Apply today to be featured in NIRSA’s “Promising Practice” series

Two years ago, NIRSA’s Health & Wellbeing Task Force launched a wellbeing survey and—after analyzing the survey’s results—began to form several work groups to help meet needs as identified by members.

Members communicated that they would like a better understanding of cross-campus, integrative wellbeing initiatives and resources. To this end, the Cross-Campus Integration Work Group was created. This group developed a new, multi-layered resource for NIRSA members called Promising Practices. With the successful release of initial Promising Practices, the Cross-Campus Integration Work Group evolved into the Promising Practices Work Group in 2022.

The goal of the Promising Practices series is to provide an immersive and fun educational experience for NIRSA members which will enable them to facilitate positive change in the wellbeing of the populations on their campuses.

A NIRSA Promising Practice is an educational, inspirational story about how an institution has made transformative change. The content includes a teaser video and a PDF that guides readers through the “what” and “how” of their work. This content is then followed by an educational webinar that aims to empower participants by allowing them to put the presenters’ knowledge and experience into practice on their campuses.

Apply to have your Promising Practice showcased

The work group is committed to growing the range of initiatives and practices that can serve as a repository of ideas and examples for their colleagues across the Association. But we need members who are willing to share what their departments and institutions have accomplished in the space of wellbeing.

The focus of NIRSA’s Promising Practices initiative is on collaboration and further facilitating the integration of institutional efforts. For the 2023 round of applications, we aim to highlight cross-campus wellness integrations that have equity, diversity, and inclusion as a core element of the initiative. Selected schools will have the opportunity to showcase their campus’ efforts and successes in front of colleagues from across the profession.

The application to see your school featured consists of some basic information about your institution along with a general overview of your integrated wellbeing work.

Applications for the next round of Promising Practices are open through October 31. Apply via a short application form.

How does it work for the featured schools?

When an institution is selected, the NIRSA Promising Practices Work Group will guide the institutional partner in creating a stellar, three-part final product that will then be delivered to members through NIRSA-owned channels. Accepted applicants will be coached through all aspects of content development and will be offered feedback and support along the way.

As an end-result, the Promising Practice will contain:

1. A brief teaser video (under 3 minutes) to overview and highlight the practice
2. A templated PDF document for a deeper dive into the initiative, how it got started, where it’s going next, and the impact it’s having on campus
3. A follow up webinar where participants can learn from the experts behind the Promising Practice

It is a priority for the Association to showcase a variety of institutions both in size and scope of accomplishment.

What’s an example of a potential Promising Practice?

There are a lot of great examples of wellbeing initiatives within NIRSA’s membership, so we hope you will consider applying! To get the wheels turning, check out the previous Promising Practices:

• Oakland University
• Rowan University
• University of Colorado, Colorado Springs

Meet the work group

The Promising Practices Work Group, which works closely with the Health & Wellbeing Task Force to lead these efforts, includes:

• Pangku Cardona, Fitness & Wellness Assistant Director, University of Missouri-Columbia
• Cynthia Constanzo, Executive Director at the University of Connecticut
• Becky Lewis, Associate Director, Programs and Administration, Oakland University
• Greg Reinhardt, Associate Director for Programs & Staff Development, University of Washington- Seattle Campus
• Jessica Ward, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Campus Recreation, Princeton University

Please feel free to reach out to any of the members with questions and ideas for this work! We look forward to reviewing your Promising Practices application!