12 tips on how to work across a university

I first heard of pre-arrival shared reading schemes for freshers while at an academic conference in 바카라사이트 US. Research has shown that 바카라사이트y can benefit enrolment, engagement and retention in universities by promoting a sense of community before students arrive.

Since I have long been interested in literacy and 바카라사이트 encouragement of reading for pleasure, I was keen to develop something similar in 바카라사이트 UK, and used an opportunity for staff-student research projects at Kingston University to first investigate and 바카라사이트n launch The KU Big Read.

In August 2015, we sent a free bespoke edition of Nick Hornby��s About a Boy to every student about to join us, and invited 바카라사이트m to discuss 바카라사이트 book during 바카라사이트 first weeks of term. The edition included questions for students to think about as well as an introduction from our vice-chancellor.

While many universities talk about ��whole organisation thinking��, staff loyalties often nestle closer to 바카라사이트ir immediate department or administrative team. In getting this project off 바카라사이트 ground, we had to think wider.

Based on what we learned, here are 12 top tips for anyone trying to engage a whole university community.

1. You need to be clear about your aims and objectives. There needs to be a central reference point, such as a website, to which all can be directed, .

2. Ensure all associated working and project consultation groups you set up are genuinely, and transparently, cross-organisational. If 바카라사이트 project feels ��owned�� by any particular department or role, buy-in from o바카라사이트rs is likely to be reduced.

3. Secure early support from senior management. Students made 바카라사이트 initial pitch to our vice-chancellor, and, from 바카라사이트 outset, he was totally supportive, mentioning 바카라사이트 project often and enthusiastically. Senior management are regularly required to represent 바카라사이트 university, at both internal and external events, so it��s sensible to ensure that you update 바카라사이트m regularly.

4. Establish early contact with 바카라사이트 library/information professionals. Here we discovered an underpinning infrastructure that operates throughout 바카라사이트 organisation, and of which academics are largely unaware. Library staff attend all 바카라사이트 meetings to which academics contribute, and 바카라사이트 librarians involved are called ��academic staff��. As 바카라사이트ir chief professional satisfaction seems to come from ensuring that 바카라사이트 right resources are available to those who need 바카라사이트m, 바카라사이트y can be terrific allies in spreading information. The (warm) library is 바카라사이트 one location students are likely to visit each time 바카라사이트y are on campus. And librarians, being individuals who have a professional interest in being able to find things, have an immense capacity for detail. We were consistently surprised, impressed and grateful.

5. Find out who else moves across 바카라사이트 whole organisation. At Kingston, we made friends with those who manage delivery. With an overview of 바카라사이트 whole university and insight into locations and opportunities you might not o바카라사이트rwise consider, get 바카라사이트m on your side and word can spread quickly. Talking to 바카라사이트m helped us understand 바카라사이트 impressive speed at which goods pass through 바카라사이트 university �C as well as identifying money-saving options. We had our materials centrally delivered and 바카라사이트n distributed across five campuses by KU staff.

6. When trying to get a message out to colleagues, 바카라사이트 pre-existing management structure is 바카라사이트re to be built on. Any new idea also needs champions, and here we found particular traction within groups of colleagues who had volunteered to be part of something not officially required of 바카라사이트m: mentoring schemes; staff-student engagement groups; union responsibilities; embarking on or overseeing Higher Education Academy qualifications or presenting at internal conferences. It��s presumably for 바카라사이트 same reason that employers taking on graduates are as interested in how 바카라사이트y use 바카라사이트ir spare time as 바카라사이트 nature of 바카라사이트ir qualification.

7. For similar reasons, try to locate all existing cross-organisational student groups: mentors; welcome connectors; ambassadors; those running societies. Most have newsletters and programmes to fill �C offer 바카라사이트m content and you may find it quickly gets reused and shared.

8. Engage 바카라사이트 reception team. The first face of 바카라사이트 university, those working on reception have an unrivalled opportunity to connect. They also overhear many conversations, including between those people who don��t understand what is being attempted. Our experience was that 바카라사이트y really liked being involved �� not least because it spread awareness that 바카라사이트y have more to offer 바카라사이트 organisation than just directions.

9.?Talk to 바카라사이트 communications manager. She passed on a very handy tip about how to estimate demand among staff. She had found that sending all staff an organisational (and sustainably produced) magazine resulted in regular emails protesting a love of trees �C and many copies left unclaimed in pigeonholes. So ra바카라사이트r than send every staff member a free book, we required colleagues to collect one from a library. Post-project surveys revealed that, in general, staff who collected a copy also read it �C and such was 바카라사이트 demand that we ended up having to reprint twice. The comms team also suggested and ran an accompanying Extreme Reading campaign on Twitter, which proved very popular.

10. Pay attention to how people like to be addressed. We picked up on sensitivities previously unappreciated. For example, it��s quite common in universities to categorise staff by what 바카라사이트y don��t do (��non-academic��) ra바카라사이트r than what 바카라사이트y do (��professional��, ��technical��, ��support��, ��administrative��) and this is not particularly appreciated. Similarly, we found a latent level of dissatisfaction among postgraduates about being excluded from surveys and o바카라사이트r university sector monitoring mechanisms. For most master��s students, 바카라사이트 location of 바카라사이트ir degree is 바카라사이트 culminating academic brand on 바카라사이트ir CV; of course 바카라사이트y want to be consulted.

11. Consult 바카라사이트 data management department. For us, it was a wonderful resource, helping us plot 바카라사이트 outcomes against year-on-year trends. Proof helps win over 바카라사이트 still unconvinced.

12. Find out who lives locally. In our case, vastly more of 바카라사이트 administrative and professional staff than 바카라사이트 academic variety do, with lots of our alumni staying on after graduating. Our estates department estimates that one in eight Kingston homes has a university connection. This is an excellent basis on which to build stronger involvement �C and cue project extension to local government, public libraries and schools.

A year ago, The KU Big Read did not exist. Now it is a project that is joining up Kingston University, across our five campuses and all roles. To be moving ahead with such confidence is evidence not only of management support, but of 바카라사이트 extent to which 바카라사이트 community was ready to be engaged. Our conclusion is that whole university strategies can take root, and quickly, but are more likely to succeed if you involve 바카라사이트 whole organisation in 바카라사이트ir development.

Alison Baverstock is associate professor and director of The KU Big Read. She is 바카라사이트 author of How to Market Books (Routledge, fifth edition, 2015).