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Vision 2015

SASS STRATEGIC PLAN


VISION

Consistent with the University of Ottawa’s goal to inspire passion among those that bring life to the learning community and to provide an unparalleled student experience, SASS aims to assert its leadership through the development and implementation of exemplary student support services in order to enrich the learning environment and academic experience.

MISSION

Consistent with the University of Ottawa’s goal to foster in students a thirst for knowledge, intellectual independence, and social and community engagement, and to see them grow in a stimulating learning environment, SASS is working with faculties and university services to ensure that all students have access to the resources and tools that promote academic, personal and professional success and that provide a quality university experience.

ORGANIZATIONAL VALUES

The service philosophy finds expression in the definition of SASS’s organizational values and the elements required to achieve its mission.

  • Placing student development at the core of our work. SASS aims to build relationships with students in order to bring them to reflect on their identity, aspirations, areas of interest and skills. The quality of interactions between students and their environment (people, structures, procedures, knowledge, locations), along with their desire to make the most of this environment and achieve their full potential, are at the root of student growth.

  • Valuing cooperation with the community as a whole. In an environment of complex faculty structures and cultures, cooperation between the various teams is essential. When students, teaching staff, administrative staff and the outside community work together, SASS can implement effective support measures and students can become part of a community that has their well-being at heart.

  • Valuing the well-being of the university community. SASS aims to ensure the well-being of its personnel by allowing the free expression of talents within the various work teams and by providing opportunities to pursue professional development and personal growth.

  • Acknowledging each other’s expertise and offering integrated services. The provision of integrated services requires the creation of teams in which diverse talents and perspectives are brought together to create a coherent environment of academic programs and services, an environment where interactions between students, teaching staff and administrative staff provide a meaningful experience for students, both inside and outside the classroom.

  • Recognizing diversity and accessibility issues. The establishment of personalized, adapted and differentiated services is the approach currently favoured by SASS, particularly with regard to Aboriginal students, first-generation students, students with disabilities, Francophone students. Addressing diversity and accessibility is recognizing that each student responds differently to the support measures that are applied in various contexts.

  • Basing our approach on theoretical and applied research. The SASS approach is based on the development of a sound understanding of the theories that inspire practices deemed exemplary, along with the desire to test them and analyze the results. Services should be evaluated according to their ability to both establish quality interactions between students and their environment, and lead to student engagement and perseverance in their studies.

DIRECTIONS

The University’s internal organization must promote interactions between students, teaching staff and administrative staff, because the student experience is shaped by the environment in which students evolve. The following directions reflect the areas in which SASS has a certain influence.

  • Transition and integration. Students come to university having acquired a variety of personal, family and social experiences, and varying degrees of preparation for academic studies. According to Tinto’s theory, the interactions between students and their environment are essential to student integration. The type, quality and frequency of these interactions shape the student’s evolution. Well integrated students develop attitudes, behaviours and skills that promote academic success. Tinto’s theory states that there are two interdependent types of integration: academic and social. Successful integration occurs when students feel a sense of belonging in their field of study and in the university community.

  • Academic success and engagement. Academic success is about more than just grades, it’s about self-actualization – an educational success concept that in turn introduces that of student engagement (Chénard, 2005). According to Dr. Kuh, the creator of the National Survey of Student Engagement, student engagement “represents the time and effort students devote to activities […] that reinforce and enrich learning. Student engagement also refers to the ways a college uses its resources and organizes the curriculum, other learning opportunities and support services to induce students to participate in activities that lead to satisfaction, persistence and graduation.” (Carrier, 2009) With that in mind, when support services are implemented in conjunction with the will of students to use them, we have evidence that everyone involved is committed to educational success.

  • Retention and perseverance. Retention refers to the willingness and ability of students to pursue their studies until they obtain their diploma, as well as the university’s willingness and ability to create an environment that allows students to reach their goals. Retention involves a system of conditions that are brought together for students to get the timely support they need in order for them to succeed in their academic or career goals. According to Tinto, retention is the result of a system that prompts the university community’s commitment to the welfare of its student community. Among other things, this can translate into the implementation of integrated academic support services (Tinto, 1987).

  • Research and analysis. By analyzing factors that contribute to student success in an academic setting, we can evaluate the effectiveness of support services and modes of intervention. Research and analysis also allow SASS to better understand the prevailing situation at the University of Ottawa in certain courses, programs, or even student groups, in addition to identifying best practices.

GOALS AND INITIATIVES – TRANSITION AND INTEGRATION

  1. Establish a partnership with Strategic Enrolment Management to raise awareness of our services among future students (and their parents) before they even start university. This will present SASS as value added to their future academic experience.

  2. Intensify liaison activities in Aboriginal communities, with an aim to increasing the number of Aboriginal students enrolled at the University of Ottawa by 15% (a 5% increase per year for the next three academic years).

  3. Consolidate and diversify all welcome activities organized by SASS, particularly the Transition Program offered by Access Service and the welcome activities geared to Aboriginal, Francophone, first-generation, international and graduate students.

  4. Encourage students to prepare their career plan as soon as they start university through the development of activities integrated into programs of study or designed according to academic paths.

GOALS AND INITIATIVES – ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND ENGAGEMENT

  1. Promote the integration of support services into programs of study and increase the differentiated service offering in order to better target the needs of students based on their personal characteristics, chosen program of study and year of study.

  2. Diversify service delivery methods so that students can access SASS resources at any time through a variety of platforms.

  3. Develop a communication strategy that enhances the visibility of SASS services among the various clienteles and student groups.

  4. Increase the visibility of the Office for the Prevention of Discrimination and Harassment.

  5. Foster cooperation between all SASS sectors in order to maintain an integrated service offering.

GOALS AND INITIATIVES – RETENTION AND PERSEVERANCE

  1. Help build a university culture that prizes mutual assistance and fosters the creation of partnerships with faculties, university services and the community, with an aim to reinforcing the support measures available to students.

  2. Implement the three-year action plan approved by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to make it easier for Aboriginal students to access academic studies and succeed at them.

  3. Implement the two-year action plan approved by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to make it easier for first-generation students to access academic studies and succeed at them.

GOALS AND INITIATIVES – RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS

  1. Develop evaluation tools so that SASS can measure the impact of its services on student success and retention.

  2. Perform analyses allowing SASS to monitor students’ academic performance and retention rate, and to better understand success factors unique to the University of Ottawa.

  3. Continue to perform research on best practices in the area of student support.

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