1. Student Success Advisor Training Foundation Program Conceptualising the role of the Student Success Advisor and Practice Frameworks for Student Success and Retention

2. Acknowledgment to Country In the Spirit of Reconciliation Following on from Sorry Day I would like to acknowledge and honour the Traditional Custodians of this land that we are meeting on today, the Yugambeh People, and pay respect to their Elders past and present

3. Our Goal Working together to make sense of and build ownership and commitment to the Student Success Advisor (SSA) role.

4. What is the SSA role?

6. How shall we start to work together to ‘make sense’ of our SSA role?

7. Student Success Advisor: What is our core purpose?

8. Student Success Advisor: Core Purpose Proactive intervention for enhancing student engagement, success and retention. Focused on being a ‘game changer’ in students lives.

9. Strategic Activities Strategic Goals Practice Frameworks and Principles Institutional Strategy School Strategy Partnerships Student Success Advisor

10. Why are coherent practice frameworks important? ‘The Six Rs ’........... Rationale for what I plan to do Reflect and re-orient as I am working Review what I have done or the effect I have had Replicate what has worked Re-design what hasn’t worked Report to others what I have learnt

11. Why are coherent practice frameworks important? ‘The Six Rs’........... RationaleReflectReviewReplicateRe-designReport

12. We are not ‘lone wolves’......as a network of SSAs we need a shared language!

13. What are the general practice frameworks that we will use? Our Shared Language 1.Student Transition 2.Student lifecycle 3.Levels of systems intervention 4.Facets of academic culture

14. 1. Transition Model for student success: The Five Senses of Success

15. The Five Senses of Student Success (Lizzio, 2006) Sense of Student Identity Sense of Connectedness Sense of Capability Sense of Purpose Sense of Resourcefulness

16. How might we as SSAs facilitate student’s successful transition?

17. How might we as SSAs facilitate our student’s successful transition? Sense of Identity: Help me understand, validate and appreciate myself as a university student. Sense of Connection: Help me to belong and feel connected. Sense of Resourcefulness: Help me to navigate this system and my competing priorities. Sense of Capability: Help me to feel confident and capable as a student. Sense of Purpose: Help me to develop a sense of direction and commitment.

18. 2. The Student Lifecycle

19. The Student Lifecycle Students’ needs, identities and developmental priorities vary over their degree.... Therefore We need to understand and respond with developmentally appropriate services and interventions at key points of the lifecycle.

20. Understanding the Student Lifecycle Process (Higher Education Academy, 2001) Early Contact Pre-Semester (Admission, Enrolment & Orientation) All of Semester 1, especially the first 7 Weeks End of semester 1 First 7 Weeks of Semester 2 End of Year One transition into Year 2 Years 2 & 3 Alumni and Postgraduate

21. How might we as SSAs facilitate our student’s success across the lifecycle? Pre-Semester Engaging students from point of offer Orientation and Induction Assisting planning, enrolment & orientation of students Early Semester Running foundational academic skills development & assessment workshops Working with students at early risk of disengagement & departure Through Semester Consulting with students to assist academic success or academic recovery Post Semester Facilitating recovery or problem-solving with failing & failed students

22. Levels of Systems Intervention How do we identify our priorities for strategic action?

23. How do we identify our priorities for strategic action? Levels of Intervention Framework Tertiary Prevention What do we do for failing students? Secondary Prevention What do we do for identified at- risk students? Targeted/ Selective Primary Prevention What do we do for specific groups of potentially at-risk students? General/ Primary Prevention What do we do for all students?

24. How do we identify our priorities for strategic action? Levels of Intervention Framework Tertiary Prevention What do we do for failing students? Secondary Prevention What do we do for identified at- risk students? Targeted/ Selective Primary Prevention What do we do for specific groups of potentially at-risk students? General/ Primary Prevention What do we do for all students?

25. How might we as SSAs facilitate strategies focused on general primary prevention? What will we do for all students? Collaboratively Contribute to a Student-Centred Success Culture Membership of the Student Success & Retention Team Establish Universal Procedures and Mechanisms Facilitate early student planning through Mail-outs, Enrolment Day Provide Universal Opportunities for Development Implement academic skills development workshops & assessment workshops Communicate with the Whole Cohort Facilitate peer mentoring systems, use email and social media to assist planning & engagement

26. Priorities for Strategic Action to Improve Retention - Levels of Intervention framework Tertiary Prevention What do we do for failing students? Secondary Prevention What do we do for identified at- risk students? Targeted/ Selective Primary Prevention What do we do for specific groups of potentially at-risk students? General/ Primary Prevention What do we do for all students?

27. How might we as SSAs facilitate strategies focused on targeted primary prevention? What will we do for specific groups of students? Pre-semester Front-loaded Outreach Interventions Initiate from point of offer negotiated engagement consultations with “late engagers” (students identified at risk of early discontinuation based on distal indicators (viz., low OP x low preference x LOTE x low SES) Mid-Semester Front-loaded Outreach Interventions Working with other staff to retain students who may ‘migrate’ or ‘transfer’ to other universities (e..g, high OP low preference) Active Ongoing Profiling and Monitoring of Students Building and maintaining a CRM ‘practice database’ on the engagement and performance of identified sub-groups of students (e.g., international)

28. Griffith students at risk of early discontinuation 1/2012 on Distal risk markers (Low OPs (11+) x Low degree preference (3 rd +) x LOTE x Low SES) Health Foundation Program (5 Schools) Bachelor of Nursing Bachelor of Business School of Humanities Bachelor Urban & Env’mental Planning Cohort Size 856703550468127 High risk student numbers 3% (28/856) 6% (40/703) 12% (68/550) 19% (91/468) 24% (31/127)

29. Does early intervention work? We have achieved good success rates with “High Risk” Students in targeted Schools/Programs 1/2012 Late Engagers = (low OP x low preference x ESL x LSES) B. Business – 68 ‘late engagers’ in Sem. 1 (12% of the FY intake) 82% passed at least 1 course 6 3 % passed all 4 core courses Only 7% failed all 4 core courses Those who passed all 4 courses evidenced high levels of attendance at PASS, SASA academic skills workshops & SASA consults

30. Priorities for Strategic Action to Improve Retention Levels of Intervention framework Tertiary Prevention What do we do for failing students? Secondary Prevention What do we do for identified at-risk students? Targeted/ Selective Primary Prevention What do we do for specific groups of potentially at-risk students? General/ Primary Prevention What do we do for all students?

31. How might we as SSAs facilitate strategies focused on secondary prevention? What will we do for students identified as ‘at-risk’ of discontinuation? During semester Working with academic staff to implement the 6 Risk Markers in a key or threshold course and following-up students who are failing early assessment tasks

32. Secondary Prevention: Proximal Success or Risk Markers across first semester W 1 Readiness: Attendance at orientation or completion of online orientation W2-3 Early engagement: Online engagement (WK 2) & Class attendance (WK 3) W 2-4 Early performance: Submission of first or early assessment W5-6 Early outcomes: Passing of first or early assessment S/B Cumulative outcomes: Passing of first-semester first year courses

33. Operation Student Success Trial: Markers 1-3: Patterns for 1/2012 Risk Marker School of Nursing – Bachelor of Nursing Health Foundation Program School of Humanities Bachelor Urban & Env’mental Planning Bachelor of Business Cohort Size 703 856468127550 1 O-Day160 (23%)130 (15%)114 (24%)22 (17%)85 (15%) 2 On- line 51 (7%)200 (22%)65 (14%)17 (13%)62 (11%) 3 Class Attend 148 (21%)36 (4%)110 (24%)19 (15%)67 (12%)

34. How might we as SSAs facilitate strategies focused on secondary prevention? What will we do for students identified as ‘at-risk’? Mid semester Contact students from the Starting@Griffith survey who self-identify an early intention to leave Griffith

35. Priorities for Strategic Action to Improve Retention - Levels of Intervention framework Tertiary Prevention What do we do for failing students? Secondary Prevention What do we do for identified at- risk students? Targeted/ Selective Primary Prevention What do we do for specific groups of potentially at-risk students? General/ Primary Prevention What do we do for all students?

36. How might we as SSAs facilitate strategies focused on tertiary prevention? What will we do for failing students? Post semester Facilitating the academic recovery of students who have failed 2 or more courses in any semester through advising, support and/or referral

37. 4. Facets of Academic Culture

38. What’s culture? The governing values, beliefs and ideas of an organisation The way we do things around here!

39. Why is culture important? ‘Culture’ beats ‘strategy’ hands down every time!

40. Engaging our commencing students: What culture does our mindset create? Social Darwinist Culture High Challenge Low Support

41. Engaging our commencing students: What culture does our mindset create? Social Darwinist Culture High Challenge Low Support Academic Welfare Culture Low Challenge High Support

42. Engaging our commencing students: What culture does our mindset create? Social Darwinist Culture High Challenge Low Support Academic Welfare Culture Low Challenge High Support Aspirational Culture High Challenge High Support

43. Engaging our commencing students: What culture does our mindset create? Social Darwinist Culture High Challenge Low Support Academic Welfare Culture Low Challenge High Support Disengaged Culture Low Challenge Low support Aspirational Culture High Challenge High Support

44. Engaging our commencing students: What culture does our mindset create? Social Darwinist Culture High Challenge Low Support Academic Welfare Culture Low Challenge High Support Disengaged Culture Low Challenge Low support Aspirational Culture High Challenge High Support Supported Independence Culture Scaffolding, Dialogue and Data-driven Engagement

45. Cultural transformation Supported Independence Valued Longer-Term Outcome Necessary Scaffolding Process

46. What is the SSA role? Activating sustainable student energy!

47. How do we work to optimise these outcomes?

48. If we are to be ‘game changers’ and ‘transformers’ for our students then we need to consciously examine our notions of ‘student support’...

49. Student Support in Higher Education: Traditional Conception: The language of ‘deficits’ What do you associate with the term ‘student support’?  ‘Barriers to success’ are conceptualised as being located within individual students.  Positions the student as ‘having a problem’ with which they ‘need help’.  Systems basic-assumptions (e.g., starting academic capital) are generally unquestioned in the face of diversity Diversity is confounded with deficit with the consequence that non-traditional students are more likely to feel marginalised

50. Student Support in Higher Education: Transformational Conception: The language of ‘strengths’ What do you associate with the term ‘facilitating student success’?  ‘ Barriers to success’ are conceptualised as being located in student, society and university.  Systems basic-assumptions (e.g., culture) are open to questioning and re-design in the face of diversity  Diversity is conceptualised as inclusive of a range of strengths and identities with the consequence that non-traditional students are more likely to feel respected and valued.

51. If we are to be ‘game changers’ and ‘transformers’ for our students then we need to consciously examine our approach to ‘student diversity’........

52. Evolutionary States of Diversity 1. Denial: I treat everyone the same 2. Frustrated awareness: I know people are different but there is not much I can do about it 3. Tolerance: I put up with difference and make some minor adjustments 4. Remediation: I fix students’ problems so they can cope better with my expectations 5. Active engagement: I work with my students to understand their strengths, preferences and needs

53. If we are to be ‘game changers’ and ‘transformers’ for our students then we need to consciously examine our notions of ‘student risk’...

54. Systems understanding of Student Risk We need to honestly acknowledging that there are multiple sources of student risk: 1.Students can mis-judge or assume expectations and requirements 2.Staff can mis-judge or assume students’ entry level capabilities 3.Students can experience personal or system’s blocks to help-seeking or receiving

55. If we are to be ‘game changers’ and ‘transformers’ for our students then we need to consciously examine our notions of ‘how to help people to be successful’......

56. Our Goal: Co-Creating a Student Success Culture Focusing on a proactive, outreach approach to facilitating students’ understanding of: What unique ‘eye’ and ‘voice’ do they each bring How might their personal capacities and experiences be useful? How they achieve What is successful learning at University? What they need to do to be successful What are the predictors of academic success at Uni? What personal and institutional resources they require to achieve that success What external resources are available at the Course/School/Uni level? What inner resources do students need to develop?

57. Our Strategy: Negotiated Student Engagement While recognising & acknowledging the competing pressures influencing student priorities, we also need to establish the non-negotiables required for academic success: Orientation to academic study and the level of application (time & commitment) required for successful performance For NT first-in-family students this also involves building academic capital & deconstructing the “Hidden Curriculum” The role of the SSA is key to negotiated engagement

58. Negotiated Student Engagement The normalisation of student diversity in HE also involves a parallel process of the normalisation of the diversity of student support needs for success The reality is that while ALL students need some type of support Different students need different types & amounts of support And at different points across their first year, & the student degree lifecycle

59. Transformational Language Facilitating Student Success through contributing to cultures of supported independence in Schools/Programs is inclusive of all students Negotiated Engagement sits at the heart of facilitating a Student Success Culture of supported independence We need to think in terms of student success culture rather than student support

60. If we are to be ‘game changers’ and ‘transformers’ for our students then we need to consciously examine ourselves........ Our thinking about risk and diversity Our language in describing our work to ourselves and others Our behaviour towards people from backgrounds different to our own Our capacity to facilitate the conditions for success

61. Student Success Advisor: Revisiting our Core Purpose Proactive intervention for enhancing student engagement, success and retention. Focused on being a ‘game changer’ in students lives.

62. A few personal comments...

63. How are you feeling about the SSA role at the moment?

64. I would be surprised if some level of confusion wasn’t part of the deal...

65. It is normal to feel overwhelmed at this stage of the process

66. There will be a multitude of thoughts, feelings and arguments surfacing.....

67. Self-doubt and self-questioning is something we all share...

68. So....let’s keep talking and sharing with each other...we are just beginning the process of creating our own success culture and community