Overview

The Division of Student Life's mission is to foster student success by creating and promoting inclusive educationally purposeful services and activities within and beyond the classroom. As the largest employer on campus, it is our goal to make student employment a high-impact activity, one that requires students to reflect on their learning and connect their learning within and beyond the classroom, through Iowa GROW®. Iowa GROW® (Guided Reflection on Work), an initiative created within the Division of Student Life, uses brief structured conversations between student employees and their supervisors to help make the learning that is occurring through student employment more visible to the student. Supervisors in the Division are expected to have two Iowa GROW® conversations (individual or small group format) with student employees each semester.

Training:

Iowa GROW® Supervisor Orientation is conducted online via Employee Self-Service. For specific enrollment instructions please click here.

Below are some helpful resources. 

  • Supervisor Reflection — Provides some useful questions for supervisors to ask themselves about student employment before starting the GROW® conversations.
  • Preparing for Conversations insert- This resource helps supervisors prepare for Iowa GROW® conversations by reflecting in advance on how student employees might respond, where they may need support going deeper, and how you can use prompts to help them make meaningful connections between work, academics, and future goals. 

Communication:

To ensure student employees understand the purpose and benefits of Iowa GROW®, the following resources can help supervisors introduce the initiative. Below are some helpful resources. 

  • Email or Memo Template insert- Before having an Iowa GROW® conversation, supervisors should inform student of the upcoming conversation through an email or memo.
  • Iowa GROW® Student Employee Brochure: This brochure offers a concise overview of Iowa GROW®, including its goals, the importance of reflection, and what students can expect from the conversations. It’s ideal for sharing with prospective student employees or distributing during onboarding.
  • Orientation PowerPoint for Student Employees: This presentation can be used during new student employee orientation sessions or as a refresher for current employees. It explains the purpose of Iowa GROW®, outlines the four key questions, and highlights how the program supports student learning and development.

Student Resources

A resource guide for supervisors of student employees to reference. Using this guide, supervisors can respond confidently by acknowledging the student’s concerns and referring them to the right resource so that the student can access effective support.

Implementation:

After GROW® supervisors have completed training, they should begin the interventions with their student employees. These should be one-on-one (or small group – no more than 8 employees), face-to-face interactions between supervisors and student employees. The conversation is the intervention - Iowa GROW® cannot be successful unless these interactions are done in person (for instance, just sending out the questions via email will not suffice). Below are some helpful resources. 

Example Conversations

See the example conversation videos below for a guide to having the GROW® conversation.