By Jackson Hawkins

The University of Maryland launched a campus-wide survey on April 1 to measure the current climate around the sense of belonging on campus, according to the Office of the President.

Climate, in the context of the survey, refers to current attitudes and behaviors from all members of the university around institutional policies and procedures.

The 15-20-minute online survey is generally conducted every three to five years and aims to influence the level of respect for individuals’ needs and assess how members of the community feel about the current state of the university.

The university contracted Rankin Climate to help create the survey alongside the university’s climate survey working group. The organization has administered climate assessments at more than 250 institutions across the United States.

According to a university press release, the survey results will help guide the administration in developing programs and policies to enhance inclusivity in places where challenges are prevalent while also building on strategies implemented in areas that have been successful.

Stephanie Chang, the assistant vice president for diversity and inclusion, is the co-chair of the climate survey working group along with Dawn Culpepper, the director of the ADVANCE Program for Inclusive Excellence. Chang believes that students should take the survey because more results would give a better understanding of the current climate and the results submitted are entirely anonymous.

“This is a great opportunity to share your voice in a way that does not come back to identify that ‘I shared this story,’” Chang said. “Confidentiality is a big part of the survey.”

Some students like sophomore economics major Tobias West, believe that the university’s climate is conducive to making friends but that the university should focus more on mental health support.

“I think there have been two big stories this year around mental health and I think that there is a pretty obvious problem with mental health and not [getting] enough support from the university,” West said.

Lauren Scott, a senior economics major, echoed West’s sentiments around mental health. 

Scott thinks that while the counseling center can be helpful, it is hard to get a therapy session unless your situation is dire, which is often difficult for some students to admit to due to the stigmatization around mental health. 

 “I think that if we had more counselors and [if] more funding went into [the counseling center], it would not be as difficult to get a therapy appointment and would help more people,” Scott said.

Some incentives to take the survey for students include the chance to win apparel packs, a pair of men’s basketball tickets, a pair of women’s basketball tickets, four tickets for football and a pair of tickets and access to the Terrapin Club Box for Football, all for the 2024-2025 season. One survey taker will also be able to create and name a new Maryland Dairy ice cream flavor. 

For faculty and staff, every survey completed puts a dollar towards either the Campus Pantry or the Student Crisis Fund, up to $10,000.

For academic units, the college with the highest percentage of student participation will receive $5,000 they can put towards events that will build a sense of belonging.

From May to June, Rankin Climate will code the data within a data management database. After this process, Rankin will analyze the data over the summer, create data visualization and write a report. The results will be presented to the UMD community in the fall of 2024.

Featured Image: The University of Maryland Administration building on April 2, 2024. Photo by Fiona Flowers.