2016 Winter Advising Forum

-- UCSC Advising: Oh, The Places We'll Go! --

March 11, 2016, at the Scotts Valley Hilton. 

Advance registration is required, and is closed at this time.

Schedule:

Session 1 Workshops (10:10 - 11:25 AM):

A.  Life of an International Student at UC Santa Cruz

UCSC's international population is growing and changing; let's make sure we are growing and changing in ways that will best support them!  The focus of this workshop will be to discuss case studies and best practices for advising international students.  A particular emphasis will be on introducing the new mentorship program as an additional resource for these students.  Join Adrienne Bergenfeld, Alicia Haley and Keri Toma from the International Education Office in this informative and participatory session!

• Presentation Materials

B.  Transforming the Experience of GLBT Students 

UCSC is changing to serve greater populations of students whose gender and/or sexuality poses unique personal and academic challenges. In this workshop, we will discuss ways for advisers to create a supportive space to engage in these challenges. Molly Segale, Undergraduate Adviser for Anthropology, will provide a general introduction to challenges faced by GLBT students on campus before guiding advisers to develop resources for supporting GLBT students in their respective campus units.

• Presentation Materials

C. Peer Advising: Best Practices & New Possibilities

Many UCSC advising offices use peer advisers to enhance their support and outreach to students. Led by Advising Programs Coordinator Sean Malone, this session aims to draw on the existing knowledge and collective wisdom of our advising community, as well as provide an overview of research and best practices with an eye for how we might expand and improve our peer advising programs. How is peer advising situated within student development theories? How can peer advising contribute significantly to advising learning outcomes?  How might we expand our vision and utilization of peer advising at UCSC? We will tackle these questions, and more. At the end of the session, participants will have an opportunity to share in small groups, so please come ready to learn and engage!

• Presentation Materials
• NACADA Peer Adviser Interview Techniques, Training, Activities
• NACADA Clearing House Peer Adviser Articles and Resources

Session 2 Workshops (1:30 - 2:45 PM):

A. The First Generation Low-Income Experience

Across the country, Educational Opportunity Programs are tasked with the challenge of serving the unique advising needs of nontraditional students. At UC Berkeley, the first generation, low-income, and underrepresented undergraduates that are considered EOP are offered comprehensive services that address multiple components of their identities as students. By applying an “Aspirational Academic Counseling Framework,” UC Berkeley EOP empowers students to achieve.  Join Julian Ledesma, Director of EOP at UC Berkeley and NACADA Region 9 Chair, at this session to learn about EOP at UC Berkeley, the “Aspirational Academic Counseling Framework,” and the way you might apply components of such a framework to best support the first generation students you advise.

• Presentation Materials

B. Strengthen Your Advising

Our students have wide ranging needs and our resources are finite. At times, meeting all of those needs can feel impossible.  Refresh yourself and your advising practice by tapping into your strengths. People who use their strengths on the job show higher levels of engagement and productivity. Identify which positive qualities come naturally to you and brainstorm ways to integrate them into your advising practice. Join Career Adviser Christina Hall in discovering a positive point of view that helps you see the natural assets within yourself and the students you work with.

• Presentation Materials
  • Quick Reference Card
  • Advising Strengths
  • Strengths Handout
  • All 34 Themes Full Descriptions

C. Assessment of Advising: Why? How?

We’ve heard a lot about assessment in higher education recently.  How do we apply the principles of assessment to academic advising, and why would we bother to do so?  A team from the advising community recently attended the National Academic Advising Association’s Assessment Institute.  Join three members of that team, Christina Navarro, Undergraduate Affairs Manager for Physical and Biological Sciences, Beth Thompson, Lead Academic Preceptor for Merrill College, and Monique Vairo, Undergraduate Advising Coordinator for the Baskin School of Engineering, as they share what they learned!  We’ll focus both on assessment at the campus-wide level as well as how to apply assessment principles and strategies in an individual advising office.

Session 3 Workshops (3:00 - 4:00 PM):

A.  Major Exploration and Declaration through the Students' Lens

Choosing a major and then declaring that major can often be a process for students of learning about oneself and learning about the institution. During this session, hear from a panel of students whose major exploration and declaration process was anything but straightforward. These students will share their experiences – the choices they made, the challenges they faced, and the evolution of their thoughts on their academic path. This session is an opportunity to hear the voices of our students and hopefully come away with ideas on how to better support them through the major exploration and declaration process. Academic advisers Kaitlin Jacobson from Cowell and Brenna Candelaria from Physical and Biological Sciences will serve as the moderators for this panel.

B.  Rotating Open Discussions

Every year at the forum, advisers note that they’d like to have more time to discuss their work with colleagues -- sharing best practices, brainstorming ideas, and networking with others.  This year we’ve built it into the program!  Enrich 
yourself by discussing three different topics with small groups of your colleagues over the course of an hour.  Fifteen minute topics will include: 

• Discussion with members of the Advising Task Force (facilitated by Stephanie Sawyer, History Program Coordinator, and Richard Hughey, VPDUE)
  • Discussion Materials
• Advising Collaborations (facilitated by Danielle Mello)
• Slug Support (facilitated by Erika Pappas and Mariah Lyons from Slug Support)
• SSC Campus -- our newest collaborative software (facilitated by Samara Foster from the Student Success Research Center)
  • Discussion Materials
• Having Difficult Conversations (facilitated by Angie Jimenez of the Registrar’s Office,  formerly academic adviser at Kresge College).

C. Restorative Justice at UCSC

UCSC is on the cutting edge of developing Restorative Justice practices in higher education. Our new program, which began in the Fall of 2015, brings together students, when harm or conflict has occurred, for a constructive, effective dialogue process. Vicki Duval, M.A., Program Coordinator, will describe what Restorative Justice is, both in philosophy and practice, how it serves students, and the many benefits of the process and outcome.  This service gives one more beneficial resource for advisers to refer students to for supporting their academic and social success.

• Presentation Materials

Many Thanks!

Many thanks to this year's planning committee!

Mary Barton, Division of Undergraduate Education

Brenna Candelaria, Physical and Biological Sciences

Chris Hanson, International Education Office

Kaitlin Jacobson, Cowell College

Angie Jimenez, Office of the Registrar

Sean Malone, Office of Campus Advising Coordination

Sheila Rodriguez, Career Center

Stacey Sketo-Rosener, Office of Campus Advising Coordination

And a very special thank you to the following, who donated prizes for our drawing!

Bay Tree Bookstore

UC Santa Cruz Arboretum

UC Santa Cruz Summer Session