Student support takes a village – but you need to create one first

The Samoan proverb E felelei manu ae ma’au i o latou ofaga refers to how birds migrate to environments where they survive and thrive.

For students of Pacific Island descent, living away from home is rare because they have grown up as part of greater wholes: their families and villages. Understandably, they find university residential environments unfamiliar and difficult to navigate. Indeed, many students do not know residential accommodation is an option until they receive scholarship support to live on campus.

A survey to gauge the perspectives of Pacific students living in university halls and residences at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, revealed that although 91 per cent chose university accommodation because they felt it would be a better study environment, only 41 per cent said they wanted to engage in study related events and academic support once they arrived. A significant portion of first-year students were failing courses and withdrawing at the end of their first semesters. Neither the students nor the university wanted this outcome. We had to create an environment for them not only to survive, but to thrive.

We have worked to reverse this by creating opportunities that resonated with students from Pacific communities, their values and their languages. Our goal was to establish a “village” on campus. But how?

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What is a village?

We envisaged a village as a cultural and collective approach rather than a unique physical space. We needed to bring Pacific values, culture and ways of being to support these students. To start, we built the heart of our village with the Study Fono initiative. Based at a residential hall, this became a place where students could access wraparound support comprising staff with a range of expertise, from well-being to effective study technique and career mentoring. The broad goal was to instil accountability and lift the expectation for students to succeed.

In Pacific culture, the fono is the council of leaders. It is the central political structure for a village, district or island. It is a place of mana or authority, power, influence and status. We wanted to unleash the leadership potential of our Pacific students, developed from birth, but lost in the unfamiliar and daunting environment of the university. As part of this, we established strong partnerships between staff in the pro-vice chancellor Pacific’s office, and Te Papa Manaaki, the campus care team.

Bring everyone together

A key element of such an initiative must be to bring students together so that they feel part of a supportive community. Study Fono is open to all Pacific students in residential halls, with attendance mandatory for any student on a first-year school-leaver’s accommodation scholarship. To retain this, students must pass all their papers. Every Monday from 7pm to 9pm, students are encouraged to head to Study Fono, where about 60 students each week sign in, sit and eat together.

As with every Pacific cultural gathering, students unite in song, prayer and the blessing of the food. The Study Fono support team sourced Pacific food and treats, key to creating a feeling of familiarity, support and security. The students then split into faculty study groups with a student mentor for sustained silent study.

Boost belonging

Steps need to be taken to foster the sense of community and belonging, and recognition of students’ varied identities. A calendar of events and activities creates connection, with milestones to celebrate and recognise your students’ diverse cultures and backgrounds.

This was only part of a Pacific lens on residential life. By celebrating festival days and promoting heritage language weeks, we met the needs of students from a wide range of Pacific nations. This created an opportunity for cultural connection and for students to share in talanoa (discussion) and workshops on personal and cultural identity and well-being.

Support the individuals

A holistic approach is important. Each student should have a dedicated case manager from the campus care team who can provide advice on difficulties with their life and study. Our case managers’ focus is on ensuring the Pacific scholarship students have what they need to succeed. The in-depth pastoral care includes ensuring students know their rights and responsibilities and that they can find a professional and culturally appropriate sounding board for the range of issues that can arise when new to university, including mental well-being and financial challenges.

A village is born

Word of mouth has seen the Study Fono grow. As more students have gathered, so have more staff from across the university, happy to volunteer time and expertise.

The Study Fono has evolved from an initiative to keep students on academic track into a space that supports students to grow into independent young adults with a clear sense of identity and clarity of purpose for the future.

It has transformed from a place to study into a “village,” where young people can share perspectives, practise leadership and learn how to respond with maturity to the many challenges that come with being a young adult in an increasingly complex society. Many students have become mentors to their peers, student ambassadors and resident advisers in university accommodation. Those with sporting backgrounds have assumed leadership roles and shared their time and experience with school outreach programmes.

The feedback has been heart-warming, with students acknowledging that feeling part of a community helped them to persevere with their studies. By the end of the first year of Study Fono, 96 per cent of students were successful in retaining their scholarships.

It has been humbling to see Pacific students grow in confidence, learn new interpersonal skills and connect with confidence with their teachers and the wider university community. Every university could benefit from a village on campus.

Melissa Leaupepe is a residential accommodation manager and Pasifika accommodation support lead at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland.

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For more resources on this topic, see our spotlight on Indigenous voices in higher education.