Afternoon Chat Series Spring 2019
Monday, February 11th, 2:00 3:00 PM
Newman Library, Multi-Purpose Room
Vern Ferguson, Academic Advisor, School of Architecture and Design
How many hundreds of students do you advise? If the answer is 250+, then you aren't alone! The flipped advising approach is one that can help you better manage a large number of student advisees. In this presentation we'll introduce the idea of flipped advising and cover how this advising method introduces online appointment systems, new technologies, learning modules, and non-traditional communication methods to reach today's youth and allow the advisor to share relevant information with lots of students to better manage your large number of advisees.
Tuesday, February 26th, 8:30 AM 12:00 PM
Newman Library, Multi-Purpose Room
Joanne Damminger, EdD, Delaware Technical Community College
During this interactive morning chat session, former NACADA president Dr. Joanne Damminger will discuss the relational components of advising and will be leading participants through activities that help them develop this aspect of their own daily advising practice. Relational advising topics covered during this chat may include creating rapport and managing advising appointments, proactive advising strategies, navigating difficult conversations, and the ability to utilize basic counseling techniques. Breakfast will be served at this event and registration will be required to order accordingly.
Wednesday, March 27th, 2:00 3:00 PM
Newman Library, Multi-Purpose Room
Banks Blair, Transitional Academic Advisor, University Academic Advising Center
Tonisha Montgomery, Academic Advisor, Computer Science
What is the Life Design Catalyst Program? The Program moves students away from the question, “What SHOULD I do with my life?” (“Tell me what I should do…”) and toward “What COULD I do with my life?” (“Help me explore my options…”). Through the exploration of PURPOSE (“Who do I want to be?”) and MEANING (“What am I here to do?”), The Life Design Catalyst Program empowers students to optimize their lives to become the best version of themselves and to utilize their gifts and talents in service to something bigger than themselves. In this chat, participants will engage with recent program attendees Banks Blair and Tonisha Montgomery to learn how to incorporate life design principles into their advising practices.
Monday, March 4, 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
The Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference Center
The conference will be a one-day event including an opening session presented by Dr. Sara Koch, Institute Fellow and Senior Associate for Institutional Support at the Gardner Institute. The conference will also include concurrent sessions and other activities with the goal of enhancing advising knowledge and skills for faculty and staff at Virginia Tech while also increasing effectiveness of our advising programs.
Conference Overview
The Advising Matters Conference will kick off at 8:00 AM. on Monday, March 4, 2019, and conclude by 4:15 PM. The 2019 conference will provide you with the following opportunities:
- Formal and informal networking with faculty and professional advisors committed to facilitating student academic success
- An interactive workshop and concurrent sessions focusing on advising tools, collaboration across the university and professional development for academic advisors
- Opportunities for professional development for all advisors
- Discussions on critical issues in academic advising
- A range of theoretical, practical and interactive presentations
Conference Registration
On-line registration is provided for conference participants. The registration fee is $100. However, space is limited to the first 200 registrants. Registration deadline is January 31, 2019.
No on-site registration will take place at The Inn at Virginia Tech.
Keynote Presentation- Dr. Sara Stein Koch
Advising with Strength: 9 Conditions to Build your Students' Success
You care about your students. You work hard to help them succeed. Now help build your advising expertise by aligning your efforts with the conditions of excellence. This session will explore the 9 conditions identified through the Excellence in Academic Advising process designed jointly by the Gardner Institute and the National Academic Advising Association. With each condition, individuals and teams will examine the connection between the condition, current practice and policy, and strategic directions. Through thoughtful discussion and activities designed at putting concepts into action, participants will consider implications for their own work and emphasis will be placed on both planning and taking actionable steps.
Below are the Conditions of Excellence in Academic Advising:
- Institutional Commitment
- Learning
- Advisor Selection and Development
- Organization
- Student Purpose and Pathways
- Equity, Inclusion and Diversity
- Technology Enabled Advising
- Collaboration and Communication
- Improvement and the Scholarship of Advising
About the Speaker
Dr. Sara Stein Koch, John Gardner Institute
Institute Fellow and Senior Associate for Institutional Support
Sara is an Institute Fellow and Senior Associate for Institutional Support with the Gardner Institute. She has spent the past three decades in administration, training, coaching, facilitation, and teaching in higher education.
Her current work with the Institute involves advising institutions on the Foundations of Excellence First-Year, Transfer, and Implement, Gateways to Completion, and Retention Performance Management processes. She also coordinates the curriculum for the Annual Gateway Course Experience Conference. Sara was involved in the development of the Gateways to Completion process, development and administration of the two year National Survey on Student Success practices, and strategic planning for the Institute.
Prior to joining the Institute, Sara served as the Director of Undergraduate Programs for the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University. Her role included the administration and operation of the undergraduate business school program of 2700+ undergraduate students. Her oversight included the areas of curriculum administration, Academic Advising, Career Services, Recruitment, and the development and operation of the Undergraduate Management Communication Center. At the heart of the Center was its outreach and curricular connections through the development of
programs and coaching for undergraduate students to improve their professional development and communication skills.
Sara also served as a Senior Consultant with Organization and Career Development in Human Resources at Purdue University. Her consulting focused on the process of talent development and retention, managing change, performance management, and strategic planning design. Through her career Sara has been certified as a SHRM Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR); Harvard Mutual Gains Negotiator, Linkage Inc. Human Resource consultant, Blessing White™ facilitator, Zenger Miller™ facilitator, and Targeted Selection™ administrator.
Sara has also developed and taught undergraduate courses on Conference Leadership and Human Resource Issues and Critical Thinking for the School of Technology at Purdue University. In addition, she appeared frequently to guest lecture classes on teamwork, interviewing, conflict and communication in Civil Engineering, Management, and Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Her early career work in student affairs took her from the University of South Carolina to Hamilton College and Pratt Institute.
She earned her BS in Business Administration at Winthrop College, Master’s in Education from the University of South Carolina and a Ph.D. from Purdue University.
Ms. Paige Abe, UNC Chapel Hill
Cascades
In 2017, UNC - Chapel Hill admitted its largest ever first year class of 4275 students. “I’m here! Now what?” Easing the First Year Registration Process outlines how and why the Academic Advising Program made the decision to pre-assign two courses to every first year student. Prior to attending Orientation, first year students were asked to fill out an academic interest survey where they shared preferences for their fall courses, including their top five First Year Seminar choices. This session will outline each step of this process, from the academic interest survey to Orientation to final outcomes and student feedback.
Mr. Steven White, Virginia Tech
Drillfield
It's no secret that students often turn to those they trust for career advice, whether that may be your role on campus or not. This presentation will walk advisors through the stages of career development with actions that advisors can take to help students begin the next steps after graduation. As many students may not follow-up with their career center, this workshop will cover resources and strategies that advisors can use to perform "career first aid" with students. Topics will include major/career decision making, gaining experiential learning opportunities, developing career competencies, and achieving students' first destination when they graduate.
Ms. Lauren Daly, Liberty University
Latham Ballroom A
Ready or not, Generation Z is here. Born between 1995 and 2010 and raised post-9/11 and The Great Recession, these students are overwhelmed, overcommitted, and over-connected. But take a deeper look and you will find that these same students are also more entrepreneurial and individualistic than their millennial predecessors. A 2014 survey of high-school students found that 72% hope to start a business in the future. What programs and services are we providing that directly meet the needs of this 5-screen generation of innovators? Let Interdisciplinary Studies be part of the answer by providing a launchpad for student success.
Dr. Karen Eley Sanders, Virginia Tech
Latham Ballroom B
According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2018), students whose parents have not earned a bachelor’s degree often face significant challenges in accessing college, succeeding academically once they enroll, and graduating. This session will identify barriers to first-generation students’ academic success, and provide an overview of strategies that enhance their retention and graduation. The session will also highlight intrusive advising strategies used by faculty and professional advisors to support first-generation and other at-risk students.
Ms. Emily Wilkinson-Stallings, Virginia Tech
Ms. Heather Whedbee, Virginia Tech
Smithfield
The United States is largest provider of international student education, hosting about 1.1 million out of 4.6 million international students enrolled in colleges worldwide in 2017. As primary points of contact, advisors meet students who are exhausted, thrilled, confused, and struck with culture shock. (Zong & Baralova, 2018.) How can we, with limited professional training on effective practices for international students, identify tools to assist these students in understanding the cultural differences in grading scales, academic integrity, course selection, and personal autonomy? Join us as we explore how academic advisors can help international students find success away from home.
Mr. Jonathan May, George Mason University
Erin McSherry, George Mason University
Cascades
The Mason Academic Advisor Network (MAAN) is a grassroots organization created with the goal of changing the campus culture of advising and improving the student experience. The network’s vision is to offer professional and personal support for advisors through initiatives that provide training, networking, social support, and recognition of outstanding service. This presentation will provide an overview of the various initiatives MAAN has created and discuss how the organization has not only maintained its membership, but also how it has built relationships with campus stakeholders, gained the trust of university administration, and built a more collaborative atmosphere around student success.
Ms. Ashley Pauling, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Mr. Michael Abel, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Latham Ballroom A
Pre-registration advising appointments can leave both students and advisors frustrated. Students, especially first-year students, do not know what to expect, often coming unprepared, while advisors must balance time constraints with efforts to build connections and develop an action plan moving forward. The University Advising Center at UNC Charlotte, recognizing this less than ideal advising environment, developed an online, module-based, flipped-advising program that students completed prior to their pre-registration advising appointment. This session will showcase the creation, implementation, and benefits of this technological-based initiative housed in the university’s learning management system and how it helped to allow for more productive, focused, and efficient advising appointments.
Mrs. Rachel Kohl, Virginia Tech
Drillfield
A faculty study group in the Agricultural Technology Program endeavored to inspire the teaching faculty to think critically and engage actively in advising matters. For this, we encouraged open discussion about previous advising difficulties and sought to motivate advising faculty to use Appreciative Advising to overcome those obstacles and inspire student success. To achieve this goal, a foundation of knowledge about Appreciative Advising, in theory and practice, was essential. This will be an interactive session that will follow the same format, in a condensed version, to allow the audience to gain an understanding of the Appreciative Advising tools and techniques.
Ms. Mysha Clincy, St. Louis Community College
Latham Ballroom B
The student success formula is constantly changing. The formula students plus faculty plus academic advising equals student success (S + F + A2 = S2) creates a balanced formula that creates engagement for everyone thus impacting student success. This will be an interactive workshop that will discuss the past roles of students, faculty and academic advising, and the shift that is occurring with these roles. We will discuss and create strategies that will keep the equation balanced; understanding that effective collaboration is about maximizing time, talent and tools to create value.
Mrs. Brandi Lovin, Tennessee Tech University
Latham Ballroom A
A best practices presentation for higher education professionals. I meet with probationary students who work hard to return to good academic standing, and some achieving Dean’s List. I speak with them often about how school is continuing but not asking, with depth, what skills or advice they carry with them to maintain their improved grades. This presentation lets you hear from current and former probationary students as examples of skills and habits developed as participants in our program for at-risk students. This will show how students are being assisted, and offer ideas that other attendees can carry to their institutions.
Mr. David Lally, Virginia Tech
Dr. Brett Jones, Virginia Tech
Drillfield
The transition to college can be a joyful milestone for a young adult, but it can also present a daunting series of personal, social, and academic challenges. Most advisors are deeply acquainted with the negative outcomes that students experience when this transition is not successful. Attendees of this session will learn about our efforts to successfully integrate students into learning communities and a culture of mentorship in order to mediate the inherent stresses of transitioning to college. We will draw upon numerous theoretical frameworks, including motivational, self-affirmation, student development, and social learning theories that inform our teaching and advising praxes.
Mrs. Sarah Carl, Virginia Tech
Ms. Annie Laib, Virginia Tech
Cascades
Transition is challenging for any student, no matter what their background. Easing the transition to college is a daunting task for advisors, who may be far removed from the undergraduate experience and intimidating for new students to approach. By partnering with current students from diverse backgrounds, advising offices can mitigate the stressors that are common among new students. We will discuss how the implementation of a student ambassador program with recruitment and peer mentorship components can facilitate smooth college transitions. In this presentation, we will incorporate literature, highlight anecdotal experiences, and encourage group discussions. Participants will consider how they might partner with current students in their own department.
Ms. Erika Hanson, University of North Carolina Wilmington
Ms. Shannon Pease, University of North Carolina Wilmington
Smithfield
During this interactive session attendees will predict the holistic needs of all students who experience a natural disaster in which the institution is closed for a month, propose programs and initiatives that an advising office can implement to take a proactive approach at meeting student needs as they transition back to campus, determine obstacles that students may encounter throughout the shortened, academically intense semester, and identify promising initiatives and areas of improvement after hearing how two UNCW advising units responded in the wake of Hurricane Florence.
Ms. Heidi Gilbert, Virginia Tech
Mr. Jonathan Byers, Virginia Tech
Latham Ballroom B
Student veterans and students from underrepresented ethnic backgrounds may often struggle to make the transition to a large university setting. Learn tips, tricks, and career resources to empower your students as they strive to start strong both at the university and on their career journeys. Knowing students come to the university starting at different stages of career development, this session will spotlight a variety of resources available to help students with selecting a major, exploring career opportunities, gaining exp
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Monday, April 22, 2:00 - 3:00 PM
Newman Library, Multi-Purpose Room
Beth Armstrong, Director, Office of University Scholarships and Financial Aid
To be eligible for federal, state, and institutional financial aid, all students are required to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP.) The regulations provided by the U.S Department of Education are geared toward improving program integrity. Virginia Tech has established its own policy to adhere to these guidelines while ensuring student success. During this chat, Beth Armstrong will provide advisors with updates and information about the VT SAP policy to assist advisors who work students experiencing SAP issues.
Thursday, April 25th, 2:00 - 3:00 PM
Smith Career Center, Meeting Room A
Joy Capers, Assistant Director, Mentorship Program, Career and Professional Development
Hokie Mentorship Connect is the newest program from Career and Professional Development that is slated to launch school-wide fall 2019. The online platform will be utilized to unite Virginia Tech undergraduate students with alumni for career-related support. The program will exist to promote fellowship and networking for career development purposes. As a result open lines of communication will be formed and meaningful long-term relationships will be formed between multiple generations of Hokies. Hokie Mentorship Connect is a collaborative process that aims to:
- Enrich students by offering opportunities for interaction with industry professional
- Empower students in the development of personal responsibility and independence
- Create an environment that fosters career and professional development
- Encourage and support Virginia Tech undergraduate students
Please join us as we discuss the results of the spring 2019 Hokie Mentorship Connect pilot program while also learning about the program more in-depth and exploring ways that it will benefit the Virginia Tech community.”
Webinar presented by the ACPA Commission for Global Dimensions of Student Development
Megan Jeffery, MS, The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
The Commission for Global Dimensions of Student Development brings together ACPA members from all functional areas interested in supporting international students, scholars and faculty members, study abroad and international service-learning, fostering the development of intercultural competencies, student services around the world, the role of student affairs in internationalization efforts.