I imagine – at least I hope – that in our times in student affairs we’ve all had a chance to review some data or assessment about the student or staff experience. Do you remember that conversation? Can you clearly explain why that conversation took place? Or, what happened after? Was it meaningful? I don’t think I’m being too harsh when I say that… Many of them are not. Meaningful, that is.
In The Art of Gathering, Priya Parker challenges us to rethink how we bring people together. Her philosophy is clear: gatherings should be bold, intentional, and transformative instead of routine or polite. By telling stories about gatherings in a wide variety of contexts and from a global perspective, Parker’s mission is to challenge her readers to rethink gathering. Whether you’re hosting a dinner party or leading a campus-wide assessment conversation, Parker insists that purpose must drive design. She urges us to move beyond default formats and instead create spaces that foster connection, meaning, and change.
She calls us to really question that purpose and think deeply about our intentions. Institutions often gather people to discuss data, but without intentional design, these gatherings fall flat. As an assessment leader in my division, I spend a lot of time in assessment interpretation with colleagues. Below, I’ve paired a handful of Parker’s principles with practical strategies related to designing assessment interpretation opportunities for groups and explain how they helped me rethink some of my facilitation strategies. Whether you are a leader or a participant in an upcoming conversation about interpreting assessment. I hope these reflections might help you, too.
Gathering has a purpose. Know yours.
Every assessment conversation should begin with a clear, bold purpose. Without it, potentially transformative conversations are just routine or performative meetings. At the beginning of a conversation, be sure to start by providing context for the conversation. Start with a framing statement like, “We’re here to interpret this data to inform next year’s programming.” In doing so, as a facilitator, you also have a chance to clarify what success looks like for the conversation. If you’re not sure what success looks like in your assessment interpretation, are you ready to have that conversation? If your purpose is not clear, perhaps you are not ready to begin.
In a related section, Parker recommends that hosts avoid starting a gathering with logistics. Starting with compliance or deadlines undermines engagement. Begin with purpose and context instead of bogging folks down with logistics. As I thought about it more, I can save logistics for emails, because the “why it matters” story is easier to convey in person.
Don’t be a chill host.
Passive facilitation leads to missed opportunities. Leaders must actively guide interpretation and ensure space for reflection. When I think about times I’ve failed at meaningful assessment interpretations as a group, I think about how I made myself or my plans smaller, to fit in a structure that I didn’t choose or to assure others “this won’t take too long”. No more of that! Parker’s reflections on the importance of a gathering host being assertive with their plans, made me realize that being a “chill” facilitator was actually undermining my purpose and hopes for assessment conversations. By being chill, I gave others the impression it was ok for them be chill and maybe even check out of a conversation I considered to be important.
Create a temporary alternative world.
Parker describes meaningful gatherings to be the ones that break from routine. As I reflect on my experiences in assessment conversations, the most meaningful ones were the ones that felt distinct in some way. How could one create a temporary alternative world for discussing assessment results? Consider retreats, data walks, gallery-style interpretation sessions. Even simple things like relocating to a meeting space used less often or one that is a better setting for dialogue could be enough to create a temporary world for your data conversations.
Use pop-up rules.
One way to contribute to the creation of a temporary alternative world is to use temporary norms that encourage participants to engage differently. These norms reduce hierarchy and could help redistribute expectations for engagement. Try “no titles” meetings, or “everyone speaks once before anyone speaks twice.” Use collaborative tools like shared docs or sticky walls. Add in a few more fun pop-up rules to make the experience memorable and to lighten the mood.
Design for the people, not for the category.
One-size-fits-all formats don’t work. Design conversations around the roles, goals, needs, and capacities of participants. Staff appreciate it when assessment leaders tailor support to their context, making data feel relevant and actionable. However, what is relevant and actionable will not be the same for all audiences. Some audiences need a more technical explanation. Others might need more coaching on how to access and interpret the data being discussed. Now, I’m leaning in to using differentiated facilitation strategies: coaching for new staff, peer review for faculty, storytelling for leadership, and more.
Prime your guests.
Preparation improves interpretation. Parker reminds us that how people arrive for a gathering matters just as much as what happens once they’re there. In assessment conversations, priming participants with context or pre-work helps them show up ready to engage. I’ve started sending short videos or infographics ahead of time, along with a reflective question like, “What surprised you in this data?” It’s a small shift, but it’s made a big difference. When people have time to process before the meeting, they’re more likely to contribute thoughtfully and less likely to feel overwhelmed.
Follow up your strong opening with a purposeful middle, and a deliberate ending.
Parker explains that structure supports impact because when people know what to expect, they typically align themselves with the structure shared with them. When people don’t know what to expect, they are likely to create their own expectations—and if everyone is on a different page about the structure, the conversation can quickly lose focus. A well-designed arc supports organizational learning and follow-through. Sharing that design up front and asking your participants to help hold you to that structure, will feel deliberate and intentional.
Recently, I’ve been reflecting on the many, many frameworks for reflection conversations. I remember using the “What? So What? Now What?” reflection framework as an undergraduate alternative spring break leader and thought, “Why don’t I apply that same structure to assessment interpretation?” A careful selection of framework would promote purpose and deliberateness throughout the conversation, which is something that simply prompting an open-ended question to get the conversation started may not.
As I read The Art of Gathering, I realized I was missing a few components that could potentially transform how I helped others interpret their assessment results. How we come together matters just as much as what we’re discussing. By designing assessment conversations with intention, structure, and care, we create space for deeper reflection, shared understanding, and meaningful action. Whether you’re leading the conversation or simply participating, you have the power to make it matter.
Author Biography
Emily Braught (she/her) is the Director of Assessment and Planning in the division of student affairs at Indiana University Indianapolis. Prior to this role, Emily held assessment and evaluation related roles in faculty affairs at a school of medicine and in multiple housing and residence life departments. She is also a doctoral candidate in the Higher Education and Student Affairs program at Indiana University Bloomington. As a scholar, she is interested in assessment practices at institutions of higher education. More specifically, she is interested in data use practices and strategies institutions can use to translate assessment into demonstrated improvements in student learning and student success.
References
Parker, P. (2020). The art of gathering: How we meet and why it matters. Penguin.