Financial Advisors Pocket Guide

							Advisor Training for Faculty

              Marsha Miller
   NACADA Assistant Director, Resources & Services
                 miller@ksu.edu



          With thanks to Kathy Stockwell
           Fox Valley Technical College
―Perhaps the most important
 need in academic advising
 today is effective training.‖
                      Jeffrey L. McClellan
                  Content Components for
                Advisor Training: Revisited
Topics you would like to see addressed in
     advisor training on your campus
―Faculty advisor training or
development should grow out of the
expectations of a particular
institution and be unique to that
campus. The program should be based
on the needs of faculty. The most
well-structured training program
possible will still not be successful if
it does not provide the information or
skills that advisors need to do their
job well.‖
                       Faye Vowell and Phillip Farren
                       in Faculty Advising Examined
Start with support
  from the top!
  Identifying Training Needs

New Faculty Members
Faculty Members in Different
 Disciplines
Mid-Career Faculty Members
Experienced Faculty Members


             ASK!!!
             Training Formats
   One or Two Full Day      Staff Development Day
   Several One Hour         Webinars
   Online                   Panel Discussions
   Conference/Seminar       Advising listserve or
    Attendance                chat room
                             Advising Newsletter
                             Monographs, journals,
                              handbooks
                             Case Studies
                             Advising Handbook
                             Mentoring
       Training Components
• Training must be connected to
  – Mission for faculty advising
  – Goals for faculty advising
  – Advisor outcomes for faculty advising
  – Student learning outcomes for faculty
    advising
  – Resources available to faculty advisors
What to Include in Training

        Three components of quality advising
              Informational
                  What advisors need to know; includes
                   internal and external environment,
                   student needs, & advisor self knowledge.

              Relational
                  The skills advisors need to possess
                   in order to do their jobs effectively

              Conceptual
                  What advisors must understand
          Informational
―The substantive information that
academic advisors need to know
falls into four groups —
– the internal environment
– the external environment
– student needs
– advisor self-knowledge.‖
                                       L.C. Higginson
            A Framework for Training Program Content
 Higginson believes advisor training
 must include the following topics:

• Students within the institution
  – Student Characteristics
    •   Gender and racial composition
    •   Test scores
    •   Number of students on financial aid
    •   Attrition and retention patterns
  – Educational and personal needs
  – Characteristics of special populations
    • Adult learners, student athletes, honors
      students, international students, racial and
      ethnic minorities, part-times students, etc.
• Role of advising within the institution
  – Importance of advising for students and
    the college
  – Institution‘s definition of advising
  – Advisor and advisee responsibilities
• The internal environment
  –   Academic integrity
  –   On-line resources
  –   Policies and procedures
  –   Referral services
  –   Transfer options
  –   Etc.
• External environment
  – Knowledge of the higher education
    community, the local communities, and the
    job market—helps advisors link education
    with the ―real world‖ the students will be
    entering
    •   Service learning experiences
    •   Job outlook projections
    •   Professional associations
    •   Networking opportunities
    •   Continuing education
• Student needs
  –   Problem solving
  –   Decision making
  –   Evaluation of options
  –   Connection between major and career
  –   Test preparation students
  –   Time management
  –   Special population issues
• Advisor self-knowledge
  – What do I as an advisor bring to the
    advising setting?
    • Attitudes
    • Beliefs
    • Knowledge
          Topics to Include
 Introduction to advising roles and tasks
 Skills and techniques
 Student development
 Advising as teaching
 Using resources and making referrals
 Legal and ethical issues
 Relational skills
 Advising special populations
 Advising delivery strategies
 Important Topics for Faculty
Advising as teaching
Emphasize that this is a learning
 experience for advisees
  o establish student learning outcomes for
    advising
  o use an advising syllabus
Legal and ethical issues
  o FERPA
  o Due process
Resources and referrals
       Training Techniques
Presentation
Large group and small group discussion
Case studies
Role playing
Intranet
       Communication (Relational)
      A good advisor development program
       stresses communication skills, the
         essence of effective advising.
•   Listening
•   Paraphrasing
•   Questioning
•   Supportive/encouragement
    strategies
―Be concise in your writing
and talking, especially when
giving instructions to
others.‖

                      Epictetus, 50-120
                 Greek stoic philosopher
―Think like a wise man, but
communicate in the language
of people.‖

           William Butler Yeats, 1865-1939
               Relational
Conversations that are informational
  institutional policies and procedures
  graduation requirements
  important dates and deadlines
  programs of study

                     Drake, Hemwall & Stockwell (2009)
                     Faculty Advising Pocket Guide
               Relational
Conversations about the student
  core values
  aptitudes/interests
  strengths
  areas for improvement (study skills, time
   management, etc.)
  involvement in extracurricular activities
                    Drake, Hemwall & Stockwell (2009)
                    Faculty Advising Pocket Guide
                   Relational
Conversations that are about the future—goal
  setting and posing questions for reflection

   What do you want your future to be (career and
    personal life)?
   What steps do you need to take to make this future
    a reality?
   How are these steps related to the academic goals of
    our institution?
   How are you changing as a result of your education?

                       Drake, Hemwall & Stockwell (2009)
                       Faculty Advising Pocket Guide
                  Relational
Questions fall into three categories

 Involvement
  • Draw students into the conversation: Why are you in
    college?
 Clarifying
  • Follow-up questions to find out more
 Continuing
  • Questions that will help student expand on a point
                        Drake, Hemwall & Stockwell (2009)
                        Faculty Advising Pocket Guide
―The most important thing in
communication is hearing
what isn‘t said.‖

                       Peter F. Drucker
              American management guru
―Treat people as if they were
 what they should be, and you
 help them become what they
 are capable of becoming.‖
                     Johann von Goethe
         Relational


   Decision-making skills
   Rapport building
   Interview skills
   Referral skills
   One-on-One communication skills
              Conceptual
Definition of advising
Relationship between advising and
 student retention
Rights and responsibilities of both advisor
 and advisee
Role of advising in student development
Student expectations of the advising
 relationship
                Resources
       Scenes for Learning and Reflection:
An Academic Advising Professional Development DVD

                   DVD scenes:
                   Scene 1: Adult learner returning to college
                   Scene 2: Lack of progress
                   Scene 3: Upset transfer student
                   Scene 4: Advisor error
                   Scene 5: First-generation student
                   Scene 6: Student complaint
                   Scene 7: Student with personal issues
                   Scene 8: Advising a student athlete
                   Scene 9: Faculty advisor & FERPA privacy issues
                   Scene 10: Proactive parenting
    Initial Training is Complete—
             Now What?
• Lunch ‗n Learns/Brown Bag lunches
• Newsletters
• Web page
• Book clubs
• Weekly advising tips posted on
  electronic bulletin board
• 1-2 hour workshops during staff
  development days
 Initial Training is Complete—
          Now What?
• ―Refresher‖ training sessions for
  ―seasoned‖ advisors
• State, regional, and national
  conferences
• Webcasts
• NACADA resources
     Evaluating the Program
Should be considered at the beginning
 of the planning process
Should be related to goals of the
 training program
Can focus on
  o a single session
  o a single activity
  o the entire experience
  o participant satisfaction
  o what participants learned
        Recognition and Reward

   Making advising important
 Support from administration
 Part of tenure and promotion
 Use both intrinsic and
  extrinsic motivators
 Rewards that work
          2008 Survey Results
Rewards & recognition important to faculty
 Professional support (NACADA)
 Promotion & tenure
 Merit
 Cash award
 Secretarial support
 Thank you letter/certificate
 Awards reception
 Preferential parking
 Plaque
             Drake, 2008 NACADA survey
             Academic Advising: A comprehensive handbook (2008)