academic advising council advising model enhancements ......advisor all admitted students...
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Academic Advising Council
Advising Model Enhancements & Next Steps
October 2019
Why do we need to enhance the advising model?
Through a multi-year analysis that included open forums, review of assessments and data, conversations with peer institutions, and meetings with key stakeholders, we examined the state of advising at CWU and identified the following areas for improvement:
1. inconsistences in quality and standards across advising; 2. lack of strategic vision, leadership, and oversight; 3. intentionally designed and ongoing professional development tied to NACADA and CAS standards for all advisors is missing; 4. faculty workload, input, and voice need to be addressed; 5. clarity around roles and responsibilities is lacking; 6. increased advising presence for Centers and online is needed; 7. prioritization of transfer student success through the development of a transfer center; and 8. comprehensive communication and assessment plans are currently absent.
Further, our most recent 2018 NWCCU accreditation recommends we continue the process of evaluating the structure and effectiveness of academic advising making needed enhancements. (See 2017 Baccalaureate Task Force & 2018 CAS Self-Assessment Reports)
Why do we need to enhance
the advising model?
What's already working well?
We know academic advising is working well in some areas on campus, and there are elements of our current model of advising that work well. Examples include: 1. delivery uses multiple formats (e.g., online, in-person, group, phone); 2. nationally and regionally recognized staff advisors through NACADA; 3. NSSE, Mapworks, and student satisfaction surveys consistently rate advising at CWU positively; 4. strong partnerships between advising community and orientation team; and 5. student-centered efforts related to early alert, Student Success Survey (S3), and UNIV 101. We want to enhance the current model and maintain the elements that work now. (See 2017 Baccalaureate Task Force Report)
What is already working
well?
How'd we get to this point?
The original advising workgroup was part of the Baccalaureate Task Force. Between 2016-2018, they identified what's working well in advising and where our model falls short. During AY19, the Academic Advising Council (AAC) was formed. The AAC held listening sessions to further assess the problems and strengths of the model and proposed a first draft of a new model. The AAC worked this summer to refine the recommendations based on campus feedback. (See 2018 CAS Self-Assessment Report and AAC Reports)
How did we arrive at
this proposal?
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Goals for Student Experience Students’ Needs in Advising Mechanisms of Proposed Structure/Model to Address Students’ Needs
Advisors will be accessible Students will have a primary advisor (Major or Exploratory).
Faculty advisors will receive compensation and professional development.
Shared standards of practice and equitable, manageable advising caseloads will improve accessibility.
Diversity among advisors A commitment to and vision for diversity, equity, and inclusivity among the advising community can occur via intentional leadership supporting known and innovative practices; for example, following CAS recommendations.
Advisors keep students on track
The establishment of college advising directors and revision of the Academic Advising Council (AAC) can offer the requisite oversight and collective delivery in order to support a campus wide commitment to tracking student progress, proactive outreach, improving handoffs, and investment in development.
Competent and informed advisors
All advisors will adhere to the same standards.
All advisors will participate in regular professional development.
Accurate, timely, and responsive
Students will have one primary advisor.
Faculty advisors will receive compensation to improve accessibility.
Caring advisors In addition to primary advisor, students may have assigned support people they can choose to call on or not.
The AAC and area directors will ensure the creation and implementation of professional development around core competencies including “relational” aspects of advising.
Understanding the role of an advisor
There will be coordinated and intentional onboarding for all students.
Advisor role labels will be clearer to students in MyCWU.
Roles and responsibilities will be outlined so university community understands roles of each advisor.
Knowing who to turn to for specific questions
There will be a clear hand-off so the student and advisors understand their roles.
Students will have advisors’ contact information and role clearly communicated within MyCWU.
Reduction of holds The AAC will annually review policies and practices associated with academic advising.
Vision and Mission for Advising
Vision. At Central Washington University, academic advising will empower students with the relevant knowledge and tools to achieve academic
success. Advisors are committed to standards of excellence and providing accurate, timely advice that enables students to pursue academic and
career goals.
Mission. Academic Advising at CWU is dedicated to creating supportive environments that assist students with describing, planning, and
attaining their unique educational, professional, and personal goals. Advising provides students with appropriate resources to make informed
academic decisions.
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Proposed Structure of Advising
* Douglas Honors College advisors will continue to offer general education and exploratory advising
until students declare a major and as students complete their upper-division and minor DHC
coursework. They do not fall under the reporting structure of Student Success but would serve a
similar function as those identified under Special Programs.
Academic Advising Council (AAC)
Responsibilities
Develops uniform advising policies and procedures
Establishes standards and ensures consistent delivery of advising
Facilitates collaboration and coordination across advising areas
Establishes and implements comprehensive assessment plan
Coordinates professional development opportunities
Major Advising
Director and Advisors
CAH COB
CEPS COTS
Exploratory
Advising
Director &
Staff Advisors
College Deans
Model Features
Leadership: Includes clear lines of
responsibility and structures that support
effective standards of advising. All advisors
are expected to adhere to the same standards
of practice, established by the AAC.
Intentional Onboarding and Hand-Off: All
students are intentionally onboarded and are
assigned an advisor within the appropriate
area.
Primary Advisor: Students will always have a
“primary” advisor who will be their first point
of contact for advising. Students with multiple
majors will have an advisor for each major,
but one major will be designated as “primary”
for the purposes of advising.
Assessment: Comprehensive assessment plan
will be implemented.
Professional Development and Collaboration:
Advisors will have the opportunity to
participate in professional development
opportunities to ensure advisors have timely
information and to promote collaboration.
Faculty Choice and WLU Compensation:
Faculty will work with their college dean to
determine whether or not they serve as
advisors. Faculty should receive WLU for
advising. Note: A more detailed description of area responsibilities are presented in Appendix A
Transfer,
Univ.
Centers, and
Online
Director and
Staff Advisors
*Special
Programs
AAP, CAMP,
STAR
Student Success
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Proposed Model Flow
Student is
admitted
to CWU
Student
Onboarding
(e.g.,
Exploratory,
Transfer
Center,
Univ.
Centers)
Exploratory
Advisor
Support &
Resource Mentor
DHC /
Special
Programs
Advisor
Student Accepted
into Major
Student Wants to
Explore Other
Majors
OR
Option #2
Faculty / Staff
Advisors
Option #3
Faculty
Advisor
Points to Consider:
All admitted students (first-year and transfer) initially meet with an advisor in an onboarding process. This advisor identifies the students’ goals and gets the
students to the right advisor and necessary resources.
Students are assigned to either an exploratory advisor (if undeclared) or a major advisor (if declared or in the process of declaring). Students affiliated with
DHC or a special program (TRIO or STAR) are assigned an advisor in that program as their exploratory advisor. Students involved with athletics and
international programs will be assigned support and resource mentors from those programs who will provide resources and other wrap-around support to
students but are not primary advisors.
Once students are accepted into a major, they transition from exploratory to major advising. Departments choose from one of three options: 1) all staff
advising, 2) hybrid faculty/staff advising, or 3) all faculty advising. See recommended caseloads and workload ratios (Appendix B) as well as division of
responsibilities (Appendix C) for more information about the three options. Support persons continue to provide mentorship once students are in the major.
Students will be assigned faculty as minor advisors.
Students with multiple majors will be assigned major advisors for each program, and one of the advisors will be designated as “primary.”
Online advisors serve in the onboarding and major advisor roles.
Special Program / Support
& Resource Mentor
Major/Minor Advising Exploratory Advising
OR Option #1
Staff
Advisor
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Next Steps
Fall 2019
Facilitate campus conversation about advising proposal and vision/mission statements (Week of November 11)
Make revisions to proposal based on campus feedback (November/December)
Prepare a budget plan for submission to the budget allocation process, if necessary (November/December)
Submit final advising model recommendations to Provost for review (December)
Winter 2020 (Tentative Schedule)
Develop and communicate a phased implementation schedule.
Develop an onboarding process and professional development strategies.
Develop a comprehensive assessment plan (short-/ mid-/ long-term).
Spring 2020 (Tentative Schedule)
Develop an advising manual.
Develop standardized advising materials.
Draft policy to establish the Academic Advising Council as a University standing committee.
Enhance resources on advising website.
Review and make changes to the existing comprehensive advising communication plan.
Fall 2020 (Tentative Schedule)
Implement first phase of advising enhancements.
Assess short-term advising outcomes.
Provide professional development to advisors related to the advising manual and materials.
Prepare for next phase of advising enhancements.
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Appendix A
Responsibilities
Academic Advising Council (AAC)
The Provost Office will oversee the AAC. The AAC, a representative body of advising areas, will serve as the governing and policy body for
academic advising focusing on the following topics:
Develop uniform advising policies and procedures
Establish standards and ensure consistent delivery of advising
Coordinate and disseminate information across advising areas
Solicit feedback on concerns for policy and implementation amongst the constituents
Detail expectations for advising practices (e.g., development and oversight of revisions of the Advising Handbook)
Coordinate professional development opportunities for advisors
Establish and implement a comprehensive assessment plan
We recommend the council be made up of the following members (all voting):
Provost or designee (1)
Associate Dean for Student Development and Achievement (1)
Registrar or designee (1)
College advising directors (4)
Transfer Director (1)
Exploratory Advising Director (1)
DHC Advisor (1)
Advising Staff (2 appointed by UAAC)
Faculty Advisors (2 appointed by the senate)
Student Representative (1 appointed by ASCWU)
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First Year and Exploratory Advising
Exploratory advising will continue to provide essential advising support for incoming first year and continuing students who are exploring their
academic major options. Exploratory advising is mandatory for all undecided students. Advisors in this area guide informed decision making and
utilize student development theories and proactive advising strategies to support students’ educational goals and successful transition to the
university and exploration of potential major pathways.
Transfer Center and University Centers
Onboarding for prospective and admitted transfer students will be supported by the Transfer Center and University Centers. The role of the
Transfer Center will be to focus on helping the university create clear pathways to CWU majors, provide tailored transfer student nonacademic
counseling prior to enrollment, and assist with transfer orientation. The University Center staff advisors will continue to offer ongoing advising
support to students while at CWU, support for prospective students, and connection to faculty advisors.
Colleges
Each college will have an advising office where the director and support staff are located. The director will oversee the implementation of AAC-
approved advising standards, ensuring student-centered processes are consistent and equitable, and engage in activities that create strong
communication channels across key stakeholder groups and strong connection to department faculty. Directors will offer clear lines of
responsibility; supervision of personnel; specialization and expertise; and offer consistent and ongoing professional development for advisors.
College Deans will be responsible for determining the physical location of college advisors (i.e., co-located with the director or near the academic
programs they support) to best support students in their college.
Undergraduate Academic Advising Collaborative (UAAC)
The UAAC will continue to be overseen by the Associate Dean for Student Development and Achievement with the primary function as follows:
Purposeful leadership to offer peer-led professional development
o Focus on the “shoulds” for CAS standards
o Aspirational group
Facilitate cross-campus connections and collaboration
Disseminate information in a clear and timely manner
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Appendix B
Caseload and Faculty Workload Recommendations
Exploratory Advising Major/Minor Advising
Option #1: Staff Only Option #2: Faculty/ Staff
Option #3: Faculty Only
Max Caseload for Staff Advisor
280 350 580** ----
Faculty WLU Recommendation*
---- ---- 1 WLU: 20 majors 1 WLU: 40 minors
1 WLU: 8 majors 1 WLU: 40 minors
* Recommendation will be shared with the United Faculty of Central for potential bargaining in the next CBA.
** Based on the assumption that generally staff advisors will perform about 60% and faculty perform 40% of the advising duties
Explanation:
All proposed caseloads are maximums, realizing that caseloads fluctuate throughout the year. The staff advisor caseloads are based on our
understanding of current and ideal caseloads (based on discussions with advisor directors and standards from national organizations), as well as
an understanding of what is realistic at this point in time. They assume that all advisors should engage in direct student contact approximately
60% of the time and need the remaining 40% of their time to complete tasks to indirectly support students (e.g., completing advising notes,
following up on early alerts, contacting students who aren’t registered, etc.), professional development activities, etc. They also assume that
exploratory advisors should spend a minimum of 3 hours per year supporting each advisee and major advisors should spend a minimum of 2 1/4
hours per year per advisee.
The recommendations for faculty compensation are based on staff caseloads, in an attempt to promote equity in workload. In other words, staff
major advisor caseloads were divided by 45 WLU to determine the number of advisees per WLU. The recommendations reflect our assumption
that minor advising takes approximately 1/5 the time of major advising, and that minor advising typically falls completely to faculty advisors,
even in the Option #2 faculty/staff major advising model.
These assumptions need to be reviewed by the campus and tested over time to ensure they result in equitable caseloads and compensation.
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Appendix C
Advisor Responsibilities
Advisor Responsibility
Before Deciding
on a Major After Acceptance to Major
Staff advisor
(Exploratory, DHC,
CAMP, STAR or
TRIO)
Option #1: Staff Advisors Option #2: Faculty and Staff
Advisors
Option #3:
Faculty Advisors
If student is in CAMP,
DHC, STAR, or TRIO
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Special Program
Advisor
Gen
era
l
Complete "Overview of Advising"
module (part of new faculty
orientation)
Completion of and/or maintenance of CWU advising
certification. Engage in ongoing
professional development and
assessment.
Available to students 12 months
dept.
representative
Provide advising to prospective and
incoming students. Attendance at
Wildcat Days and Orientation
Discussions regarding
academic/career goals and
opportunities
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Advisor Responsibility
Before Deciding
on a Major After Acceptance to Major
Staff advisor
(Exploratory, DHC,
CAMP, STAR or
TRIO)
Option #1: Staff Advisors Option #2: Faculty and Staff
Advisors
Option #3:
Faculty Advisors
If student is in CAMP,
DHC, STAR, or TRIO
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Special Program
Advisor
Aca
dem
ic
Offer expertise in academic field of
study
Academic planning related to major
degree requirements
as appropriate for
exploratory planning
in partnership
with other
faculty/staff
Guidance regarding course
substitutions within major
Guide electives for a desired
profession
Academic planning related to general
education requirements
in partnership
with other
faculty/staff
Academic planning related to
graduation/university requirements
in partnership
with other
faculty/staff
General Education petition
discussions
Review of transfer credits
Credit deficiency process for
transfer courses used in the major
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Advisor Responsibility
Before Deciding
on a Major After Acceptance to Major
Staff advisor
(Exploratory, DHC,
CAMP, STAR or
TRIO)
Option #1: Staff Advisors Option #2: Faculty and Staff
Advisors
Option #3:
Faculty Advisors
If student is in CAMP,
DHC, STAR, or TRIO
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Special Program
Advisor
Aca
dem
ic (
Co
nti
nu
ed)
Assistance with policies and processes (e.g. repeat approval form, SAP appeal, gen ed
petitions, suspension appeal)
Provide general information related to undergraduate
research, internships, professional
organizations, graduate and/or
professional school
in partnership
with other
faculty/staff
Connection to undergraduate research opportunities, internships, professional
organizations, graduate and
professional school
(DHC)
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Advisor Responsibility
Before Deciding
on a Major After Acceptance to Major
Staff advisor
(Exploratory, DHC,
CAMP, STAR or
TRIO)
Option #1: Staff Advisors Option #2: Faculty and Staff
Advisors
Option #3:
Faculty Advisors
If student is in CAMP,
DHC, STAR, or TRIO
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Staff
Faculty
Special Program
Advisor
Co-C
urr
icu
lar
En
ga
gem
ent
Outreach related activities (e.g.,
progress reports, non- registration
calling, academic early alert)
Connection to internal and
external resources (e.g.,
scholarships, counseling, tutoring)
Provide general information related to campus
clubs/organizations or other
community engagement opportunities
Minor advising: Course choices
within the minor, guide electives for
desired profession, course
substitutions within the minor,
academic planning related to minor
requirements
(DHC)
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Appendix D
Standards of Advising and Professional Development
Professional Development: All advisors will engage in professional development to ensure students receive consistent advising across programs.
Standards will be based on the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education and NACADA’s core competencies. These pillars
will include the following:
• Conceptual (provides context): History and role of advising; NACADA’s Core Values; salient theories; approaches; purpose and
outcomes
• Informational (provides substance): CAS Standards; CWU history, mission, values; CWU policies and procedures; CWU degrees and
other academic requirements; legal guidelines and ethics specific to advising; campus and community resources; information
technology (e.g., PeopleSoft advising center, advising notes, early alert, behaviors of concern)
• Relational (provides skills): personal advising philosophy; rapport building; communication and approaches that are inclusive and
respectful; promoting connections, problem solving, and decision-making skills; engaging in assessment and development among a
community of advising peers
Advisor Professional Development Overview:
• Advisor Professional Development (first three months):
Canvas modules (conceptual, information, and relational core competencies)
o Advising pillars, ethics, foundational theories, essential policies, regulations, procedures, and deadlines
College or Center specific
o Conducted by advising areas lead focusing on unique aspects and needs of college or center.
Two-day Seminar (*faculty advisors complete within one year)
o Hands-on and interactive application and discussion of topics touched on during Canvas modules
• Ongoing Advisor Professional Development to Earn “Master Advisor Certificate” (completed within 12 months):
Attend three advising-related events
Conduct at least 25 sessions completed with notes entered into MyCWU
Minimum of one observation and debrief session by a master advisor
Advising reflection