8.6.1 Motivation

According to the responses from the survey, the SLC's role is primarily defined as that of a liaison between the student community and the center administration, and as a facilitator of communication between staff, students, the NSF, and industry partners on center research, organization, and function. Further, the SLC is seen as a vehicle to promote communication outside of the center and provides an entry point for students wishing to get involved in the center. Thus, communication is a vital aspect of a successful SLC and is studied in this section to determine best practices for this area.

8.6.2 Summary of Survey Results

The centers communicate with the students through e-mail lists, meetings, flyers, websites, personal communication, and through the students' advisors. A few centers use newsletters or written memos but none use voice-mail. Communication from the SLC to the students occurs through e-mail lists, meetings, and personal communication. Some SLCs use websites and other forms of communication (newsletters, written memos, advisors, voice-mail, etc.).

If students have any concerns they wish to relate to the center administrators or staff, they raise them through personal communication or e-mail with the administrators or discuss them with the SLC, which acts as a liaison. For the most part, the administrators all responded appropriately and promptly. Students voice concerns to the SLC and other students through weekly/biweekly/monthly student meetings, the SWOT analysis, or social events. Some SLC meetings are open to all center members so that they can voice concerns there. One center has no formal method for students to voice their concerns in this way.

Most students learn about other research being conducted in the center through meetings. The frequency and purpose of these meetings varies from center to center. One center has a weekly meeting where the students presenting their research are evaluated by the other students in order to improve their public speaking skills. Another center has poster sessions where students are encouraged to talk and read about each other's research. An ineffective method that was identified was relying only on hanging posters in a hallway and personal communication.

Students meet together in various formats. Some centers have less-formal weekly student meetings and others have SLC meetings with keynote speakers. One center only has an annual meeting for the students. In most cases, fewer faculty and staff attend these meetings and in other cases fewer undergraduates.

If students need to express confidential concerns such as conflicts with faculty or harassment while they are working for the center, some centers said this could be done through the SLC. One center said their administrators are open and available to talk about issues such as these. Another center said the education coordinator could handle this. Still another center said the student's specific department would deal with this. If the student is leaving the center, a few centers stated that these concerns could be expressed through an exit interview or questionnaire. A significant number of centers, however, said there were no formal methods of handling this type of situation.

SLCs communicate openings for new undergraduates to non-center students primarily through advertising and undergraduate programs. Advertising can take the form of e-mail, flyers, ads at employment offices, and website postings. One SLC states that they do not communicate openings to new undergrads.

SLCs generally do not seem to focus on communicating openings for new graduate positions to non-center students. A few centers stated that they also used e-mail and flyers or the SLC recruitment committee handles this. All of the other centers claim that the SLC is not responsible for or does not do much for this area of communication.

Most communication between the ERC students or the SLC and industry partners occurs at meetings where industry partners visit or through students' advisors. One center has a lunch where only the students and industry partners meet, and the faculty are not present. Another center identified their method of communicating through posters as ineffective. Almost every center communicates job interests and resumes to industry partners.

All SLCs communicate with NSF during the annual site visit. Many of them found that the SWOT analysis provides for good communication with NSF. One center mentioned the Student Retreat at the ERC Program Annual Meeting as a good connection to NSF. Another center publishes details of their outreach program on the NSF-sponsored ERC Association website.

The ERC Association website (www.erc-assoc.org) is potentially a useful means of communication among SLCs and between SLCs and other groups such as industry partners and potential ERC or SLC student recruits. For example, the "Joblink" page posts student resumes in a form that is searchable by industry partner companies from all the ERCs. Many centers do not have any students or SLC members registered on the site. A majority of centers had a very small percentage of students registered, and did not know whether any SLC members were registered. Only two centers had all of their SLC members registered.

8.6.3 Multi-University Centers

In multi-university centers, communication among students from the different universities varies greatly. In some centers, students only meet at large events such as the NSF site visit or TAC meetings. Other multi-university centers, however, have students meeting together on a daily basis.

8.6.4 Best Practices and Conclusions

From the questions answered in the communication section of the survey and the responses regarding the centers' SLC goals, several best practices can be derived. The center should communicate to students through e-mail, websites, meetings, personal communication, advisors, and flyers. The SLC should be in communication with center students through e-mail, websites, meetings, personal communication, and flyers.

As mentioned in the motivation section, the SLC should act as a liaison between the administration and the students. Student concerns should go through the SLC, not directly to the administration. The SLC can discuss issues brought up and deliver them to the administration in a more focused, organized manner, allowing for a timelier response. Student meetings should be held regularly and allow student concerns to be raised. These meetings should also be a time for students to learn about other students' research. The SLC should make it clear to students that confidential concerns, such as harassment, can be brought to the SLC and handled in an appropriate manner. Additionally, the SLC or the education director should provide an exit interview or questionnaire for students leaving the center to reveal unvoiced concerns students may have had during their time in the center. This, however, would not provide for resolution of problems that could improve the environment while a student is still working at the center.

Another key communication issue is student recruiting. Undergraduates outside the center should be informed of available positions through e-mail, flyers, and websites. Graduates outside the center should be informed similarly, but recruitment in this case should also include center tours.

The survey also revealed best practices in communication with industry partners and the NSF. The SLC should be in direct contact with industry partners and should organize a forum where students can talk and network with them or learn from them. Resumes and job interests should always be communicated to industry partners by the SLC. With NSF, the SLC should be a part of the SWOT analysis at the annual center site visit.

Finally, an important area of communication that many centers did not take advantage of is the national ERC Association website. Its purpose is to allow center students to communicate with each other, make connections with students from other centers and learn about their activities, and connect with industrial partners of all the centers for employment opportunities. All SLC students and students in centers should register and utilize this great communication tool.

If you have specific comments and questions on the contents of this site and/or its use, please contact webmaster@erc-assoc.org. To report technical problems, contact techhelp@erc-assoc.org.