Kurt Penner Coordinator, Student Life & Development Kurt.penner@kwantlen.ca www.kwantlen.ca/sld

1. Celebrating the END of 1st Year:Roundtable discussion28th Annual Conference on the First Year ExperienceOrlando, FLFebruary 8-10, 2009 Kurt Penner Coordinator, Student Life & Development Kurt.penner@kwantlen.ca www.kwantlen.ca/sld Surrey, British Columbia, Canada

2. Agenda • Introduction (Topic, Facilitator) • Participants & Goals (Vast majority of participants don’t currently do something like this and would like to consider it) • Guided Discussion • Why/why not have a Celebration at the END of 1st year? • What is done? What models are out there? • When can it be done? • Who is it for? Who participates? Student voice? • Assessment? • Lessons, ideas to share? • Concluding remarks

3. Orientation, FYE Seminars etc: Beginning well and getting connected

4. How do students celebrate the endof their first year? For common answers, simply search www.youtube.com using a phrase like, “celebrating the end of freshman year”

5. Whymark the END of First Year? • Attrition between 1st and 2nd year (~30%) • Retention initiative? • Ritual as an aid to the continuing transition process • Students are celebrating already (usually with alcohol) • Potential to create a powerful, positive alternative • Opportunity to show that students matter • Opportunity to celebrate our values • Opportunity to add further community-building • Does it make equal sense at more/less selective institutions? • Other ideas? • Why NOT do it? Is it worth investment?

6. Notes on support and mattering (Rayle & Chung, 2008) • The concept of ‘mattering’ • College friends’ social support  feeling they matter • Feeling they matter to the college  Reduced academic stress levels

7. What/How to Celebrate the END of 1st year? • Model 1: No intentional Celebration • Model 2: A Recognition Event each May (KPU Model): “The Celebration of Excellence” • Academic Achievement Awards (the top student in each program area) • Student Leadership Awards (we want to celebrate both academic and service/leadership values) • (Previously: Faculty Teaching Excellence Awards…Concerns from Dean(s) led to curtailing this. Recommendation to ensure appropriate selectivity) • (Nothing linked to “all students” or “celebrating survival”) • Other ideas & models? (Informal party/food for students)

8. Some ritual-making principles (Young, 1999) • Making connections • Clarifying values • Symbols of significance • How can we connect? • What values do we celebrate? • Ideas for symbolism?

9. When?Is there a best time to celebrate? • Before classes officially end? (the most students around?) • Between classes & exams? • During exams? • At the end of exams? • A few weeks into Summer Semester? (If you need final grades from Spring for awards) • Connected to Convocation? • Connected to next Fall Orientation? • Connecting to the transition into 2nd Year development • Other?

10. Whois involved or targeted? • Top academic performers? • Parents/family? • Academic survivors? (large-scale?) • Student leaders? • Faculty? • Deans • Other Ideas: • 1st Year Advocacy Award(s) • First Year “Summit” – showcasing best work of the students • Connect the event to student leadership opportunities for 2nd year

11. Involving students and existing groups: Design and Participation: Ideas?

12. Could the design include further connectivity? Integrating 1st Year students with… Upper year students? Peer mentors? Student leaders? Faculty? One “model” student speaker? Other?

13. Appropriate Assessment? • Can we assess this? (Do we assess Convocation?) • What would appropriate measures & methods include? • Participation numbers? • Feedback comments from participants? • Retention data? Beware of this method as a sole administrative evaluation measure, depending on your context! • Other ideas? (Suggestion: As usual, plan your assessment measures/methods based on your goals ahead of time)

14. Other Lessonsyou can share?Trials, successes, failures…

15. Onward: Concluding remarks

16. Thank you for your participation!

17. Resources Astin, A.W. (1999). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College Student Development, Vol. 40(5), 518-529. Butler, E.R. & Glennen, R.E. (1991). Initiation rituals: Sanctioning rites of passage rituals to increase involvement. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the American Association for Counseling and Development (Reno, NV, April 21-24, 1991). Butler, E.R. (1993). Alcohol use by college students: A rites of passage ritual. NASPA Journal, v31 n1, 48-55. Kuh, G. (2002). Organizational Culture and Student Persistence: Prospects and Puzzles. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, v3 n1 p23-39. Magolda, P. M. (2001). What our rituals tell us about community on campus: A look at the campus tour. About Campus, January-February, 2-8. Magolda, P. M. (2002). Ritual, ceremonies, and cultural meaning in higher education. The Journal of Higher Education, Vol 73(4), 543-545.

18. Manning, K. (2000). Rituals, Ceremonies, and Cultural Meaning in Higher Education. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey. Rayle, A.D. & Chung, K. (2008). Revisiting first-year college students’ mattering: Social support, academic stress, and the mattering experience. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, v9 n1, 21-37. Schlossberg, N.K. (1989). Marginality and mattering: Key issues in building community. New Directions for Student Services, Vol. 48, 5-15. Tinto, V. (1993). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition (2nd Ed.). U. Of Chicago Press. Young, R.B. (1999). Re-examining our rituals. About Campus, September-October, 10-16. Zuker, R.F. (1997). Stress points in the college transition: what to expect/how to help students cope. College Board Review, n182, 14-21.