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Interim Report - Campus Planning Committee

Spring 2007


Introduction:

Hamilton takes pride in being a "school of opportunity," as evidenced by the percentage of students on financial aid and our steady progress over the last decade in improving diversity. Nearly one-quarter (23%) of the last two incoming classes are domestic students of color and international students, which compares to only 12% nine years ago. The increase in diversity has been achieved without compromising admission selectivity or quality: in recent years, we have been able to attract students of record talents and diversity. It makes sense to plan for our future as we experience this success. Over the next 15 years, Hamilton may face significant challenges as a result of national demographic changes. Among those changes are the decrease in the overall number of high school graduates beginning with the class that graduates in 2010, growth in the number of high school graduates in the south and west, and decline in the northeast and mid-west. Moreover, the greatest growth is expected among students from groups currently underrepresented at Hamilton, including first-generation college students.

The Work of the CPC:

During the 2006-2007 academic year, the Campus Planning Committee (CPC) studied the challenges and opportunities presented by these demographic changes. We know, for example, that while Hamilton's retention rate is well above the national average, students who come to Hamilton from outside our traditional recruiting regions have lower retention rates than other students. Also, multicultural students tend to be less satisfied with their Hamilton experience. The predicted demographic changes of the next 15 years would suggest that Hamilton will see an increase in both of these student populations. The CPC was charged with advising the President about strategies that Hamilton might adopt in addressing these challenges.

The Committee met with members of the Hamilton community who were experienced in recruiting and supporting various student populations. Present at our final meeting were over seventy-five multicultural and international students. Advice/ suggestions fell into three broad areas: admission, academic support and co-curricular programs:

(Admission) Hamilton's goal has been and will continue to be to attract, admit, and enroll the most academically talented and diverse student body that will flourish in our community. As the size of the student population from which we traditionally draw decreases, the Admission Office may need to adjust recruitment initiatives to respond to changing demographics in order to continue to attract the best students. The College's significant progress over the last few years in enrolling geographically and ethnically diverse students should augur well both for future recruitment efforts and for increasing student satisfaction among targeted groups. A key to meeting this challenge is planning for an increase in the amount of financial aid available and for possible reallocation of existing resources in order to address the needs of these student populations. (The recent elimination of "merit aid" is a partial response to this challenge.) Increasing our name recognition in regions outside the northeast and finding ways to assure that prospective students understand the variety of opportunities and challenges they will face at Hamilton were seen as important in avoiding mismatched expectations.

(Academic Support) A focus on student success was seen as central to meeting academic support challenges. Four themes emerged in our discussions of responses to demographic challenges: enhancing and publicizing academic support services, addressing insensitivity in the classroom, creating peer cohorts modeled on existing successful programs, and building flexibility into the curriculum. Mentoring programs (faculty/student, staff-or-administrator/student and alumni/student) and the new assistant dean for diversity initiatives (whose charge includes an ombudsperson function) were mentioned as components of expanded academic support services. These programs can have potential impact beyond the academic arena. Existing support services (e.g., in writing, quantitative literacy, and oral communication) should be promoted widely among student groups. Students reported feeling that they were sometimes placed in difficult classroom situations as a result of faculty behavior or the way classroom discussions were managed. During 2006-2007, discussions were initiated with faculty based on research done by the Consortium on High Achievement and Success (CHAS). Continuing such discussions with, and training of, faculty was suggested as a means of addressing this. Our HEOP and POSSE programs, as well as varsity athletic teams, were identified as programs that successfully establish cohorts of students with a common purpose, ongoing activities, and support structures. Involving more students in such programs was suggested as a potentially valuable way of encouraging the peer relationships that help enable academic success. Finally, it was considered important to find ways to increase flexibility in the curriculum in order to respond to the changing academic needs of students (e.g., with respect to quantitative skills).

(Co-Curricular Programs) Three themes emerged: promoting a campus culture that is welcoming to multicultural students, expanding work and volunteer opportunities for students, and providing personal and leadership development for employees and students. Publicizing services available on campus and in the surrounding area, providing transportation to enable students to access these services, creating physical spaces on campus that attract student groups, and encouraging faculty and staff attendance at student events, were all mentioned as ways of creating a welcoming culture. Funding concerns relating to multicultural organizations demand attention, and a continued increase in social alternatives to events with alcohol would improve campus life for all. Students also suggested reenergizing multi-day celebrations of diversity (e.g. Multicultural Weekend). Paid summer internships and additional opportunities for students to work on or off campus might also help. A program of diversity and leadership training for employees and students was suggested as a way to improve students' experiences at Hamilton. Finally, encouraging multicultural students to run for elected office and play a greater role in student governance would help to engage students directly in areas that most affect them.

Conclusion:

Through research and discussions with numerous people during 2006-2007, the CPC has identified a number of considerations that the College will need to keep in mind as it adapts to gradual demographic changes in the next 10–15 years. While numerous strategies were proposed to meet the challenges we will face, by no means does the CPC claim to have all the answers. Hamilton has the opportunity and the will to make thoughtful changes in the three major areas that were identified, and to do so in ways consistent with our liberal arts mission. But we will need to continue to explore specific problems along with broad cultural issues and we are likely to require both human and financial resources and creative approaches to long-standing difficulties and complex matters. For it became clear to the Committee that the challenges, and the strategies required to meet them, are complicated and interrelated and will affect every aspect of campus life – academic, social, financial and cultural. We will continue our discussions in the fall and we invite every member of the Hamilton community to think with us about how we can provide the best possible campus environment to ensure the success of all of our students.


Appendices: Summary of various meetings of the CPC

In the next 10-15 years Hamilton is likely to face the following demographic challenges:

* The number of high school graduates in the south and west is expected to grow and the number in the northeast and midwest to fall. (Inzer)
* This growth is occurring outside our traditionally strong recruiting areas. (Inzer)
* Students who live outside the northeast and middle-atlantic regions have lower retention rates. (Hewitt)
* The greatest growth is anticipated among students from currently underrepresented groups. (Inzer)
* These are the students who appear least satisfied with their experiences at Hamilton. (Hewitt) In particular, they:
* are less satisfied with their undergraduate education (Senior Survey);
* are less satisfied with social life on campus (Senior Survey);
* are less likely to recommend Hamilton to someone with a similar background (Senior Survey);
* have six-year graduation rates slightly lower than those of white, non-Hispanic students, although these statistics fluctuate due to the small number of students of color (Ten-year study).
Students of color (CHAS):

* value out-of-class time with faculty, but often are conflicted about whether seeking that time appears as a sign of weakness;
* perceive a gap in their academic preparation for college (in both skills and content) as compared with their peers;
* find that statements made, and methods used, by some faculty in class put them in difficult situations (e.g., asking particular students to respond for or represent their race/ethnicity or asking members of a class to choose with whom they want to work);
* often feel significant financial pressures different from those of their peers;
* face the dilemma of deciding between "blending in" and maintaining their race/ethnic identity;
* feel without a "voice" in their college environment.
* There may be greater pressures on financial aid as more students come to college from lower income families. (Inzer)

How might Hamilton address these challenges?

(faculty committee representatives)

* Enhance Hamilton's name recognition, particularly in the south and west
* Develop long-term goals for financial aid
* Discount rate
* Allocation strategies
* Enhance student support services, to help students become successful
* Facilitate mentoring relationships between students and faculty
* Monitor student academic interests and needs and assure the curriculum is able to respond to them

(DSJP representatives)

* Provide more faculty/student and student/student mentoring programs
   * Senior/ first year?
* Create a position of ombudsperson for classroom issues
  * Tenured faculty member
* Consider other support infrastructures similar to HEOP and POSSE
* Address dissatisfaction with the drinking culture related to dissatisfaction among underrepresented student groups
* Better explain Hamilton realities – including the economic situations of the majority of students -- to prospective students.
* Develop a critical mass of multicultural students
* Use physical spaces and other visible ways to demonstrate college commitment for current and prospective students
* Have students/recent graduates make presentations on CHAS
* Encourage members of the community to attend meetings of various student interest groups

(CAP representatives)

* Pay close attention to student preparedness and the support services that would help students overcome academic deficits (e.g., preparation in mathematics)
* Track curricular choices of multicultural students in order to discern any trends (e.g., majors, effects of cultural values and socioeconomic background)
* Explore ways that curricular policies can incorporate flexibility in response to changing demographics
* Reward and support initiatives related to addressing the changing academic needs of students
* Explore the question of class size and a first-year program

(Phyllis Breland and Allen Harrison)

* Address additional financial needs of multicultural and first-generation students
   * Plan for growth in financial aid
   * Increase opportunities for on/off campus jobs during the academic year
   * Increase opportunities for paid summer internships
   * Provide opportunities for alumni to designate their gifts to support multicultural efforts
* Improve the campus culture
  * Retain, engage, and nurture multicultural students by encouraging and facilitating their connection with our community
  * Give/share responsibility for maintaining a diverse community of students
* Provide leadership training for multicultural student organizations
  * Encourage participation by all employees
* Encourage general attendance at campus multicultural events and meetings
  * Strengthen connections with multicultural alumni
  * Consider additional efforts/ services that make students feel "comfortable" – similar to home (e.g., food)
* Promote the services in the surrounding area that are of interest to multicultural students (e.g., hair and skin care)
  * Identify recruitment venues familiar to multicultural students in order to get the word out (e.g., alternatives to college fairs)
  * Enhance interaction and mentoring programs between students and employees
  * Mandate diversity/harassment training for all personnel
  * Seek additional support/resources for males of color
  * Recruit/hire more administrators of color
  * Enhance academic support services for multicultural students (make these programs so attractive that they truly appeal to students generally)
  * Publicize effective systems that are already in place
* Promote the support services that exist for multicultural students and the successes of programs such as HEOP
* Focus on student success and encourage students to utilize support services and think of them as "usual" rather than remedial.
  * Identify new approaches and seek grants for support
  * Promote and utilize the ombudsperson position to improve the classroom experience
  * Provide supplemental instruction for students who need it

(Students)

* Mobilize student activism to address concerns
  * Encourage more students to run for student leadership positions (e.g., student assembly, class officers, J-board
   * Improve participation among multicultural students in their organizations
* Encourage members of the community to attend multicultural events
   * Reenergize Multicultural Weekend/Month
* Resolve funding issues for multicultural events and organizations
* Enhance the functioning of the ALCC
  * Make its location central and visible.
* Provide additional non-alcoholic alternatives to socializing
* Find ways to connect with the surrounding Utica community
   * Provide transportation to venues beyond the current jitney
* Address issues of diversity in the campus environment
   * Address classroom issues through faculty training
   * Provide sensitivity training for the campus community
* Continue to improve the diversity of Hamilton employees