Belonging happens every day, in every corner of UConn.
This toolkit gathers the language, practices, and resources that make that work visible, and puts them in your hands.
Get the Full W-BC Toolkit
Please email us at
wellbeingcollective@uconn.edu
to receive a copy of the W-BC Toolkit
Our Soil
The 4 Pillars of the ROS
The Relational Operating System shifts the university from “fixing problems” to building relationships that transform systems.
Lived Experience
Every story is valid evidence. We center emotional reality as a key metric for systems change.
Relational Infrastructure
Relationships are not ‘extra.’ They are the foundation of navigation, safety, and trust at UConn.
Identity Awareness
Belonging differs by race, gender, and context. We attend to power dynamics and historical roots.
Collaborative Design
No one owns belonging. We co-design prototypes with the communities most affected by barriers.
What the W-BC Toolkit Is
A relational ecosystem for systems-change, built on identity-centered research, community wisdom, and the belief that belonging is a shared responsibility.
Why belonging matters
This is the impact, evidence, and the honest acknowledgment that belonging work often goes unrecognized at the systems level, and why that needs to change.
The Appendices
We’ve broken down the master toolkit into bite-size tools.
Scroll through categories to find the specific tools you need.
Facilitation & Circles
Connection Call Templates
Guide • 4 Pages
Identity-Centered Forum Guide
Toolkit • 12 Pages
Circle Practice Guide Logs
Guide • 5 Pages
More Facilitation & Circles Resources
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Storywork as Evidence
Storywork as Evidence Framework
Framework • 8 Pages
Gathering Stories: Appendix R
Guide • 10 Pages
Reflection Logs
Guide • 4 Pages
More Storywork as Evidence Resources
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Design & Prototyping
Belonging Design Jumpstarts
Framework • 8 Pages
WeLAB Transformative Research Toolkit
Full Guide • 42 Pages
Relational Quality Survey Module
Guide • 8 Pages
More Design & Prototyping Resources
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Your voice is what’s missing.
The toolkit is a collective creation. Your wisdom is part of its evolution.
Email us to add a resource, share a tool, or submit your belonging work for recognition.
Campus Prototypes
Small tests of change happening right now across UConn.
Avery Point
The Peer Navigation Web
Sample text: A model where regional campus students were trained as ‘Relational Architects’ to support peers during the transition to Storrs, reducing navigation friction by 40%.
Advising Hub
Relational Email Pilot
Sample text: Redesigning institutional communication with a ‘Relational First’ tone. Pilot emails saw a 65% higher response rate than standard templates.
Shared Language
To build a relational culture, we need to develop an identity around shared words and practices.
Network Weaving
Strengthening relational connections across units, identities, and campuses.
Mutual Aid
Building systems of shared care, solidarity, and community support.
Liberatory & Human-Centered Design
Designing solutions with communities, not for them.
Transformative & Participatory Research
Recognizing lived experience as knowledge and centering community voices in every stage.
Open Full Language Guide (coming soon)
Your voice is what’s missing.
The toolkit is a collective creation. By sharing your experience, you help us map the unseen labor that holds UConn together.
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