Creating an Effective Advising Program: Issues in Advising Administration NACADA Executive Office Kansas State University 2323 Anderson Ave, Suite 225 Manhattan, KS Phone: (785) Fax: (785) © 2012 National Academic Advising Association The contents of all material in this presentation are copyrighted by the National Academic Advising Association, unless otherwise indicated. Copyright is not claimed as to any part of an original work prepared by a U.S. or state government officer or employee as part of that person's official duties. All rights are reserved by NACADA, and content may not be reproduced, downloaded, disseminated, published, or transferred in any form or by any means, except with the prior written permission of NACADA, or as indicated below. Members of NACADA may download pages or other content for their own use, consistent with the mission and purpose of NACADA. However, no part of such content may be otherwise or subsequently be reproduced, downloaded, disseminated, published, or transferred, in any form or by any means, except with the prior written permission of, and with express attribution to NACADA. Copyright infringement is a violation of federal law and is subject to criminal and civil penalties. NACADA and National Academic Advising Association are service marks of the National Academic Advising Association. Nancy S. King, Ph. D Executive Assistant for Strategic Initiatives Kennesaw State University

Basic Elements in Developing and Implementing a Successful Academic Advising Program Administrative support Development of institutional advising mission Selection and training of advisors Recognition/reward system Development of advising materials (handbook, advising resources, information about advisees) Assessment of effectiveness

The Planning Process Identify the team and establish a timeline  Essential to involve the major stakeholders  Individual advising units need their own mission statements Review the institution’s mission statement (advising mission must be compatible)

Assess the Environment Who are our students? What are their advising needs? What are our major assets and challenges? What is our overarching vision for the kind of institution we want to be?

Develop a Vision for Success What would our ideal advising program look like?  Benchmarking/Boundary monitoring  CAS standards and guidelines  NACADA core values Ultimately what do we want to accomplish?

Establishing an Advising Program Activating an advising program requires a written and published mission statement.

Questions to Consider in Developing the Mission Statement What is academic advising? What are our students’ advising needs? Who serves as advisors? Who is the administrator responsible for the advising program? How are the advisors trained and evaluated?

What is the relationship between advising and the other support services of the institution? What are the rights and responsibilities of the advisor? What are the rights and responsibilities of the advisees? What is the delivery model?

Develop Specific Goals Academic advising should aid students in … Developing suitable educational plans Clarifying career and life goals Selecting appropriate courses and other educational experiences Interpreting academic requirements Making students aware of all available resources that enhance their education

Evaluating student progress toward their degrees Developing decision-making skills Helping students become independent learners The advising program should also provide data about students’ educational needs. White, Chapter 12, Advising Handbook

Variables to Consider when Selecting a Model Size and type of institution Institutional mission Administrative structure Identification of advisors (faculty/full-time advisors) Advisor load Special needs of students Funding sources

Assessment of Structure Effectiveness: Questions to Consider Are advisors accessible when and where students seek academic guidance? Are financial, personnel and physical resources available to support and staff the structure that is in place? Are reporting lines clear to all advisors? Is there a high level administrator who oversees the institutional advising system, someone to whom all college advisors are accountable?

How is advising organized? There is no one best model. All are potentially effective for the delivery of advising services… C. F. Pardee

2011 Survey of Advising: 817 Respondents

A "faculty only" model is more common at 4 year baccalaureate colleges (35%); and 4 year colleges/universities who do not grant PhDs (20%) "Centralized units" staffed mostly by professional advisors or counselors are more common at PhD-granting universities (40%); and at 2 year colleges (33%) And the survey says…

For all responding institutions, some sort of a "shared model" was the most common structure indicated—53% –some students (undecided or transfer or probation or undeclared or ??) advised in a center with faculty advising declared majors-- true for half of the respondents who indicated a shared model –a variety of other shared models, with professional advisors (in a center, a department, or a college) dividing responsibilities (in differing ways) with faculty advisors

What else did we learn about the organization of advising? 10% of the respondents use peer advisors in some way At 86% of the responding colleges, at least some faculty advise in some way Several struggled to describe their structures— 13% wrote in more information to try to describe; 14% indicated 2 or more models used

Four Questions to consider about modeling and remodeling 1.Who is advised? 2.Who advises? 3.Where is advising done? 4.How are advising responsibilities divided?

Questions to Consider Is it clear to students where they obtain advising for their various needs, such as general education requirements, the major and minor subject areas, honors courses, pre- law or pre-medicine curriculum, exceptions to policies, academic probation, graduation, etc.? If students have multiple advisors, is there a center to make advising referrals?

Questions to Consider Do advisors understand the structure and their role within the larger system? If the structure is decentralized, is there an advising resource and training center? If the structure is decentralized or shared, does the structure promote communication and cooperation among advisors in all units?

Questions to Consider Is the structure conducive to sharing information and collaborating with other academic and student service units to create and implement policies that promote student development and success? Pardee, C. F. NACADA Clearinghouse of Academic Advising Resources, “Organizational Structures for Advising”

Three Major Components Training and professional development Rewards/recognition Evaluation/assessment

Training and Development Expected or required of all advisors – professional, faculty, peer, administrators Must be comprehensive and on-going Should be carefully connected to the mission, goals, advisor outcomes and the student learning outcomes of the program

Training and Development Key Elements of Development Programs Informational Institutional Programs, Policies and Procedures Curriculum Requirements Campus Resources

Key Elements of Development Programs Conceptual Advising Definition Student Development Theories Learning Theories Connecting Advising to Retention/Persistence Research

Key Elements of Development Programs Relational Relationship Building Communication Skills Questioning Skills Mentoring Skills

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development NACADA Homepage:

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development

NACADA Homepage:

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development

Program Evaluation Strategies Student Surveys Advisor Peer Evaluation or Observation Documented achievement of learning outcomes for students CAS Standards ht tp:// External Review – NACADA Academic Advising Consultants and Speakers Service

Advisor Performance Evaluation Must be connected clearly to advisor outcomes and learning outcomes Must be connected clearly to articulated expectations Must be connected to institution or department job description Should be tied, for faculty, to the teaching component of the tenure and promotion elements

Advisor Performance Evaluation Strategies/Issues Student Surveys Peer Evaluation or Observation Documented achievement of outcomes (Portfolio) Self-evaluation Connection to Merit Increase Does Everyone Deserve Top Scores?

Recognition/Reward System Extrinsic Rewards: Release Time Reduction in Non-Instructional Load Additional/Alternate Compensation Promotion/Tenure Decisions Advisor Awards (local and national) Recognition by Administration

Intrinsic Rewards: Contributions to students’ growth and success Satisfaction of teaching both inside and outside the classroom Student appreciation

Advising Challenges Gaining Institutional Support Understand and navigate campus politics Be visible Know the players and build relationships Recognize the “hot spots” Identify and articulate priorities Collaborate with other departments and units Share information and successes

Advising Challenges Gaining Institutional Support Connect advising to key initiatives on campus, i.e. retention, graduation rates, student persistence Provide assessment of advising Connect advising to the mission of the institution Build support for advising with student leaders and alumni

Advising Challenges Advising Administration Challenges Unit Issues: Mission Advising model Delivery of services Professional development and staff motivation Rewarding staff Faculty advising issues Finance/budgeting

Advising Challenges Advising Administration Challenges Campus Issues: Identify Campus Allies (Get out of your office!) Outreach to Campus Groups Campus Politics Communicating with Administration Peers Overarching Issues: Technology Assessment/Evaluation/Planning

Advising Challenges Changing Student Demographics Diversity of Students –Ethnic/racial background –LGBTQ –Underprepared –Special Needs Disabilities Mental Illness –Nontraditional Students Age of students Delayed enrollment Part time Work full time Financially independent Families/Children Veterans

Advising Challenges Retention and Graduation Rates Be prepared to demonstrate what you are doing to help in retention efforts A) Spend staff/office time identifying what your office does to promote student retention. B) Learn what other schools are doing through academic advising to increase retention. C) What research/publications are available to help you address your specific student populations? Be prepared to make recommendations for improvements your office (and other offices) can make to positively affect retention A) You know what students need. What else can you/your office provide with appropriate time/resources?

Advising Challenges Financing Advising Programs Improved retention, persistence, and graduation rates (RPG) yield positive financial results. Some institutions have used advising fees to provide for additional staffing. Other institutions have made use of volunteer advisors (alumni, retired faculty) during peak periods.

Advising Challenges Administration of Advising Cluster Advising Administration Commission Advisor Training and Development Commission Assessment of Advising Commission Ethics and Legal issues in Advising Interest Group Steering Committee Representative: David Spight, Asst. Dean for Advising, University of Texas-Austin ( )

Advising Challenges Group Activity Questions???? Review???? Have a terrific NACADA Conference!