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University of West Georgia Campus Plan 2025: Appendix III

2025 Momentum Summit Planning Summary

Compiled Insights and Recommendations from Momentum Work Groups

I. Enhancing On-Campus Engagement for Students, Faculty, and Staff

Challenges & Barriers:

  • Students and faculty lack awareness of available events and engagement opportunities.
  • High percentage of working students and commuters reduces participation.
  • Faculty/staff workload limits after-hours involvement.
  • Insufficient student spaces for studying, resting, and socializing.
  • Financial constraints for student engagement activities (e.g., food, transportation, incentives).
  • Difficulty in effectively communicating events to students.

Recommendations & Action Items:

  • Faculty Presence & Student Engagement:
    • Establish a minimum on-campus hours expectation for faculty to increase student-faculty encounters.
    • Require all adjuncts to hold office hours on campus.
    • Implement flexible/mobile office hours in high-traffic areas (e.g., tutoring centers, library).
    • Introduce faculty mentorship programs and engagement incentives.
  • Enhancing Student Spaces & On-Campus Presence:
    • Develop commuter-friendly spaces (study lounges, quiet areas).
    • Increase café-style spaces (e.g., additional Starbucks locations, student-friendly lounges).
    • Improve residence hall affordability and explore cost-effective housing options for students, faculty, and graduate students.
    • Create identifiable program/department spaces that encourage student interaction.
    • Revive open bulletin boards for students to advertise events, organizations, and job opportunities.
  • Campus Life & Events:
    • Introduce gamified incentives for in-person engagement (e.g., leaderboards, sticker rewards, prize lotteries).
    • Offer meal tickets for faculty and staff to encourage dining hall use.
    • Organize “Lunch & Learn” faculty-led discussions on career and academic skills.
    • Explore Friday workshops on practical skills (e.g., group work, elevator pitches, job retention, social media presence).
  • Event Communication & Awareness:
    • Improve event advertising by utilizing QR codes on student hangtags for quick access to engagement opportunities.
    • Enhance the GoUWG app for event tracking, attendance incentives, and student engagement.
    • Conduct student focus groups/surveys to determine the best communication methods.
    • Place event promotion tables at major fairs (e.g., Majors Fair, Career Fair, Engagement Fair).

II. Supporting First-Year Students & Undeclared Majors (Meta-Majors)

Challenges & Barriers:

  • Students are unaware of how required courses connect to career paths.
  • Difficulty articulating and identifying transferable skills.
  • First-year students lack clear academic/career guidance and trusted mentors.
  • Commuter students face engagement barriers.
  • Many students delay engaging with Career Services until late in their college journey.

Recommendations & Action Items:

  • Career Readiness & Academic Integration:
    • Incorporate career competencies into all courses to highlight transferable skills.
    • Promote early career advising through Handshake and other career services platforms.
    • Integrate career-related assignments into first-year courses.
    • Assign trusted mentors for first-year students to provide guidance.
  • Targeted Support for Commuters & Non-Traditional Students:
    • Establish designated commuter lounges for studying and socializing.
    • Improve website navigation for commuter-specific resources.
    • Add a QR code on parking hangtags linking to campus resources (eating, studying, resting).
  • Measuring Student Engagement & Belonging:
    • Conduct surveys immediately after events to assess their effectiveness.
    • Offer incentives for survey participation (e.g., giveaways, meal vouchers).
    • Define and communicate the meaning of “sense of belonging” to students.

III. Enhancing Support for Second-Year Students

Challenges & Barriers:

  • Second-year students often experience a loss of identity and direction after the structured support of their first year.
  • No clear transition programs exist for second-year students.

Recommendations & Action Items:

Dedicated Second-Year Programming:

  • Implement a Sophomore Seminar to reinforce belonging, confidence, and career alignment.
  • Integrate the seminar into Area I curriculum to ensure participation.
  • Expand First-Year Seminar (FYS) to include a Second-Year Seminar (SYS), discipline-specific for declared majors and general for undecided students.
  • Assign faculty mentors to second-year students as part of a Student Success Champions initiative.
  • Benchmarking Success:
    • Study best practices from Columbus State (Dr. Melissa Young) and Georgia Southern for second-year programs.

IV. Supporting First-Semester & First-Year Students

Challenges & Barriers:

  • Many first-year students struggle with life skills and adjusting to college.
  • Academic and career pathways are not always clear to students.
  • Limited faculty/staff availability for student support due to resource constraints.

 

 

Recommendations & Action Items:

  • Early Academic & Career Interventions:
    • Encourage faculty presence at first-year student events for relationship-building.
    • Strengthen career services integration into first-year coursework.
  • Offer peer mentorship programs with upper-level students.
  • Experiential Learning for Student Employees:
    • Develop zero-credit career readiness courses for student employees.
    • Incorporate career modules into student worker training, guided by faculty mentors.

V. Addressing Faculty & Staff Engagement

Challenges & Barriers:

  • Faculty/staff face workload challenges that limit involvement.
  • High use of part-time faculty creates engagement barriers.
  • Financial constraints impact faculty participation in engagement initiatives.

Recommendations & Action Items:

  • Supporting Faculty Engagement:
    • Establish faculty writing groups for peer support.
    • Create incentives for faculty to participate in student engagement activities.
    • Offer recognition programs (e.g., revival of “Best of the West” awards).
  • Enhancing Faculty & Staff Community Presence:
    • Provide faculty/staff meal tickets to encourage on-campus dining and engagement with students.
    • Organize faculty-led skill-building workshops.
    • Improve faculty parking options to enhance campus accessibility.

Conclusion & Next Steps

These insights and recommendations provide a roadmap for enhancing student engagement, faculty involvement, career readiness, and second-year support at UWG.

The next step is to prioritize and integrate these action items into the 2025 USG Momentum Plan, ensuring alignment with institutional goals and available resource