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Read It Right: Data Literacy's Impact on Institutional Mission

Read It Right: Data Literacy's Impact on Institutional Mission

Published:: Monday, July 25, 2022

To make informed decisions, meet campus needs, and increase student success, leaders must move their institutions from data collection to action. Doing so involves making a strong push for data literacy, ensuring that everyone across the institution has a basic understanding of, comfort with, and ability to use (and question) data.

Becoming Data-Informed

Woman at laptop. Overlay of various types of graphs

Educating campus constituents and changing campus culture – through good data governance, access, and architecture – can increase data literacy and fluency.

See Advising Success Network (ASN) and EDUCAUSE, Understanding and Developing a Data-Informed Culture

An important and often overlooked example of a data stakeholder and data consumer is the student. While the students are often affected by policies, procedures, and organizational culture, they are rarely included in the decision-making process. From Understanding and Developing a Data-Informed Culture (2022). Developed by EDUCAUSE for the Advising Success Network (ASN).

Balancing Data Power and Campus Needs

Developing a powerful data program requires new data roles, infrastructures, and training. It also calls for a consideration of campus needs such as awareness of DEI, bias, and privacy issues.

Read the EDUCAUSE Horizon Report | Data and Analytics Edition

2022 EDUCAUSE Horizon Report | Data and Analytics Edition

Panelists for the Horizon Report | Data and Analytics Edition see all six of the technologies and practices in the report as potentially having an impact on strategic goals. Institutional Strategic Goal Impact (scale of 0=None to 4=Highest): Unifying data sources across the institution 2.8; Assessing and improving institutional data and analytics capabilities 2.5; Data management and governance 2.5; Modern data architecture 2.5; Data literacy training 2.4; DEI for data and analytics 2.4. From 2022 EDUCAUSE Horizon Report | Data and Analytics Edition.

Boosting Student Success

rocket taking off with graduation cap on its nose

A key benefit of improving data literacy across the entire higher education institution is the increased student success that results from a better understanding and use of student analytics and insights.

Read "Data Transformation at Salt Lake Community College," EDUCAUSE Review

Salt Lake City Community College's Plan for Institutional Data Maturity and Data Literacy: Increase the availability of trusted data; Prioritize key analytical projects; Align the organization on the use of data and data literacy; Improve definitions of standard data and data quality. Michelle Hardwick, 'Data Transformation at Salt Lake Community College,' EDUCAUSE Review

Hear from the Community

Sponsored Content: Vantage Technology Consulting Group

Kirk Kelly's 4 Tips for Telling Better Stories with Your Data

Member QuickTalk | Showcase Coffee Shop

Missed the August 16 Member QuickTalk | Showcase Coffee Shop| Read It Right: Data Literacy's Impact on Institutional Mission? Access the recording to hear from institutional leaders as they navigate strategies to move institutions from data collection to data action.

Go Further

Dig Into the Library

Data Literacy

Learn from Your Peers

Data Literacy Institute (2 offered in 2022)
Change with Analytics (from EDUCAUSE, AIR and NACUBO)

From this showcase, we hope you'll take away new strategies for using data literacy to move your institution from data collection to data action.

Next up, we'll explore the higher education workforce shakeup and provide you with newly released data and tools to support your institution into the future in Workforce: Evolve or Become Extinct launching August 22.