Plenary - Leading with Intentionality: Moving the Student Success Needle
Due to technological advancements, rising tuition costs, financial barriers, and the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a growing recognition that it is now more critical than ever for institutions to prioritize being intentional with student success efforts. This is particularly true when addressing issues of access and equity in higher education. Indiana University’s robust data provide novel opportunities for identifying where to direct our efforts, and our team of multidisciplinary experts are working together to ensure that we are deliberate in our work to critically evaluate the data and apply successful strategies to achieve our goals. At IU, many of these experts came together in fall 2021 as part of the Institutional Analytics (IA) team. The IA team is not only diving even deeper into institutional data, but also focusing on stakeholders and their needs. Working with these data can be complicated by a number of factors, including access to critical data (i.e., learning data), new leadership, conflicting priorities, and the list goes on. The IA team is uniquely suited for addressing these challenges by bringing a depth of consideration to the process of data analysis and decision-making. With the stakes high, there is no time like the present to lead with intentionality.