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Summary findings: SUNY survey on employee response to COVID-19

Andrew Bruso

An employee survey administered this summer by SUNY central administration illustrates the challenges faculty and staff are facing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the dedication and hard work that is enabling colleges throughout the system to continue serving students.

More than 700 New Paltz employees responded to SUNY’s survey on COVID-19’s impact, representing nearly half of the 1,507 who were invited to share their thoughts between July 6 and Aug. 15. Approximately half of those who responded were teaching faculty.

While more than 85% of respondents said they have received the support and supplies and services they needed to work remotely, 53% also agreed with the statement that it is harder to meet their work responsibilities during the pandemic. The top three challenges to working remotely were increased family responsibilities, lack of appropriate workspace and problems with a computer.

SUNY’s survey was administered at campuses across the system, allowing for benchmark comparisons between institutions. For all questions and within all categories of employee role on campus, New Paltz employees rated the administration’s response to the pandemic more favorably than the average at other SUNY comprehensive colleges.

These results will be reported as part of the College’s Middle States Self-Study as data for outcomes of governance, leadership and administration (Standard VII).

Use this link to view the full report on the SUNY Survey of Employee Response to COVID-19.

Additional findings from this survey of SUNY New Paltz employees are summarized below:

On senior leadership’s response to the pandemic

  • About 89% of respondents agree that senior leadership at New Paltz has provided effective communication about COVID-19
  • About 87% said senior leadership has done a good job helping employees adapt to the changes at the institution brought on by COVID-19
  • About 91% said senior leadership has done a good job trying to protect employees from potentially negative health consequences of COVID-19
  • About 80% said senior leadership has helped employees understand the priorities and direction in their work given changes at the institution brought on by COVID-19

On in-person vs. online/hybrid instruction

  • About 91% of teaching faculty felt moderately to very confident in their ability to teach online courses in fall 2020
  • About 29% of teaching faculty felt moderately or very comfortable with the idea of in-person instruction in fall 2020
  • About 53% of teaching faculty said they would be interested in teaching a standard, planned online course in the future
  • Most teaching faculty agree that they received the training (81%) and technical support (86%) to transition to remote instruction

On working from home

  • About 86% of employees said they received the support and supplies and services they needed to work remotely
  • About 78% of non-teaching employees felt they were able to complete their work responsibilities at the same level as when they worked remotely, compared to 59% of teaching faculty who said the same
  • About 35% of respondents have a dependent residing in their home who required care
  • Of those with a dependent at home, about 71% took off significant time to provide care
  • About 72% said caring for a dependent at home affected their remote work significantly

Learn more online about Institutional Research at SUNY New Paltz.