2024 Student Experience Project Institute: Building Communities of Practice to Increase Student Belonging

By Samantha Levine
Director, Coalition of Urban Serving Universities (USU)

Informed by a strong base of research showing that increased student belonging is associated with greater student success, many institutions are seeking strategies to improve student belonging as part of their equitable student success efforts. Since 2018, APLU and USU have been part of the Student Experience Project (SEP), a collaboration of public research universities and national organizations committed to creating more equitable learning environments. Funded by the Raikes Foundation, the SEP draws from a robust body of social psychology research demonstrating that when students feel welcome and supported in college, they are more likely to use campus resources to help them navigate challenges, which in turn improves persistence and completion rates. These impacts are most pronounced among students of color, first-generation students, transfer students, and low-income students.  

Participating institutions engaged nearly 300 faculty in communities of practice to utilize evidence-based practices and meet regularly to reflect on their teaching and receive direct feedback on students’ experience; these faculty improved student experience in their courses, and students with better experiences were more likely to get As and Bs in the course. Additionally, instructors participating in the SEP reported that the community of practice enhanced their own sense of belonging and improved their teaching skills.  

Leveraging Research and Tools at Your Institution  

The SEP developed an array of free tools and resources that institutions can use to improve the student experience in the classroom. Key resources include: 

• The First Day Toolkit, an online module and companion resources to revise syllabi to support student belonging on the first day of class;  
• The Classroom Practices Library, field-tested guides for faculty to implement evidence-based practices to support equity, belonging and growth throughout the term;  
• Ascend, a data-driven professional learning program for instructors and administrators to understand how students are experiencing their learning environment and what they can do to make those experiences more equitable, more engaging, and more supportive of student success. 

To support member institutions in leveraging these resources to improve student success in the classroom, APLU and USU launched the first Student Experience Project Institute in 2023. In this two-day workshop, facilitators from SEP institutions and organizations lead campus teams through a design and planning process to engage faculty in communities of practice. Participants learn about the social-psychology research on belonging and student success and get hands-on experience with SEP tools and resources that can support faculty in implementing new teaching practices and gathering student feedback. Earlier this month, APLU and USU held the second annual Student Experience Project Institute, which was hosted by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Following the Institute, USU and APLU are convening virtual meetings for participants to connect and support one another as they launch their communities of practice. 

Since launching the Institute, USU and APLU have trained 29 member institutions to use the SEP model to engage faculty in communities of practice. Institutions are using SEP resources and frameworks to design communities that fit their campus context; pilot projects range from eight instructors in a single discipline to cross-disciplinary groups of 50+ instructors. With continued support from the Raikes Foundation, APLU and USU will continue to offer the SEP Institute for the next several years. For more information about participating in a future Institute, please contact Samantha Levine (slevine@aplu.org).