Assessing the Campus-Wide

Impact of Strengths Initiatives

for First Year Students

Krista Soria, Analyst, Office of Institutional Research

Robin Stubblefield, Director, Student Engagement & Co-Curricular Learning

Brooke Arnold, Assistant Director, Carlson School of Mgmt. Undergraduate Prog.

Jerri Kjolhaug, Executive Director, Rothenberger Institute

Jessica Gunzburger, Residence Director, Housing & Residential Life

Krista Soria

Achiever • Intellection • Input • Ideation • Learner

Robin Stubblefield

Relator • Communication • Connectedness • Ideation • Restorative

Brooke Arnold

Communication • Ideation • Empathy • Individualization • Includer

Jerri Kjolhaug

Developer • Empathy • Harmony • Learner • Responsibility

Jessica Gunzburger

Empathy • Achiever • Learner • Input • Intellection

Our Team’s Top Talent Themes

Assessment Focus

Strengths engagement:

• Did students take StrengthsFinder?

• How did students interact with it?

• What types of interventions did the U provide?

• With whom did students interact around Strengths?

Strengths impact:

• Have Strengths interactions and experiences positively

contributed to the student experience?

Data Collection

Triangulation, mixed-methods:

– Pre-and post-surveys of students

• quantitative

• qualitative

• random and census

– Focus groups of students

– Staff surveys

– Pairing with SERU survey

Participants

• Pre-survey (September; all FY): n = 2008

• Post-survey (December; all FY): n = 1493

• End of the year survey (April; random

sample ½ FY class): n = 570

• Responded to pre-and-post: n = 934

• Responded to all three: n = 299

• Focus groups: n = 28 in five groups

Interactions Mid Year

Survey (%)

(n=1497)

End-of-Year

Survey (%)

(n=570)

With friends 40.3 53.2

With an academic advisor 42.4 52.1

In Housing & Residential Life 52.0 50.5

In classes 32.6 34.9

With family 28.7 32.5

In student organizations or

activities 13.0 19.8

In a study group of peers 23.1 19.6

With a professor 11.3 12.1

With a career counselor 6.3 11.4

With coworkers (other than

supervisors) 1.5 3.7

With my employment supervisor

on campus 2.3 3.5

With my employment supervisor

off campus 1.2 2.5

Mid Year

Survey (%)

(n=1500)

End-of-Year

Survey (%)

(n=570)

Discussions 82.3 89.1

Workshops

23.2

20.0

Presentations

or Trainings 21.8

Types of Interactions

Where Students Discussed

•End of the year survey

•Agreement scale 1-5

•n ~ 570

•Random sample

•Differences are statistically

significant (p < .05)

Discussions with Strengths Matters “I believe that knowing my Strengths and interacting with them has

positively impacted me in the following areas”

•End of the year survey

•Agreement scale 1-5

•n ~ 570

•Random sample

•Differences are statistically

significant

(p < .05)

Discussions with Strengths Matters “I believe that knowing my Strengths and interacting with them has

positively impacted me in the following areas”

•End of the year survey

•Agreement scale 1-5

•n ~ 570

•Random sample

•Differences are statistically

significant

(p < .05)

Impact on Students of Color “I believe that knowing my Strengths and interacting with them has

positively impacted me in the following areas”

Impact on Students of Color

•End of the year

survey

•Agreement scale 1-5

•n ~ 570

•Random sample

•Differences are

statistically significant

(p < .05)

•End of the year survey

•Agreement scale 1-5

•n ~ 570

•Random sample

•Differences are

statistically significant

(p < .05)

Impact on International Students “I believe that knowing my Strengths and interacting with them has

positively impacted me in the following areas”

Impact on International Students

•End of the year

survey

•Agreement scale 1-5

•n ~ 570

•Random sample

•Differences are

statistically significant

(p < .05)

Insights into Retention & GPA

Disagree & Strongly

Disagree

Agree &

Strongly Agree

I can name my top five

Strengths

92.3% (336 retained

out of 364)

95.2% (819 retained

out of 860)

I believe Strengths has

value for me now

93.4% (152 retained

out of 162)

99.9% (266 retained

out of 268)

I can name my top five

Strengths

3.30 (n = 148, sd = .55) 3.42 (n = 365, sd = .49)

I know how to apply my

Strengths to achieve

academic success

3.33 (n = 120, sd = .32) 3.42 (n = 327, sd = .47)

Students’ Perceived Value of Strengths

• From the end of the year survey (n = 570), we

discovered:

– Approximately 75% of students reported that Strengths has

value for them now, as they continue to progress as an

undergraduate, and as they enter the workforce or continue their

education

Staff vs. Student Perceived Value of Strengths

Staff’s Perceived Value of Strengths

Did Not Take

StrengthsFinder

Took

StrengthsFinder Diff.

Increasing their self-awareness 27.2% 71.5% 44.3

Understanding others 17.1% 49.0% 31.9

Thinking about potential career paths 24.6% 53.1% 28.5

Developing as a leader 22.1% 49.9% 27.8

Increasing their overall self-confidence 19.6% 40.7% 21.1

Getting involved on campus 14.8% 29.5% 14.7

Selecting a major 13.8% 22.8% 9.0

Feeling like they would like to return to

campus next year 6.2% 7.5% 1.3

Feeling like they belong on campus 9.2% 12.4% 3.2

Key Take-Aways

Staff Taking Strengths

Staff Perceived Value

More Strengths Interactions with Students

Greater Student Impact & Value

Students Have Higher Retention, Etc.

What’s Next for You?

• Take StrengthsFinder assessment

• Visit www.strengths.umn.edu

• View research results online:

http://strengths.umn.edu/strengths-research/results

• Sign up for the 34 in 34 listserv

• Attend workshops (& encourage others to attend with

you!)

• Engage in a conversation around strengths with other

staff members or students

• Learn how your college/department is utilizing Strengths

What’s Next for You?

• What is one small actionable step you are

going to commit to in regards to Strengths

within the next month?

Questions?