Campus Culture
When thinking about campus culture, leaders of organizations need to put into context what type of school their organization operates within.
What is campus culture?
Campus culture is “the ‘invisible glue’ that holds institutions together by providing a common foundation and a shared interpretation and understanding of events and actions. Institution-wide patterns of perceiving, thinking, and feeling; shared understandings; collective assumptions; and common interpretive frameworks are the ingredients of institutional culture.” 1
Click here to download the transcript for the Campus Culture Video with the edit for PBIs or Predominantly Black Institutions
Understand how the type of institution effects the campus culture.
When thinking about campus culture, leaders of organizations need to put it into the context as to what type of school their organization operates within. Understanding these differences will help you better serve your chapter members as leaders, and even assist some of you if you are transitioning from a two-year school to a four-year school.
One of the first distinctions that chapter leaders need to think about is the cultural differences between two- and four-year universities. The differences in campus culture will have impacts as to who joins your organization and how you keep members engaged. At two-year colleges, student populations can be more diverse. Two-year college students tend to be older. Most students work, and some have families. With diverse populations, getting involved might be more challenging for students. It can be a challenging task to get together busy students for non-classroom activities.
At most four-year institutions, students are younger and have an easier time engaging in activities outside of the classroom. Part of the reason is that many students at 4-year schools are younger, full-time students, and live on or near campus. These students are not balancing taking care of a family, going to work, and completing a degree. The consequence of these differences is that most students at 4-year schools have an easier time attending organizational meetings and events.
Outside of the dichotomy between two- and four-year schools, campus culture is also influenced by whether it is a public or a private school, and the many subcategories of those schools (Ivy League, Minority Serving Institution (MSI), Historically Black College or University (HBCU), State Flagship School, Satellite Campus, etc.). Each type of school serves different cohorts of students, thus the campus culture at Harvard University, an Ivy League will be different than at Fayetteville State University, an HBCU.
Keep in mind that differences in culture will influence the type of programming that your campus puts on. You as a chapter leader want your events to be well attended and grow over time. To do so you need to understand your audience. If your campus is big on football in the fall. Plan your events around it (I.e., tailgating & BBQs).
How to understand your campus culture?
Anyone who wishes to build support for an organization to address a need must spend time first in learning more about the campus cultural context; how that culture shapes what people value and how they are likely to react to any change that might affect them. Although institutions of higher education have some elements in common, each campus also has its own distinctive ways of doing things and its own patterns of interacting. Significant change can stir up both interest and concern because, intentionally or not, the change effort challenges the assumptions that underlie everyday life on campus. There are many “unwritten rules” and subtle social cues in every campus community that are learned by observation and rarely spoken of out loud. As a starting point for creating space for change to unfold, it is helpful to try to identify and analyze these social cues.
What impact that campus culture is going to have on chapter strategic plan?
Your campuses culture is going to impact all aspects of your organization’s strategic plan. It is going to influence the mission, vision, and objectives of your chapter. Campus culture will also determine the strategies your chapter will employ to meet the mission, vision, and objectives you and your team set to achieve in the academic year.
Outside of the strategic plan, your campus culture is going to have an impact on your chapter’s relationships. A successful SVA chapter has working relationships with its members and potential members, university administrators, faculty and staff, community members, political leaders, and more. You can learn more about chapter relations in the Chapter Guide.
Assignment
Follow along in the chapter strategic planning guide on page 3.
Consider the following questions listed below. Take a moment to think about each, and then define what is your campuses culture.
- What type of school do you attend (public or private, 2 year or 4 year)?
- What community does your school serve primarily?
- What does your school’s administration value?
- Do you think your chapter is including all military affiliated students? If not, how can you? (Think family members and allies).
Define your campus culture.
Video Resources:
How to Become Your Best When Life Gives You Its Worst | Peter Sage | TEDxKlagenfurt – YouTube
What Student Leaders Can Learn from Leadership | Lev Bukhman | TEDxUBCOkanagan – YouTube
PTSD: We are NOT Broken | San Pao | TEDxDirigo – YouTube
1 Eckel, P., M. Green, B. Hill, and W. Mallon (1999) On Change III. Taking Charge of Change. A Primer for Colleges and Universities. American Council on Education.