A test run in building social impact capacity for COVID-19

So much of the work that universities undertake relies on direct engagement – teaching, research and other program delivery. 

Our strength as a university of technology is being tested as we use new tools and methods to engage in the face of barriers we’ve never encountered before. As UTS engages more and more in online program delivery, we’re learning new ways of doing things and identifying crucial lessons in our efforts to adapt to a digital-first approach. 

Test run: What we learned from moving the Social Impact Grants online 

Last month the Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion hosted a briefing session for the 2020 Social Impact Grants. This session formed test-run for moving our entire capacity building program online. 

We learned that: 

1. Online meetings allowed for greater turnout. Our event attracted upwards of 50 participants – an increase on expected numbers when the event was initially planned as a face-to-face affair. 

2. Audience interactions must be managed. We learned this when we ‘opened the floor’ to an array of enthusiastic questions. Instead, we used chat to collect questions and created a ‘most common questions’ list in real time. Without body language or face to face interaction, chat features or a complementary meeting app (like Slido) for questions are much-needed alternatives. (A bonus: questions can be anonymised). 

3. Prepare to entertain early arrivals in the waiting room. During the waiting period at the beginning of the session, be prepared to engage early attendees without starting on essential material until everyone has tuned in. 

4. Facilitators are a must. Having someone ‘drive’ the presentation slides, be on standby to respond to potential software ‘bugs’ and facilitate questions from the audience is immensely helpful, especially if you have multiple presenters. 

5. Videoconference meetings can save on duplicated work. Because Zoom records meetings, we were able to offer the video as a permanent asset on our website – anyone who missed the briefing or found out about the grants later can still participate in the entire session, and participants can revisit. 

6. Accessibility needs should be considered for every context. Meeting or presenting online means slightly tweaks must be made to ensure content is accessible. Particularly for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Lip-reading is not possible via videoconference. Technology that enables auto-captioning (Zoom offers this, whereas Microsoft Teams does not) is important. But it’s not a perfect solution. Other possibilities – like providing a transcript after the event or manually adjusting auto-captions – should be considered. 

Supporting endeavours to deliver public benefit by UTS academics and practitioners, the Social Impact Grants fund research and practice initiatives that contribute to social good, through projects with alignment to strategic areas of impact. 

The Social Impact Grants comprise ten grants of up to $5,000. They are open for applications until 30 April 2020. 

What's next for our capacity building program?

We are powering on with our full suite of capacity-building programs at the Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion. Targeted for the needs of the UTS community, external partners, and the community sector, these include: our full-day Social Impact Evaluation Workshops; short professional development sessions on evaluation and community engagement, ‘Knowledge Bites’; and evaluation troubleshooting sessions, ‘Fishbowls’. 

Building a community of practice that was planned around on face-to-face networking and knowledge building opportunities is going to come with some challenges (notably a lack of cake; a priority for any evaluation community gathering). We’re exploring everything from Teams to Google Classroom and Zoom. 

With the transition to online delivery, we are now focussing more on external presenters for all our capacity-building programs, inviting people from various areas of the social impact sector to present a range of evaluation methods, themes and approaches.  

We are also embracing the opportunity to advise on the use of online evaluation platforms and methodologies, including surveys, interviews by video, online communities and discussion groups. - as everyone is adapting their research and activities  in various ways to the context of COVID-19 restrictions. 

What’s next for the university sector? 

After this is over, society will need to grapple with the ramifications of the shutdown; a wider chasm in material wealth and resources, the ramifications of the digital divide, and certain sectors of society and the economy will be vastly impacted for a significant time.  

At our initial briefing session on the social impact grants there was representation from the Business School, Law, Health, FASS, FTDI and FEIT, and a number of other units including Jumbunna, the Climate Change Cluster, Anti-Slavery Australia, IPPG, ISF, and UTS ART. Participants with a diverse set of research backgrounds and interests were engaged in applying their skills to address social issues.  

While the future is uncertain, seeing so many people come together with a shared goal to deliver benefit so society bodes well for mustering the collective resources of our universities across Australia to tackle the challenges our society will face after the threat of COVID-19 abates. 

There has never been a more important time for organisations like the Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion to continue our work. An engaged academic community has so much to offer society in and after times of crisis. And there was already a sense that our potential applicants are looking for ways to use the grants to address social issues that are affected by or have even arisen from the implications of COVID-19. 

It’s our job to enhance the social impact of UTS as an institution. What that will look like in the months to come we cannot predict, but we must be prepared for the future, and ready to apply our work where the need is greatest. We are committed to continuing to build capacity among our UTS academics and practitioners, and sharing skills and knowledge that will be even more important than ever in a post-COVID world.