On Monday afternoon, the Office of Student Affairs hosted a student input session to gain feedback from undergraduate students on what Student Affairs is doing well and what it needs to improve on. In the breakout sessions, students talked about a wide range of Student Affairs’ specific departments, including the Career Center, Residential Life, the Office of Student Involvement, and Counseling Services.
This event comes as part of Student Affairs’ self-assessment for the University Strategic Planning Initiative set forth by Boston College in January. The plan aims to identify institutional spending priorities for the next decade by conducting research across the University to better understand its strengths and weaknesses.
After these events, Student Affairs aims to have draft documents detailing its findings completed in the fall. Next year, the Board of Trustees will be presented with a complete draft of the research conducted by each of the University’s departments. From these documents another 10-year plan, like Light the World, will be established.
Held in The Heights Room in Corcoran Commons, the event lasted an hour and a half and allowed the 20 students in attendance to discuss Student Affairs’ successes and shortcomings. Each of the four roundtables had a different question that the students responded to while one student recorded the answers on a sheet of paper for Student Affairs to collect later. The students were able to visit three of the four tables.
“This strategic plan is not just going to be an add on,” Vice President of Student Affairs Barbara Jones said. “We’re not just looking at the things we can add, but we’re looking at what are the things that the University really needs to maintain its position.”
The University, Jones said, has been looking at making BC affordable to all students and improving facilities. It is also assessing the courses offered to students.
Student Affairs has already hosted an event for faculty, and it plans on hosting a similar input session for graduates on March 31.
