The Emerson360 Climate Survey was presented to the Student Government Association by Robert Amelio, director of diversity and inclusive excellence on Tuesday. The survey assess if work environments promote healthy and supportive conditions. This is the second time since 2014 that Emerson is offering the survey to students, staff, and faculty.
The survey, which goes live Nov. 3, will have two versions—one for faculty and staff, and another for students. The student survey will focus on the overall climate on campus, what it means to be an Emerson student, and power-based interpersonal violence. The confidential results go straight to ModernThink, the company facilitating the survey.
Questions about campus safety, issues of violence in regard to sexual assault, and the way the college responds to these problems are all mentioned in the survey, Amelio said.
The study will take about 25 minutes to complete Amelio said, and consists of multiple choice statements where the surveyee can indicate whether they strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree. Two open-ended questions will also be included, asking students what they like best about Emerson and what they’d like to see change at the college.
Amelio expressed concerns of how to best reach students and market the questionnaire. Beginning around Oct. 30, students will receive emails from both ModernThink and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Students who do not take the survey will receive two emails a day from ModernThink until they complete the survey.
“There is a need. Emerson students definitely should take the survey, especially because they are complaining all the time,” said Raz Moayed, visual and media arts senator. “If you could show them that this is the solution to their complaining, that’s the only way they are going to listen.”
SGA unanimously voted to approve sophomore marketing major Hayden Stills as public relations chair. Stills said she wants to revamp the different SGA social media accounts so that students can easily access and interact with SGA while also receiving important information.
“With all the work, events and good thoughts that are going forward in this room of people;, I think that it should be recognized,” Stills said.
Moayed, board of trustees representative, is preparing a speech for her first of three appearances to the board. Moayed said the meeting comes at a time when students want change.
“We don’t think Emerson is representative of [the students] … there’s so much initiative, but no action. We deserve action in our time too,” Moayed said.
Moayed said she found ideas for her speech by going around the dining center and asking students if they had any issues with the school. One such complaint is how Emerson deals with instances of hate speech on campus.
“A Lee Pelton email is not the be all end all solution to these issues, and sometimes it feels like that,” 2019 President Jess Guida said.
Deputy News Editor Max Reyes did not edit this article.
