• Provost Data
  • Look at this one first for retention
  • URM is about 5-6% below the average
  • We are very similar to schools in the Big and community colleges
• Graduation data of UMR groups
  • We have about a 70% grad rate, but 62% UMR
  • If you have data literacy questions, reach back to Matt Anson
• Campus Data
  • Are we looking at the Impact of Retention
  • Student success portal > pulls fresh info each time you look it up.
  • Retention – looks at how many students leave
  • Can drill into the report by clicking on any area.
  • Looks at how students progress through the university to help us find the equity gaps.
  • Most that leave are students with GPAs of below 2.0
  • Because this is protected info, the committee can submit to MN what we need to look at, and then we will dig in to find it.
• SERU
  • This info is 2018; with COVID, we are about to update this to see the latest info.
  • Iowa Dashboard > Survey Topic > Diversity Equity and Inclusion
  • Survey Response Filters
    • The way we read these cols. the value is the filtered value, and then there is the IA mean.  Comparing the filtered group to the IA Mean.
    • First-gen works off campus more than multi-gen works more on campus.  So those that are not retaining are possible because they are more off campus than on campus.
    • Two hundred questions are asked, so it is very robust.
  • New Tool coming
    • looking at SERU trends - 2018 – 2022
• Postgraduate  PSEO Explorer - Census Bureau

What should we focus on to measure impact?

• Start with the end goal in mind.  What do we want to answer?
  • We want to recruit a diverse group of students in STEMM. We want to change the job market.
  • What is the data on an effective way to do that, to recruit a more diverse group to Iowa?
  • What does it take for them to be employed when the students leave here?
  • There is a ton of data.  What do we need to ask, and what data is missing?  The goal isn’t to answer the questions but what we have and need to have.
• Impact is the most difficult to operationalize.  IT seems this could take in external data. 
  • Look at the financial aid and debt burden of the students we have.  How much debt did we settle on them when they were here?  Are URM leaving with more debt than other students?  Getting financial aid data.
    • Like the idea, we are unique in this that we are proud that UI leaves with little debt, but is it larger?
  • Their experiences in large classrooms.  What would it take from a financial?  Look in the middle, the experience of what it is like while they are here.  Explore classroom / academic experiences. Do they have enough mentoring? Do they know how to get support?
• This measures the cultural impact - SERU to dig into this for the experience.
  • We can go in and collect other information as well.  We can make better questions to ask students to find this experience.  This does not happen as much on this campus to find out why.
• Strikes me that the data we are missing is the external data.  What is the impact on the community, state, and nation?
  • There are other reports.  We partnered with the census
    • Postgraduate  PSEO Explorer - Census Bureau
    • We can look at it broadly, but we would need to do a separate study and permission from financial aid to drill down.  Nick Bowman would be contact.  We are similar at Iowa to everyone in the country regarding debt.  Let’s look at what strategies others are doing to tackle Iowa.
• Third area: Job placement and employment for UMR vs. non-UMR students
• Remember, we don’t need to tackle everything but tackle a couple of elements.

Homework

• Everyone looks at each of the buckets of data above to find what we have and what we need to measure in these three areas:
  • Financial aid and debt burden
  • Classroom / academic experiences
  • Job placement and employment for UMR vs. non-UMR students

NOTE: Watch for the next meeting appointment this Friday, August 12, 2022.  The purpose will be to put together a simple presentation for the full SEA Change Core Team meeting on August 15, 2022.