Assessing Belongingness and Marginality During the Pandemic

Student Affairs practitioners already know that students from marginalized and underrepresented populations experience cocurricular involvement and engagement very differently from students from majority groups. The pandemic has increased the gap. Marginality, mattering and belongingness are well documented in the literature. Still, student affairs practitioners must understand the specific inequities at their institution via assessment so that they can take steps to address systemic issues, remove barriers and support students. Listen to assessment practitioners from Iowa Wesleyan University, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, and the University of Oregon as they share specific examples of how they assess belongingness, mattering and marginality in this pandemic period and how what they are learning will inform future assessment practices, programs and services to advance equity.