Successful Student Unions: Essential Qualities and Best Management Practices

The Top Five: Essential Qualities

Components

The Top Five student unions vary in what component services they provide. All, however, feel that the chosen services should: Support the mission/vision of the center Meet student needs with appropriate programs and services Balance services and revenue Provide easy access to information Offer a variety of food options as well as a coffeehouse Offer various amenities To this end, all house multiple sized meeting-rooms, a ballroom, ATMs, student and staff offices, and computer services (most had wireless capability or wished they did). Four of the five have at least two separate unions. At UCLA, two unions are connected by a bridgeone union for retail operations and the other for offices. At Wisconsin and Michigan, the unions are geographically separate and have unique services and identities. Some of the centers house the student bookstore, logo merchandise sales, a hair salon, post office, art galleries, craft shop, travel center, theater/auditorium, outdoor recreational programs, sports recreation center, mini-courses, and graphic design services. Michigan has a special banner making room that is all cement, where it doesn’t matter if students are a bit sloppy with the paint. This room, located amidst the student programming offices, brings students from many different activities into close proximity to do their workforcing interactions that otherwise might not occur. Food services are split between leasing to larger franchises (fast food and restaurants) and in-house or local vendors. The University of Maryland has a successful food co-op. All of the Top Five find it challenging to balance services with revenue-producing events. This is most evident in reserving meeting rooms and ballrooms. The universities have worked out reservation systems that primarily make it easier for student groups to get meeting space. They also rent out space for revenue-producing events (i.e., ballrooms for weddings or auditorium space for conferences). They try to schedule major events during the summer or intersession months to avoid conflicts with student programming. Each of the Top Five have ways of communicating with the center’s users. These methods include daily postings of events and meetings, information kiosks, plasma screens, closed-circuit TV monitors, websites, student newspaper ads, and fliers.	“People intentionally and unintentionally come together as a community.” —Karen Kenney, Dean of Students, UC Berkeley
Atmosphere Respondents from the Top Five are all proud of the atmosphere that they have created at their respective unions. Site visits revealed many commonalties, including unions which: Feel inviting, relaxing, and safe Act as the “living room” of campus Accommodate diverse groups Appear well-maintained and modern Provide opportunities for social interaction Allow access to information The Top Five unions have a welcoming, living-room-like atmosphere. Even though UCLA’s atmosphere is almost mall-like, lounges and the coffeehouse are inviting and warm. All of the Top Five were nicely maintainedeven some at 75 years of age. At UCLA, students have the opportunity to eat lunch with a professor weekly. At Wisconsin it was noted that frequently, after finals, you might see a professor having beer with students on the terrace. “Location, location, location...,” is a recurring theme at the Top Five universities. Four of the five are centrally located on campus. Michigan’s main union is located next to State Street, a busy business section. Wisconsin’s lakeside setting is a huge draw in itself.
Culture Overwhelmingly, the Top Five student unions support cultures that: Focus on students Focus on customer service Value diversity, including: space, users, usage, services, furniture, aesthetics, art, etc. Provide opportunities for out-of-classroom social education or leadership Emulate the institutional goals and environment Recognize that student services/programs are the primary purpose Communicate well Whether called “social education”, or “student involvement and leadership”, the programming services at the Top Five are primarily run by students with staff in an advisory or mentoring role. The role of staff program advisors is to assist students in actualizing and implementing student ideas. Students are allowed to learn from their successes and their mistakes. Staff members are there to catch them if they fall. Each union’s culture promotes collaborative decision making from a variety of levels throughout the organization. The leadership does not micro-manage. The unions are generally independent from their respective campuses and tend to be less bureaucratic. The staff members feel committed, believe that they can make an impact on policies and decisions, and therefore take ownership of their work.	“We don’t tolerate people who don’t have customer service qualities.” —Mulugeta Fereda, Assistant Director of Stamp Student Union (UMD) for Facilities

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