Special Campus Memo: Residential Learning Task Force Report

Dear Grinnellians,

As part of the College's strategic continuous planning model, the need for a residential learning action plan was identified to evaluate campus life, to increase the retention of our students, and to implement strategies toward overall student well-being and success. In 2015, I appointed a task force on residential learning to evaluate these intersecting areas of campus life.

Task force members were asked to undertake a multi-year effort to advance goals related to belonging, community, and student life. They worked to discern what clarifications and changes needed to be made to the residential learning environment, and to examine policies, programs, and staffing. The task force was charged to explore these questions and to:

• define the goals of self-governance in order to serve the mission of the College,
• suggest avenues to infuse the College mission into the residential experience,
• help students thrive, not just survive,
• provide leadership development for students.

During 2016-17, the task force worked to refine its recommendations. Most importantly, it undertook a year of consultation with students, staff, faculty, and alumni in order to rearticulate self-governance and create a definitive text on this topic that will guide a new generation of Grinnellians.

I am pleased to share that the task force has completed its work and the final report of the Task Force on Residential Learning is available at the task force's GrinnellShare site. There, you can also find the year-one report and the membership roster of the group. The re-articulation of the self-governance document also is available on GrinnellShare. It will be used to guide conversations about how our self-governing community functions at Grinnell.
As you read the final report, be advised the residence hall improvements budget estimations in the final section were rough estimates. These requests still need to go through review and authorization processes.

I extend my thanks to the students, staff, faculty, and alumni who worked so diligently to explore and address residential learning issues. A special thank you to the task force chairs, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs Andrea Conner (who has since taken a new position at Lake Forest College) and Associate Professor of Education Paul Hutchison, as well as Trustee and Vice-Chair of Student Life and Enrollment Sub-Committee George Moose '66, for their service on the task force. Additionally, I am appreciative of the hundreds of community members who participated in focus groups, town halls, discussions, and workshops in order to support the work of the task force. Thank you to everyone who participated in this endeavor to improve our students' residential experience.

Sincerely,

Raynard S. Kington
President