5P7 Institutional Level Communication

Administrative Annual Retreat: The off campus retreat is a time set aside specifically for the STI Administrative Team to discuss, revise and set institutional projects for the coming year. These projects are aligned with the institution’s mission, vision and values with focused input from all administrators. To make the retreat more effective, STI frequently works with an outside facilitator.

In-service days: Nine days are designated for in-service to share information and to educate faculty on technology use, assessment, teaching techniques, customer service, and health and wellness. A half day of the fall in-service is dedicated to communicating to all STI staff the yearly action projects and updates from administration for the coming year. Additional communications take place throughout the in-service and staff meetings. A kickoff at the fall 2009 in-service reinforced the importance of accreditation to the institute and the students. All faculty were reminded of the importance of making these plans meaningful, useful and relevant.

Jeff’s Corner: Monthly to weekly emails from the President, called Jeff’s Corner, are sent to all faculty and staff to inform them of additional events and activities taking place on campus, as well as updates on action projects. These emails are very short and include only the highlights of these activities. Other administrators also communicate institutional information to faculty, staff and students through email.

M & M Meetings: Monthly faculty and staff meetings are one of the main vehicles for communicating information and keeping faculty and staff up to date. Topics range from key developments which affect the organization, celebrating faculty, staff and student successes, and policies. All staff and faculty, including part time, are strongly encouraged to attend the meeting and offices are closed allowing staff to participate and reinforcing the importance of the meeting. Refreshments are served as a thank you for coming and to recognize staff and faculty for their dedication to the institute. The Academic Administrative Team also holds monthly faculty meetings to foster additional communication.

Newsletters: STI has several newsletters that help keep faculty, staff, students and the community aware of what is happening on and off campus. STI publishes a quarterly Tech Times (newsletter which showcases specific programs or events), Celebrating Student Learning (fall and spring semester newsletter on assessment and celebrating student achievement in STI programs), and the IT Newsletter (detailing the projects and important information regarding Information Technology at STI).

STInet: Announcements on the STInet site are posted by STI staff and faculty and can be viewed by faculty, staff and students. These announcements range from registration days to STI picnic, to winners of STI scholarships. Students are encouraged by faculty and staff to look at the STInet site daily.

Program and Department Team Meetings: Program teams and service departments hold meetings to discuss their internal needs, goals, and action projects. Some groups, such as the Administrative Team, meet weekly. Other groups meet every other week or monthly.

AQIP Team and STI Committee Meetings: Communications among department and program levels frequently occurs through STI’s AQIP teams and STI committees. Each team or committee includes members from various areas throughout the campus and focuses on key areas important to the success of the institute such as campus climate, student success, campus safety, the campus management system, etc.

Daily Interactions: Because of STI’s flat administrative structure, daily interactions between administration, staff and faculty occur frequently. Whether it is with the President, a Vice President, or Director, faculty and staff have easy access to administration. These daily interactions provide significant input to administration and have helped the institute in setting its priorities and meeting its challenges. Additionally, the location and small size of STI’s departments allows for these areas to communicate quickly and effectively on a daily basis.