The SAAL Blog is meant to be a place to highlight diverse voices and perspectives of assessment professionals from all skill levels. Over the course of the next year, you will hear from our blog writing team as we reflect on trends in assessment, respond to SAAL programs and events (i.e Structured Conversations), reflect on an article we read or on SAAL’s open course, and you may even find us offering SAAL membership quick and easy tips we implement in our daily work to make assessment more manageable and impactful on our campuses.
While we are no longer accepting applications to a member of the blog writing team, we are now accepting applications for guest bloggers. Guest bloggers self-submit one-time interest pieces offering perspectives on student affair assessment, issues in assessment, assessment advice, reflections on Structured Conversation topics, or other topics of their choosing. Submissions are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis. Ideally, blog posts should be between 800-1,200 words and include a visual element that offers some value to the content of your blog post (no more than three images). You can submit your post by clicking on this link. If you have an idea of a blog post but need some help to think through its content, feel free to email the Blog Manager, Paul Holliday-Millard, at Paul.Holliday-Millard@uncc.edu.
Now say hello to your blog writing team!
Aaliyah J. Deggs
Email: aaliyahdeggs6@gmail.com
Professionally, I use my birth name Aaliyah J. Deggs. I am a Kansas City, Missouri native and first-generation professional. I earned my B.A. in Sociology and Anthropology from Spelman College and M.A in Higher Education and a Graduate Certificate in American Indian Higher Education from the University of Arizona. Currently, I serve as a Residence Life Coordinator at the University of South Florida. I have served as an Assessment Lead for a study abroad and cultural immersion program and Chair of multiple committees within Housing and Residence Life throughout my five year professional career. I joined the SAAL blogging team because I want to demystify assessment and encourage all professionals to properly use assessment to make well-rounded and data driven decisions. Also, I would like to expand my network outside of my institution and region. I love storytelling and assessment allows me to share diverse and unique stories.
Will Miller
Email: millerw1@erau.edu
My name is Will Miller and I have worked in assessment on three different campuses (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Jacksonville University, and Flagler College) along with ~1700 campuses during my time at Campus Labs as AVP of Campus Strategy. I used to write prolifically about various higher ed topics, but I haven’t been as good about making time recently. This strikes me as a perfect opportunity. With a strong background in accreditation and assessment, I firmly believe campuses need to be spending significant resources on helping all student-facing offices become well-versed in outcomes assessment as it will become a greater point of emphasis soon. As Associate Vice President for Accreditation and Assessment at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, I help the campus community design and implement rigorous, high-quality, authentic, and useful assessments for measuring progress and the impact of initiatives. I also serve as SACSCOC Liaison and also oversee all disciplinary accreditations (including AABI, ABET, and ACBSP).
Jordan Bullington-Miller
Email: jcbullin@uncc.edu
Hi, I’m Jordan Bulltington-Miller and I have 11 years of experience leading and evaluating student success programs and initiatives in higher education. In past roles, mostly within Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management, I have led assessment efforts to enhance programming and services. I joined Student Affairs in the research and assessment world in June 2022 and have been busy learning as much as I can from colleagues from within my institution and beyond. I love working with Student Affairs practitioners to find ways to highlight the important work they’re doing every day. Specifically, I enjoy any opportunity to help colleagues tell their stories in compelling ways to stakeholders. To that end, joining the SAAL blogging team would open the door to network and learn from other professionals in our field. This is an opportunity to grow professionally, but also an opportunity to contribute to the larger profession
Sydney Kayne
Email: syka6934@colorado.edu
I'm Sydney (she, her, hers), an Assessment Specialist at CU Boulder. I received my B.A. in Psychology and M.A. in Educational Equity, Justice, and Social Transformation from the University of Michigan, and am passionate about shifting assessment practice towards equity. I have previously served in teaching and research positions at the University of Michigan, NYU-Langone/Bellevue Hospital, Virginia Tech, and Fordham University, assessing how identity and socialization shape academic and psychological outcomes. New to higher ed assessment, the SAAL blog provides an opportunity to build community, engage both creatively and analytically, highlight storytelling, and learn in and from good company.
Paul Holliday-Millard
Email: Paul.Holliday-Millard@uncc.edu
I’m Paul (he/him/his) and I currently serve as the Senior Research Associate with Student Affairs Research & Assessment at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte). I support our team in the coordination, development, implementation, and interpretation of assessment, evaluation, and research projects. I have over 10 years of experience in higher education and student affairs, and in each of my roles assessment was an integral component of my position. I’ve co-authored journal articles in the Journal of Applied Research in Community Colleges and the Journal of Higher Education. I have a deep passion for qualitative research and assessment, assessment training and professional development, and helping organizations with their capacity building efforts to ensure assessment is an integral and integrated component of their division strategic plan.
After reading our bios, feel free to reach out to any of us if you’re interested in collaborating on a project or have an idea for an upcoming blog post!