| Winter 2022 - ImPACt Newsletter
Welcome to the ImPACt newsletter which highlights the most notable happenings in the world of Academic Advising at Oakland University. On behalf of the Professional Advisers Council (PAC), thank you for taking a moment to read about the achievements of professional advisers and the impact they have made this semester across campus.
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| | 2021-2022 PAC Executive Board
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Advising Updates and Initiatives
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Annual Advising Award WinnersOutstanding Academic Adviser of the Year
Adam McChesney, Senior Academic Adviser in the School of Business Administration, has been named the 2022 Outstanding Academic Adviser of the Year.
New Academic Adviser of the YearDenica Holzworth, Academic Adviser and Events Coordinator in the School of Business Administration, has been named the 2022 New Academic Adviser of the Year.
Oakland University has recognized outstanding advisers each year since 2008. Honorees have also been recognized by other university departments and national colleagues for their dedication to academic advising and innovative programming aimed at student success. To learn more about the Outstanding Adviser of the Year award, including previous honorees, visit the advising web section.
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Outstanding Advisers
Adviser of the Month Recipients- Denica Holzworth, SBA - November 2021
- Allie Baker, BIS - December 2021
- Nancy Gursin, CAS - January 2022
- Laura Christensen Saims, SON - February 2022
- Jenna Przeslawski, HC - March 2022
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Excellence in Academic AdvisingThe Excellence in Academic Advising intiative continues to move forward with task forces working on implementation plans centered on three main themes: Organizational Structure, Training and Development, and Advising Assessment. We aspire to complete these plans in summer 2022 and submit them to university leadership for approval and budgetary consideration.
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Data Literacy Institute
Advising directors Roberta Rea, Michelle Southward, and Sara Webb successfully completed the 2021-2022 Data Literacy Institute provided by the Association of Institutional Research. The Data Literacy Institute was a 24-week program with 20 members of faculty and staff from across the Oakland University campus. The group participated in weekly online tutorials, discussion boards, live virtual lectures, and the experience culminated in group capstone projects. The goal of the institute is to build a data literate culture at Oakland University and improve participants' ability to read, analyze, share findings, and take action on student success data.
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Bachelor of Integrative StudiesName Change
Bachelor of Integrative Studies has been approved for a name change to Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies! This name change follows our international association (Association for Interdisciplinary Studies) and keeps our program title in line with other programs of the same name, but don't worry - you can still call us BIS!
Student and Alumni Mixer
On April 12, BIS alumni and current students came together for a virtual Student and Alumni Mixer. Students were able to connect with alumni in their field of interest and participate in a Q&A session. Alumni shared tips in their fields, insights for law school school and medical school, advice for completing graduate school applications, suggestions on landing internships, the benefits of a gap year, innovations of starting a business, and so much more! Students enjoyed connecting with alumni and hearing their stories.
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College of Arts and SciencesCAS Ambassadors
CAS Advising recently launched our CAS Ambassadors program. The CAS Ambassadors are a team of passionate students who support our College mission, provide service to students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members. These students gain leadership skills, network with the community, and get valuable experience. We are excited to have them on board promoting our College initiatives.
Pop-Up AdvisingWe were able to relaunch Pop-Up Advising this semester for the first time since before the start of the pandemic. Pop-Up Advising takes place in the Oakland Center and allows our advisers to answer quick questions and schedule appointments in a convenient location for students.
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First Year Advising CenterPeer Advising
Senior Academic Advisers Courtney McCarrey and Tessa Johnson completed NACADA's Creating Peer Advising Programs eTutorial in Winter 2022 to better support the First Year Advising Center's new Peer Advising assistants.
NACADA Consultants
On March 2nd and 3rd, the First Year Advising Center hosted two consultants from NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising. Mark Taylor and Chrissy Davis Jones met with over 60 OU faculty, staff, and students to conduct a program review of the FYAC. The review resulted in a 30-page report which details strengths, areas for improvement, and recommendations based on the Conditions of Excellence in Academic Advising. The FYAC team would like to thank our colleagues who participated in the review. We look forward to the continued improvement of our services and increasing opportunities for greater student success.
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School of Education and Human Services
HRD Student Association and Honor Society Reactivated
The Human Resource Development Student Association and Honor Society (HRD SAHS) has been inactive since the Fall 2020 semester when the COVID-19 pandemic impacted its leadership transition. As the only student organization geared toward our unique HRD program, this was a big void. With the substantial efforts of SEHS Advising intern, Jordyn Bailey, this organization has been successfully revitalized for the Fall 2022 school year! Jordyn put together an informational video on the organization, surveyed students on their interest/availability to participate, and ultimately led the first three meetings - successfully handing the reigns over to a full executive board at the last one. SEHS Advising is looking forward to having this important resource available to our students again!
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School of Engineering and Computer Science
New Advising Team Members
The SECS Undergraduate Advising Office has welcomed 3 new advising professionals to our staff during the Winter 2022 semester. Jenny Lee started with us in late December 2021 as a new academic adviser. Jenny was a past intern in our office and we are excited to have her back full time! Alexa Cotter started in March 2022. Alexa brings engineering recruitment experience and past experience working with adults with disabilities. Our third employee is Haleigh Lewis who has been interning with us this year and is now advising temporarily for Sarah Konrad while she is on maternity leave. Haleigh is primarily working with Sarah's caseload, but will also take on other projects through June. They are full of energy and passion working with our engineering and computer science undergraduate students! We are excited to have them as part of our team.
NACADA Regional Awards
Senior Academic Adviser Sarah Konrad received the Excellence in Advising - Advisor Primary Role Certificate of Merit in NACADA's Region 5! Congratulations, Sarah!
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Advancing Academic Advising
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School of Business Administration Publication in Academic Advising Today Advisers Jaclyn Keith and Tiffany LeDonne Smith's paper Academic Advising in a Virtual Environment: The Pros and Cons from an Advising and Student Perspective has been accepted for publication in the June edition of Academic Advising Today.
Book Feature Director Debbie Lengyel was interviewed about the importance of advising by best-selling author Kate Hickey. Hickey's book Have Fun, Be Safe, I Love You: And Everything Else I Want to Tell My Kids About College and Beyond, published in January 2022, includes quotes from Lengyel.
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School of Education and Human ServiceRegion 5 Conference Presentaton Director Roberta Rea will be presenting her conference session "Building trust while advising virtually" at the NACADA Region V Conference in May 2022. This session was awarded the "Best in Conference" session at last spring's Michigan Academic Advising Association Conference which earned her a spot at the regional conference
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School of Engineering and Computer ScienceMIACADA Executive Board Senior Academic Adviser Sarah Konrad is currently serving as a Member-at-Large as part of the Michigan Academic Advising Association (MIACADA) Executive Board.
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School of Business AdministrationUniversity Compensation Committee
SBA senior adviser Adam McChesney is serving on the re-established University Compensation Committee. This committee has only had one meeting so far, but has goals of demystifying the process of moving through quartiles for APs, and what factors go into determining APs positions within their respective bands.
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