Integrating Academic Advising with Frontline Student Services : A Sure Bet!

Andrea G. Harris, Senior Director Student Administrative Services Andrea.harris@pepperdine.edu Office of Student Information and Services Pepperdine University Malibu, CA Integrating Academic Advising with Frontline Student Services : A Sure Bet!

Higher education trends towards integration, but what about academic advising? Integration of all aspects of student administrative services Registration, Bursar (Student Accounts), Financial Aid Why have only several schools attempted to include academic advising in this integrated student services structure? Pepperdine University Malibu, CA

Academic AdvisingVS. He Who Shall Not Be Named Advising is academic and the administrative building is the Slytherin section helmed by evil Registrar Lord Voldemort DBA Evil Registrar

that the student, as a person of infinite dignity, is the heart of the educational enterprise. Pepperdine Universityaffirms

Major Advisor First-year Advisor G.E. Advisor Dean of Advisement

First-Year Advisor Major Advisor Dean of Advisement G.E. Advisor Voldemort/Registrar

Learn from those who have gone before us… from literature as well as in person We host several school teams every semester for a site visit and integration Q&A Form “steering committee” including appropriate stakeholders Engage executive support for vision Conduct preliminary focus groups of students to determine their views, expectations, and experience of advisement and student services The “Silent Phase”

Explicit executive buy-in, support and involvement Selling the problem vs. the solution Engage critical decision makers in the vision Engage community of practice in the development of idea Getting Started

Harness naïveté!!! Find people who don’t know it’s impossible!!! (Kawasaki, 1999) Ask WHY? “It’s the way we’ve always done it” is an unacceptable answer Honor the past while planning for the future Keep the student at the center of what we do Question Processes!

Office of Student Information & Services Frontline – OneStop Student Accounts University Registrar Records Academic Advising OSIS

Incoming first-year students will have at least 3 advisors: First-year Seminar Advisor Academic Advisor in the Academic Advising Center at OneStop Major Advisor Seaver College Academic Advising

Degree Audit Reports Class selection and registration Program changes and “what if” scenarios Daily options for walk-in advising 4-year, 2-year, and any year planning Graduation Audit One common e-mail box accessed by 8 staff members to increase response time to advising e-mail and calls Academic Services @ OneStop

Minimum of two advisors (faculty major and professional staff) The opportunity to establish a more meaningful relationship with her/his faculty advisor Increased walk-in advising options Faster turnaround time on phone and email advising requests. Easier, more streamlined access to the right people Our students are happy because we can guarantee the following:

1. Happy students = happy parents 2. Happy parents = fewer negative phone calls 3. Fewer negative phone calls = more time for staff to do productive work 4.More time = greater opportunity for meaningful interaction with students 5. More meaningful interaction = greater retention and increased graduation rate 6. Greater retention and increased grad rate = more, happy alumni 7. More, happy alumni = gee, we don’t know! Ask advancement! Happy Students With the World at Their Fingertips!

Faculty have the time and space to engage with their students without worrying about administrative issues! Centralized processes transfer/substitution of units incomplete grades academic notification medical/psychological withdrawals We will handle all FERPA issues so that faculty don’t have to worry! We’ll even talk to the few disgruntled parents we have! Even our faculty are happy! Happy faculty = Happy Pepperdine (and Andrea)

Retention Percentages

Our Retention Processes in Print

Stay committed Steering Committee must be thick-skinned Critical to have champions of the cause integrated in the community of practice Communicate vision clearly and work to keep it in sight at all times Embrace change Lessons learned

Re-think and re-engineer Make substantive changes that will help ensure success Focus on action rather than information collection Question everything!!! Keep asking “Why/Why not?” Lessons learned

Never underestimate the human factor (good or bad) Never underestimate the power of naysayers Communicate! Communicate! Use training as an opportunity for change and engage home offices in the process Use technology to enhance service rather than replace service providers Lessons learned

Start with us! If we can’t help you, we’ll find someone who can! OneStop

Andrea G. Harris, Senior Director Student Administrative Services Andrea.harris@pepperdine.edu Office of Student Information and Services Pepperdine University Malibu, CA Integrating Academic Advising with Student Administrative Services aka: Collaborating with the Academic Enemy

Integrating Academic Advising with Frontline Student Services : A Sure Bet!