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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