t enough quiet spaces to meet with students”

The College should reimagine the use of outdoor space to enhance the student experience

The lack of greenery takes away from the welcoming nature of the College

The statue in front the building is “confusing” and “needs to go”

Finally, respondents suggested that the College be more intentional with its branding in general and in regards to diversity, specifically. The faculty, staff, and students explained that they would like to see the BMCC logo everywhere “like at Columbia or NYU”, want more opportunities to interact with Manny the Panther, and want more student stories prominently featured. In regards to diversity, there were suggestions to include more groups in the heritage months, find ways to incorporate languages other than English where possible (“BMCC runs in English, which doesn’t show appreciation for diversity”), and increase visible celebrations of the range of diversity at the College.


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Faculty and Staff Attitudes and Behaviors Communicate whether there is a Culture of Care Faculty, staff, and students who participated in the focus groups all agreed that in general, the attitudes and behaviors of faculty and staff shape the student experience at BMCC. There were numerous comments about how both faculty and staff are willing to go above and beyond to support students, that faculty often work to help students improve their grades, and that staff advocate for their best interests. Students also expressed joy in working with people who are friendly, in being walked to other offices instead of sent away, and engaging in a “people-friendly” environment. Some comments specific to the attitudes and behaviors that students found helpful include:

Faculty are concerned about students who stop attending college

“One of the things I’ve had to witness is students vanishing”

Faculty want policies to bring students back, not keep them away

“The best way to support our students in the classroom is to trust our students”

“My students keep me buoyant here at BMCC”

Some faculty keep extra MetroCards in case students need them

Students receive “emotional support” from faculty

Caring faculty are the ones who “establish an equitable classroom”

“I know which of my students are hungry”

“[My professor] makes everybody feel comfortable like if they got a question wrong or something he’ll explain it, he wouldn’t like call a person out like oh you’re wrong”

Faculty who support LGBTQIA students become part of their support structure

Given the importance of faculty in the lives of the students, it is unsurprising that a number of comments addressed faculty attitudes and behaviors specific to the classroom. Students are looking for the classroom to be a safe and welcoming space where their experiences are valued and where faculty engage in teaching practices that respect and care for students. Statements include:

Students want faculty to be “patient and compassionate with students learning to speak English”

Students want students with disabilities “to be treated fairly”

Students want an environment where they can “get comfortable with my classmates”

Students note that their most impactful relationships are with faculty

Students want faculty to get to know about their lives, not just their names

Students want faculty to respect the knowledge they bring into the classroom

Students want faculty to incorporate their knowledge into the class

Student want opportunities to help facilitate class sessions


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Students “want regular progress (grade) updates”

Students want multiple opportunities to be graded

Extra credit is seen as an equity tool for students who are struggling

Students value review sessions before major exams

Students “don’t want professors to teach like high school teachers”

Students feel it’s the faculty member’s responsibility to change approaches if students aren’t learning

Students want faculty to step in and connect when they are struggling

Students want faculty to help them see they can succeed

A tool that can be used by faculty to help communicate the culture of care is the syllabus. While there was a concern offered that adding too much information onto the syllabus takes it away from its intended purpose, the greater issue was that it remains a bit of a mystery to students. There were statements indicating that students are unsure how to interpret the document, with some students interpreting that they can never miss class for any reason, that students are intimidated by the document, and that some faculty don’t follow the syllabus they distributed, which is confusing to the students.

The largest section of comments specific to faculty and staff behaviors and culture of care reflect those that are incongruent with maintaining a culture of care. The general themes included inappropriate behaviors in the classroom, failing to connect with students, visible conflict between faculty and staff, and unsympathetic and overzealous behavior by public safety. While the full list is available in the appendix, the most striking quotes include:

Students believe “some professors are just mean”

Students believe some faculty see students as children since they “call them boys and girls”

Students indicate that some faculty believe that “Asian students are good at math”

Students feel that “once a professor thinks they have lost a student, they move on”

Students believe that “piles of homework doesn’t show they understand our lives”

Students feel that “by the book professors don’t care about students”

Students feel that some faculty “give up on students”

“It feels like sometimes the professors are not supportive”

“The areas that caused me the most stress and concern are between faculty and staff…its extremely hostile”

“This feeling of a culture of care we have to not only focus on how we are caring for the students, but also how we are caring for each other and I think that is lacking”


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“Micro or macro conflicts between departments are between different populations on the campus…and it unfortunately just spills over into the student experience”

“There’s a lot of condescension that I’ve witnessed from faculty towards staff”

“Public Safety has too much power”

“Why do issues with students always start with policing of our students?”

“I would like to see less policing of our students”

The extensive “policing of the students creates a hostile environment”

“Public safety is very aggressive with the enforcement of the no children on campus policy”

“Escorting a student parent and their 3 year old child out of a classroom is traumatic for the child”

“I think the minute public safety gets involved that trust you have built…is gone, it’s lost”

“Telling students to go use CUNYFirst instead of offering to help isn’t kind”

Students describe some of the staff they have interacted with as “the nastiest people ever”

Students feel too many administrative support staff are “dismissive”

“You’ve lost that student and that student no longer has any respect for you because they feel disrespected”

Students believe that some professors are fine with “failing a bunch of students”

“The class started with like 30 people and there is like 12 now”

Some students “drop their classes early because of bad interactions with the professor”

Students feel that success “comes down to have good or bad professors”


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Appendix: Selective, Axial, and Open Codes

Embracing a Culture of Care Requires the College to Understand and Meet Student Needs The College needs to better Understand our Students

Faculty are looking for more information on the unique needs of first semester students Faculty want to be notified about risk factors so they can proactively meet student needs The College needs to understand the unique needs of student populations Providing blanket support without understanding distinct needs doesn’t help students succeed “Students are being pushed to take 15 credits without assessing if they can handle it” Faculty want to see more detailed information on what is and is not working for students The College needs to better understand why students are withdrawing Faculty want help with understanding warning signs that students are likely to struggle Many Students Enter the College Unsure they Belong

Some students are testing out college and if they feel it’s not working, they leave Students believe that failing courses is a reflection on them as a person Failing courses reinforces student beliefs about their capabilities Students enter BMCC with a deficit mindset Students need community to establish a sense of belonging Students need Support to Overcome Entering College Underprepared

A culture of care requires the college address the issues that students come to BMCC with Students believe that the public schools did not prepare them for success in college Student note that their public high school experience did not prepare them for academic success Students come to BMCC without understanding higher education expectations Students enter expecting the college to take care of their needs like in high school “First semester students are struggling to stay” Students don’t enter college understanding how to make a schedule “Not everyone is always ready for school” New students struggle with the very different ways in which professors manage their classes Students drop out so quickly because they are not prepared for the transition to college level work Student need orientation to teach them which resources are available “I didn’t know that tutoring was free” Students need to have a “full orientation before they register for classes” Students suggest frequent workshops to “provide information on how to survive college” Students want a more Idealized Collegiate Experience

Students should receive “fancy letters” on acceptance days that welcome them to the College Students want BMCC to feel more like “a college you would see on TV” The College should have an appearance more like the elite colleges Our students want to feel as though “the college is opening doors to their success”


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Students should be welcomed to the college the same way they are in the senior colleges A Culture of Care is only possible when Students Trust the College

Students will only seek assistance if they trust that “resources will support them unconditionally” Faculty who engage in behaviors that embarrass students create an environment of distrust Students will not put their trust into faculty members who don’t treat students equitably Student interactions at the college make them believe they can’t trust BMCC Students who believe the College doesn’t care about them won’t open up to faculty

Some Students Enter BMCC with Negative Behaviors

Students feel that some of their peers just don’t have the mindset to be successful Some students aren’t motivated to do the work to be successful in their classes Students need to be motivated to engage in successful academic practices Some students don’t have the drive to be successful The college needs to incentivize positive academic behavior in students Students need more access to academic mindset workshops Students want workshops that teach them how to take tests

Some Students won’t seek Help

Students need help learning how to advocate for themselves The stigma that students internalize about getting help needs to be fully addressed “Not a lot of people feel comfortable going to a counselor” The College needs to help students learn to advocate for themselves

Students believe in Mandatory

Students believe that mandatory meetings with professors will increase success Students feel that students should have to meet with their advisors regularly Students believe that tutoring should be mandatory Students want students in developmental courses to have mandatory tutoring Students feel that all entering students should have a mandatory orientation to the College

Hunger is a Significant Issue for our Students

The college needs to find ways to provide food to students more often Faculty need support to help students in their classes who are struggling with hunger The College needs to find ways to provide more food to students who are food insecure The College is unaware of the scale of the food insecurity issue “The Panther Pantry is great, but it is not meeting student food needs” Students want the Pantry to provide more food each visit “Our students can’t afford to eat at Fiterman” “You should be able to use the card to get you into the building in the lunchroom to get one free meal a day” Having a credit and debit card limit for food purchases is providing a burden for some students


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Transportation Costs are a Significant Issue for our Students

“All student should be receiving MetroCards” The rising cost of MetroCards are impacting student attendance Students want more opportunities to get MetroCards “I would have every student get a free unlimited MetroCard to get back and forth to school because MetroCards and getting around the city is extremely expensive” Students can’t afford to waste money and will drop out to save transportation costs Having MetroCards would reduce some of the need for additional jobs

Housing Insecurity is a Significant Issue for Students

“BMCC should partner up with somebody to create housing for students” Homeless students end up in situations where they need to drop out of College The College needs to find a way to offer affordable housing to students The college needs to better meet the needs of the homeless student population Homeless students need access to facilities that will allow them to complete college Some “students are sleeping on subway cars to avoid the shelters” Students would like to see CUNY develop a shelter for homeless students Homeless students don’t always stay in shelters because they aren’t safe

The Cost of Books is a Significant Burden to Students

Students taking multiple classes can’t afford books for all of them Students appreciate it when faculty find alternatives to textbooks Students really like the OER courses Students don’t want to purchase books and then barely use them

The College needs to grow its Scholarships

BMCC needs to “expand financial support for economically disadvantaged students” Students aren’t aware of all the scholarship opportunities Students don’t know the difference between grant and loan funding Scholarship information should be easier to understand and more accessible The College needs to increase grant aid

Students need Opportunities to Earn Income

Students would like more work study options Students are looking for opportunities to earn money on campus Students would like access to more paid internships Students need help securing employment

Students Depend on College Technology

The college needs more outlets for student devices Printing services are essential to students


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Students need more charging stations Some students only have access to computers here at the college

Outside Struggles are Part of the Classroom Experience

Faculty have encountered students with undiagnosed hearing problems Students in need of glasses have never had eye exams Work schedules force some students to sleep in class Students need emergency/short term childcare Students need more flexibility with childcare options “Retention is low because students have to work” Students depend on semester breaks to address life situations “Sometimes you want to talk to someone, but you’ve truly not got the time” “I don’t have a dad and I am the oldest daughter in the family and I have to take care of my mom and brother and sister”

Students Appreciate Faculty Understanding Life Difficulties

Students feel that faculty have to know what is going on in their lives Students appreciate when faculty ask questions about their lives Students appreciate faculty who don’t overload them with homework Students appreciate faculty who show compassion in the classroom

Students want more Information about Major Courses

Students note that if they understand how the curriculum fits together, they will commit more to coursework Students want to know why major courses were chosen Students don’t understanding why they have to take so many courses outside their major Students invest more in major courses than general education courses

Students hate taking Developmental Courses

“I shouldn’t have to pay for any classes that don’t count towards my degree” Student don’t want to take courses with no credit Students believe that students don’t take classes with no credit seriously “Not giving credit is a disincentive to work hard” Students don’t like that a placement test decides if they need to take developmental courses “We need to figure out a way to eliminate the remedial classes”

The College Needs to better Integrate Academic Programming and Career Preparation

Faculty want greater involvement in connecting academics and careers “The College needs to communicate the importance of careers” Students want class assignments to prepare them for their future careers Students want experiences in the major to better reflect expectations in their future careers Students want more opportunities to engage in experiential learning related to their careers


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Students appreciate the career placement tests There are concerns that curriculum is occasionally out of alignment with future careers

Keeping the College open would benefit students

The College “needs to be open for 24 hours to provide safe space for students” The College should stay open later to provide safe space for students without homes Staying open later provides students a safe space other than home “College is a second home” Too many students don’t have support at home for attending college


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Growing a Culture of Care Requires Administrative Commitment and the Support of Faculty and Staff The College will need some changes to Culture to have a Culture of Care

Long-term staff with negative attitudes are defining departmental and unit cultures The “College takes suggestions as criticisms” The culture needs to become one that supports individuals who ask for assistance “There are still some folks that are stuck in the early 2000s” Staff who want to increase their impact on students’ success are often told to “stay in your lane” “There is still too much resistance to change at the College” Too many individuals are “tone deaf” to the concept of care Insensitive faculty members help drive the narrative that caring for students is not important Students are sent from office to office too often Students are sent from office phone to office phone “Departments that don’t pick up phones” send the message that “they don’t care about students” Openly complaining about the college to students communicates the message the BMCC does not care about them Some faculty and staff are quick to send students to other departments Administration needs to Act to Improve Student Success

The College knows what successful practice is for students, it just needs to act on the research Faculty and staff want to see “culture of care rhetoric backed up with action” The College needs to put solutions in place to address the gaps that have been found Solutions to addressing equity gaps should be put in place immediately Continually sharing bad news without implementing action is lowering morale Administration should find ways to involve more staff in improving student success The College needs to be willing to Question Policies

The college is too hesitant to question and address policies and practices The College allow policies that negatively impact students to continue The College needs to take charge over the policies under its jurisdiction “It doesn’t cost anything to change policies” Faculty and staff need opportunities to anonymously suggest policy changes The College needs to be Intentional about the Language Used

“I don’t know what Culture of Care means” Culture of care should be operationally defined and the definition broadcast widely “Language is important and BMCC must be conscious of who is impacted or marginalized by the wording of policies” “The term probation is problematic and stigmatizes students”


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Students feel the Limiting Resources to Students is Inequitable

Students want to see support services expanded to non-documented students “International students are not treated fairly” “All CUNY resources should be available to all students” BMCC is not Prioritizing its Night and Weekend Students The College needs to expand day services to support night and weekend students “When everything is closed, there is a different atmosphere” On the weekends, the campus is “a scary, scary, scary, scary place for LGBT students” The College needs to expand its weekend programming Current Communication Approaches with Students are not Effective

“Nobody has time to go on the website to read all this stuff” The college needs to find better ways to communicate with students regarding resources “I didn’t know that tutoring was free” Some students are unaware that they can register for classes without paying Students are often confused by the transfer process Students don’t fully understand the calculation of GPAs Students would like to have a general question texting service Personalized communications from the College make students feel valued Students need more help navigating financial aid The College needs to Improve Communication Efforts

Faculty feel that administrative offices responsible for record keeping don’t communicate effectively with departments Administrative offices are seen as reactive, not proactive in regards to informing faculty and staff Interdepartmental communication is often slow and ineffectual Students would like to see the website navigation enhanced to make searches more effective Buildings and Grounds needs to Improve Communications with the College

Communications from buildings and grounds are not viewed as clear “Projects occur without significant input or communication” Faculty don’t understand why the elevator schedules can’t be adjusted Staff feel the “construction projects are often inconvenient surprises” “I don’t know what they’re doing with the [elevator] box, the one that is now a stinky wooden box” The College needs to clarify the Reclassification Process

There is confusion and a lack of understanding regarding how reclassification works “Be more transparent and clear on this reclassification process” “I feel like it’s so mythical and I don’t know anyone who’s been reclassified.”


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Opportunities to Move up at the College are Limited

“I understand organizational behavior and big organizations and this is a scary one…there is a wall for how far we can go in our career here” More opportunities need to be made available for staff to move up More opportunities need to be available for CLTs and adjuncts to move up BMCC Should Reexamine Hiring Practices and Priorities

Hiring practices for faculty need to be more transparent and shared in and across departments College support staff that speak multiple languages provide a more supportive environment for students “We need a commitment to diversity that goes beyond identity politics” “We need to put into place a set of policies that demand people explain or articulate the ways in which diversity informs their work.” “The College should hire fewer administrators” The College needs more Staffing to Effectively Operate with a Culture of Care

Staffing needs to be adjusted to ensure high volume departments have support Inequitable staffing communicates less priority and value at the college The academic departments need more administrative support to support faculty and students “The burden for meeting and getting to know our students is too high without more support from the College” “You can’t focus on cultures of care when you are understaffed” Spending sufficient time with students requires more staff support to meet deadlines The College needs to increase the Diversity of Faculty and Staff

LGBTQIA students want to have a community of faculty and staff to support them The transgender students don’t have a supportive community at the College Academic departments have “a mixed record of hiring for diversity” “To feel like a community, students need to see more people like them” The College needs to reevaluate the Evaluation Processes

Faculty would like to see annual evaluations include objective support for diversity Students want faculty and staff to be evaluated on how well they support students “The faculty evaluation process is unfair to adjuncts” Faculty would like to see evaluations eliminated from major decisions due to biases Students would like a secret shopper style programs for student support unit evaluations Students want evaluation comments to be shared so other students can see them The College needs to Address Staff turnover

Inequitable work environments lead to higher staff turnover The lack of promotion opportunities lead to turnover The lack of succession planning leaves departments in trouble when people leave


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“There’s a lot of turnover [and] I just got to find my point person, but I wish that wasn’t the case, but I had to learn quickly to find my point person in order to get things done.”

Adjunct Faculty members don’t Feel Supported by the College

The lack of office space communicates “you don’t care about me” Adjunct faculty don’t receive adequate academic support “Having a real salary for adjuncts would help sustain the faculty” “We should have an adjunct appreciation week so that we can acknowledge their efforts” Adjunct faculty feel they are treated as “expendable” Adjunct faculty don’t feel they are included in college communications Adjunct faculty would like more opportunities to serve on college committees Adjunct faculty feel they are left out of the loop The printing limits place burdens on adjunct faculty members preparing for class “Administration should financially support adjunct faculty so they can attend departmental meetings” Adjunct Faculty don’t feel Supported by the Departments

Treatment of adjunct faculty varies greatly by department Departments provide differential resources to adjuncts Adjunct faculty feel they have little influence over syllabi Adjunct faculty feel that department chairs treat them differently than full-time faculty

Faculty and Staff need Care to Provide a Culture of Care

For students to be prioritized, faculty and staff need to be prioritized by administration “If we want to make the necessary changes, we need to fix the problems and policies and the structures while simultaneously loving the faculty and staff in support of the students” Faculty and staff must show respect to each other to help ensure a culture of care for employees Individuals at the College must be treated as people, not employees The culture of care has to be grown in departments, not by the administration

The College needs to Design Professional Development Specific to Culture of Care

Faculty need guidance on how to work with students who fall asleep in class Faculty believe they are “unprepared to work with students who are dealing with mental health issues” Faculty members feel unprepared to “support students with food insecurity issues” “The College doesn’t foster an environment where faculty and staff are supported in being student centered” Faculty and staff need help learning how to support students during fasts The College needs workshops on gender and sexual identity The College needs more diversity workshops to assist faculty and staff with understanding different religions Staff need help learning how to handle life crises


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The college needs “mandatory sensitivity training for staff and faculty” Staff feel too many mission critical offices lack basic customer service protocols

The Leadership Institutes are valued

The institutes show recognition from the Administration More individuals want to attend the staff institute The faculty institute is viewed positively

There are Barriers to Professional Development

Faculty and staff lack the time to engage in professional development Waiting on reimbursement makes professional development unattainable for some Departments need more funding to provide professional development opportunities on campus The College needs to direct more funding to professional development “How do we make CETLS feel not so cloistered and invisible, but more like a center?” Staff want fellowship, release time, and sabbatical opportunities

Professional Development Opportunities are viewed as Inequitable

The College needs to take on structural issues of exclusion at the faculty and staff ranks The nomination process for professional development should be opened up and more transparent Individuals at the College believe some members are encouraged not to apply for promotion Opportunities are “not equitable or inclusive because they are given to favorites of cabinet members” “There’s no secret about it, advancement is very much based on favoritism.” There are perceptions that advancement is not based on merits Professional development opportunities are not equally promoted at the College

Professional Development Opportunities need to be grown at the College

There are significant beneficial development opportunities Faculty and staff need to take advantage of professional development funds BMCC needs to support faculty who are interested in the OER approach “What professional development resources do adjunct faculty have?” The breadth of professional development opportunities are not visible to all employees Opportunities for outside professional development should be widely distributed and shared across the College

Students feel “Some of the Professors aren’t good at Teaching”

Students believe faculty know their content, but some are ineffective teachers Students suggest workshops to help faculty become better teachers Students are looking for faculty members to help make complicated material easier to understand Students feel that some faculty aren’t able to connect with students


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BMCC must be Intentionally Designed to Provide a Culture of Care to Students and those who Support Students

“All Students need the Opportunity to be in Cohort Programs”

“It can be challenging to create a sense of community at a large college” More students need access to the wraparound service provided in the cohort programs Students find formal peer programs to be necessary for navigating the College BMCC needs to provide an “integrated support system for all students” “College Discovery provides mental support to students”

“ASAP is creating a Two-Tiered Support System for Students”

Students feel that ASAP offers better support than other programs at the College Students believe that ASAP students are prioritized over other students There are concerns that students are being looked at as ASAP or Non-ASAP The College needs to try and provide “equitable support for all students”

Tutoring Support Needs to be Improved

Need to scale up the opportunities for one on one tutoring Students want more opportunities for one on one tutoring The layout of the tutoring center doesn’t support student learning THE LRC does not have enough space to support all the students The College needs to redesign the LRC space There are not enough tutors in the LRC There are not enough classes covered by the LRC Students in Developmental education should receive individualized support from the LRC

BMCC has to provide services in Alignment with Student Schedules

Student clubs need to have more than club hours to formally meet Student life needs to find ways to expand co-curricular opportunities to off-hours Students need the same access to services regardless of when they are taking classes Faculty have noted a difference in technical support between days and the nights and weekends Student activities need to be available during non-traditional hours to provide opportunities to full-time working students Equity and inclusion requires reorienting college operations to meet student schedules Class schedule have to consider work schedules Need to expand the childcare hours to accommodate working students The tutoring and writing center hours don’t support working students Students have busy lives, events need to be available when they are on campus

BMCC needs to better support Students with Disabilities

The entrance ramp to the college is “dangerous for disabled students” “Fiterman is an awful building for faculty and students with disabilities”


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For people with disabilities, the elevator situation during emergencies is problematic Each building and floor should be reassessed to determine how disability friendly it is during emergencies “There’s a lot of apologizing that has to go on for [people in wheelchairs] to get on and off the elevator”

“The Entire College should be a Safe Zone”

Students need safe spaces to have difficult conversations “There are not enough safe spaces on campus for students” “Safe zones need to be open and available every hour that the College is open” “Safe zone training is woefully out of date with its curriculum” There is a “growing sense of hostility towards queer people”

BMCC needs to upgrade its Operations

“More automation at the College will allow more time with students” The College needs to transition from the paper based HR processes BMCC has “created numerous unnecessary hurdles” to student success that should be removed Streamlining processes will free up time for faculty to connect with students The admissions process are largely designed for students entering from high school, not adult learners Reimbursement for travel takes too long and is a disincentive to engage in professional development “Not having an online timekeeping system is antiquated” Staff feel that job descriptions don’t change to match changing jobs “Non-RF purchasing regulations limit the use of grant dollars” “The bureaucratic fear of auditing gets used as leverage for denying professional development for faculty” The operational processes at the College disincentivize pursuit of grants

Too many Policies Negatively Impact Students

Policies need to align with the mission statement Meeting student needs should be part of the rationale for all policies Multiple policies and procedures discourage students Preventing students from reenrolling due to holds reduces their drive to attend college Placing holds on students “creates an isolation situation” that makes future success less likely Preventing students from registering prevents them from accessing supportive communities BMCC should consider an opt out instead of opt in approach to graduation Allowing early registration for graduation would reduce backlogs BMCC needs to carefully review policies to ensure that student opportunities for success are not restricted Policies that impede the development of community should be reviewed Students placed on probation need attention and specialized assistance “The probation policy tells student they don’t belong here”


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Academic probation needs to be revised so that students are welcomed back to the College “Academic probation disproportionately impacts minority students” Policies are not Transparent or Adequately Communicated

“Need to have public commenting sessions for all new policies” “I don’t understand the reasons behind why anything happens here” Inconsistences between College and CUNY rules need to be explained Faculty feel they have to go to more senior colleagues rather than policies to understand what expectations and guidelines are “Policies are hidden…and because it’s really bureaucratic, it’s like fiefdoms and power and gatekeeping and just adds to the toxicity of the environment for faculty” College procedures that are not part of written policy lead to confusion and frustration “The hiddenness of policies takes away any agency that faculty have”

Unequally Applied Polices are Viewed as Inequitable

“There are different policies or procedures that apply to some and not to all” Policies need to be consistently applied Policies need to be “enforced equally regardless of who they impact”

BMCC needs to Better Demonstrate Pride in its Diversity

The College should expand the Heritage Month celebrations to more student groups The College needs to find more ways to incorporate multilingualism into the curriculum Writing across the curriculum could be expanded to include “multilingual modules” “BMCC runs in English, which doesn’t show appreciation for diversity” “The College needs a supportive attitude towards linguistic diversity” The College should have more publications and messaging in multiple languages There should be more visible celebrations of diversity

The College needs to Enhance its Branding efforts

Staff want to see BMCC branding everywhere like at NYU and Columbia Students want to see Manny the Panther at more Events The College needs to promote more student stories

The College needs to Establish Opportunities for Community Building

BMCC is a big place and many people don’t know each other Need more formal opportunities for individuals from different buildings to interact and connect The College should provide more formal opportunities for faculty, staff, and administration “to mingle” “Cabinet members are very down-to-Earth, they know people’s names and I have a deep appreciation for that because it’s not like that everywhere” “I’ve been very surprised in a very positive way by how approachable cabinet members are” Need more all College training sessions where faculty, staff, and administration attend


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“There is no time to talk to colleagues”

Faculty would like to more Collaboration with Colleagues and Students

“More opportunities for cross-departmental co-requisite courses” Need more opportunities for team teaching Faculty would like more open dialogues between administration and faculty Faculty and students would like more formal opportunities to interact outside the classroom Adjunct faculty are seeking more mentorship from full-time colleagues “The teaching demands and the scholarship demands eliminate the chances for social interaction” The College should expand the faculty and chair mentorship programs “We need a better community of faculty and we need to see ourselves as a community and this needs to be across departments and across full and part-time and other divisions: Faculty want colleagues to “let them in” to their teaching approaches and knowledge

Staff would like more Collaboration with Colleagues

The College should develop more opportunities for staff to teach each other Staff need more formal opportunities to interact with staff with similar responsibilities in other units Staff want more formal mentoring opportunities Staff would like to work on cross-departmental projects Infrastructure and Space Utilization Communicate Unwelcomeness to Students

“This [Fiterman] is their building and it’s not welcoming at all” “They try to make [the art gallery] unwelcoming to our students because it’s a private entity…they don’t like to have students in there and they are so unwelcoming to our students” “The message to the student is that this space [the art gallery] doesn’t belong to you” Neither Murray nor Fiterman have welcoming layouts to students “Students are in Fiterman all day and there is no place to sit and they can’t afford to eat and there is this beautiful space that they can’t access” “It’s a problem that the first interaction you have in any of our buildings is with police” The College could place artwork or a welcome sign before public safety The information desk could be friendlier looking and more welcoming to students Staff would like to see a “celebration of the college” at the entrance on 199 Chambers Street Placement of the gender-neutral bathrooms communicates inequality and non-inclusion

Having Public Safety at the Entrance of the Building is not Welcoming

What students see when they enter the building communicates what the College thinks about them “What does the school expect from its student because there’s tons of security.” The College should “find a way to make the entrance more inviting and less security focused” Public safety being the first thing you see does not welcome you into the College “Why does CUNY security have to look like NYPD?” Students would like for public safety to look less like law enforcement


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199 Chambers Street needs to be Revitalized

“The temperature inconsistencies make it difficult to concentrate on work when you are either freezing or burning up” The colors in the building don’t encourage students to hang around The aesthetics of the building would be improved with more color “We don’t have a service elevator so you’re constantly in there with trash” The water temperatures across bathrooms are inconsistent The building doesn’t feel “modern”

The Reflection Room Needs Enhancement

There is not enough space in the current reflection room The reflection space is not meeting the needs of Muslim students “Staff and faculty would benefit from a reflection room”

Building Layouts are Confusing to Students

Students would like better maps to direct them around the buildings There is confusion with the stairs and elevators at Murray The elevators at Fiterman are consuming to students The signage at the College is “disorienting”

Travel between Buildings creates Difficulties for Faculty and Students

The College schedule doesn’t account for travel between buildings Faculty have to move between buildings to teach classes Students are taking classes in multiple buildings Travel between buildings is difficult for students with disabilities Students have to come to Chambers for situations that can only be dealt with in the main building

Space Distribution Speaks to Equity and Inclusion

The space at the College is not equitably distributed among the faculty and staff The distribution of space communicates “which programs are prioritized” Equity at the College requires more gender neutral bathrooms Students would like more facilities for nursing mothers “The College needs an LGBT center”

The College needs Greater Input on Space Utilization and Redesign

Functionality and efficiency are both reduced by the lack of strategically designed space The College has not been strategic enough about the configuration of space Campus learning spaces should be constructed with more faculty, staff, and student input Front line staff should be consulted regarding major changes to their area Learning space needs to be conducive to learning “Staff space has been reconstructed without input and the redesign is problematic” Faculty would like to see more communication and insight into how space decisions are made


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“They weren’t thinking about pedagogy, they weren’t thinking about effective learning environments”

The College needs some newly Designed Spaces

BMCC needs to provide more comfortable, congregating space for students Students are “tired from jobs and lives and need a place to sleep” Students need better space to have “embarrassing conversations” Faculty and staff want more quiet space to interact with students Faculty would like a lounge not connected to dining space The creation of a staff resource center would encourage greater collaboration Students want a Student Center “There is no space in the College for students transitioning from work”

Faculty and Staff need more Private Space to meet with Students

The Single Stop setup does not allow for private conversations “The setup of offices do not ensure the confidentiality of student conversations” There is not enough space for adjunct faculty to meet with their students The office space available to faculty and staff is not conducive to practice a culture a care “There aren’t enough quiet spaces to meet with students” The college needs more spaces where faculty and staff can meet one-on-one to discuss sensitive matters

BMCC needs to make better use of the Outdoor Space

The College should reimagine the use of outdoor space to enhance the student experience The lack of greenery takes away from the welcoming nature of the College The statue in front of the building is “confusing” and “needs to go”


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Faculty and Staff Attitudes and Behaviors Communicate whether there is a Culture of Care

Faculty and Staff Attitudes Shape the Student Experience

Faculty go out of their way to provide care and support Students believe faculty go out of their way to be fair Students feel most faculty provide opportunities to pass their classes “Walking students rather than sending them creates a hospitable feel” “People-friendly” environment “Fostering cultural care inside and outside the classroom is essential to enhancing equity and inclusion” Students are “overjoyed when the get somebody that was nice” Students need to know that someone will take the time to listen Staff are committed to meeting student needs

Faculty are Concerned about Students who stop Attending College

Faculty struggle to connect with students who stop attending Keeping students away from the College impacts their connection with faculty “One of the things I’ve had to witness is students vanishing” Faculty want policies to bring students back, not keep them away

Faculty are Engaging in a Culture of Care in Classrooms

“The best way to support our students in the classroom is to trust our students” Faculty take the time to connect with students “My students keep me buoyant here at BMCC” Some faculty keep extra MetroCards in case students need them Students receive “emotional support” from faculty Caring faculty are the ones who “establish an equitable classroom” “I know which of my students are hungry” “[My professor] makes everybody feel comfortable like if they got a question wrong or something he’ll explain it, he wouldn’t like call a person out like oh you’re wrong” Faculty who support LGBTQIA students become part of their support structure

The Syllabus is an Important Tool for Student Success

New students don’t know how to utilize the syllabus Some students are intimidated and confused by lengthy syllabi Students expect for faculty to follow their syllabus Students have the expectations that they are not allowed to miss class, even for emergencies Some faculty are concerned that the syllabi are being used for more than providing class information, faculty expectations, and grading


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Some Faculty Attitudes are Incongruent with a Culture of Care

Students believe “some professors are just mean” Students indicate that some faculty think racist or sexist jokes are funny Students believe some faculty see students as children since they “call them boys and girls” Students indicate that some faculty believe that “Asian students are good at math” Students believe that some faculty don’t believe older students are as capable

Some Faculty Behaviors are Incongruent with a Culture of Care

Students feel that “once a professor thinks they have lost a student, they move on” Faculty who give some students, not all, additional changes, are engaged in inequitable behavior Students believe that “piles of homework doesn’t show they understand our lives” Students feel that “by the book professors don’t care about students” Students note that some faculty chastise students for not knowing the material Some students don’t feel comfortable speaking up in class out of concern for faculty comments Students feel that some faculty “give up on students” “It feels like sometimes the professors are not supportive” Some faculty move forward with assignments whether students understand or not

Conflict within the Faculty and Staff Undermine the Culture of Care

Public disagreements between faculty and staff demonstrate institutional dissention “The areas that caused me the most stress and concern are between faculty and staff…it’s extremely hostile” “This feeling of a culture of care we have to not only focus on how we are care for the students, but also how we are caring for each other and I think that is lacking” “Micro or macro conflicts between departments are between different populations on the campus…and it unfortunately just spills over into the student experience” “There’s a lot of condescension that I’ve witnessed from faculty towards staff”

Faculty, Staff, and Students would like a Redefinition of Public Safety’s Role and

Responsibilities

“There should be shared governance oversight over policing” “Public Safety has too much power” “Why do issues with students always start with policing of our students?” “I would like to see less policing of our students” The extensive “policing of the students creates a hostile environment” Non-public-safety mediation for student conflicts would demonstrate a culture of care Adjuncts have stopped class because of aggressive behavior from public safety “Public safety is very aggressive with the enforcement of the no children on campus policy” “Escorting a student parent and their 3 year old child out of a classroom is traumatic for the child” “I think the minute public safety gets involved that trust you have built…is gone, it’s lost”


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Some Staff Behaviors are Incongruent with a Culture of Care

“Telling students to go use CUNYFirst instead of offering to help isn’t kind” Staff members who are rude impact student willingness to seek help Students encounter too many rude staff members Students describe some of the staff they have interacted with as “the nastiest people ever” Students hate being given the run around Students feel too many administrative support staff are “dismissive”

Interactions with Faculty Directly Impact Student Success

“You’ve lost that student and that student no longer has any respect for you because they feel disrespected” Students believe that some professors are fine with “failing a bunch of students” Students drop classes when they feel the professor doesn’t care about them “The class started with like 30 people and there is like 12 now” Some students “drop their classes early because of bad interactions with the professor” Students feel that success “comes down to have good or bad professors”

Students are looking for Faculty to Create a Welcoming Classroom Environment

The classroom environment dictates the degree to which students support each other Students are looking for faculty to create safe space Students want faculty to be “patient and compassionate with students learning to speak English” Students want students with disabilities “to be treated fairly” Students want an environment where they can “get comfortable with my classmates” Respecting students establishes a trusting environment Students note that their most impactful relationships are with faculty Students want faculty to get to know about student lives, not just their names

Students want Faculty to Value the Knowledge they bring into the classroom

Students want faculty to respect the knowledge they bring into the classroom Students want faculty to incorporate their knowledge into the class Student want opportunities to help facilitate class sessions Student want faculty to adjust their teaching to the group of students in front of them

Students want Faculty to Engage in Student Centered Teaching Practices

Students want regular progress (grade) updates Students want multiple opportunities to be graded Extra credit is seen as an equity tool for students who are struggling Students value review sessions before major exams Students “don’t want professors to teach like high school teachers” Students feel it’s the faculty member’s responsibility to change approaches if students aren’t learning Students want faculty to effectively navigate the different personalities in the class Students want faculty to step in and connect when they are struggling


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Students want faculty to help them see they can succeed

and Analytics August 30, 2019

Documents

Transcript of and Analytics August 30, 2019