Many institutions are not fully aware of the compliance expectations for their electronic and information technology (EIT) and often fail to meet accessibility requirements which can result in costly lawsuits and pesky OCR audits. EIT compliance is complex, yet manageable, and institutions have a duty to comply with the most recent OCR guidelines laid out in March 2014. To help your institution enhance compliance efforts within a reasonable timeframe, we interviewed an expert on disability compliance — L. Scott Lissner, ADA coordinator at The Ohio State University and past president of AHEAD, the Association on Higher Education and Disability. Why EIT Compliance Must Be a Priority This Year Lisa LaPoint: What are the common misperceptions about EIT compliance? Scott Lissner: There are four that are especially common. First, it is NOT just about classes.Discussions of EIT typically focus on web-based course delivery, etexts and virtual labs, but guidance and case law point to much more. A lot of other processes and documents must meet accessibility standards: As well as virtual tools of the workplace, such as: Developing standards will ensure access for students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and the general public who participate in your programs and activities. It is NOT […]
June 9, 2011. During a series of interviews with leaders in alumni relations earlier this year, Academic Impressions found that many alumni relations offices are struggling with their alumni boards or alumni association boards. While a working board can offer institutional leaders partners to aid in achieving institutional goals for engagement and giving, most boards are not filling this role. Among the common problems: Many boards remain too focused on specific tactics — such as reunion and homecoming Other boards have grown too large and unwieldy, preventing them from “getting down to business” Boards struggle to ensure that 100 percent of their members give to the institution and that their members model supportive relationships with administration To learn more about the characteristics of an effective “working board,” we turned to Gary Olsen, associate vice president of alumni relations and executive director of the alumni association at Villanova University, and Christine Tempesta, director of strategic initiatives with the MIT Alumni Association. Olsen and Tempesta shared their advice on the qualities to look for in board members and managing the board’s scope of responsibilities. Who’s on the Working Board? Olsen and Tempesta suggest these criteria for selecting board members who will be well-positioned to […]
Through a series of surveys and interviews with advising directors across North America, Academic Impressions has identified a number of frequently missed opportunities that prevent institutions from maximizing the effectiveness of academic advising to improve student retention and academic success. The following are among the most significant: Developmental Advising: Empowering the Student In developmental advising, the student is given the resources to self-audit progress toward the degree, or is sent a degree audit by the advisor prior to meeting. Then, the student’s time with the advisor is spent defining academic and career goals and problem-solving to address obstacles that are likely to arise on the way to meet those goals — rather than going over the course catalog. The strength of developmental advising is that it empowers the student to take ownership of their own goals and progress, and partners them with a professional who can help them plan ahead proactively. EMPOWERING STUDENTS TO SELF-AUDIT THEIR PROGRESSRead our member exclusive report on early alert programs to review recommendations for empowering your students to self-audit their progress and, if appropriate, self-identify when they are academically at risk. For this article, we interviewed two of the architects of Arkansas State University’s forward-thinking approach […]
Karen Thurmond coordinates the day-to-day operations of the general education program (core curriculum), degree audit system (DegreeWorks), and an 24/7 system for academic advising appointments (AppointmentPlus) at the University of Memphis. She has written extensively for NACADA, and recently completed work with a team to automate the graduation process at The University of Memphis. Congratulations! You just hired a new academic advisor! Whether your new advisor has just graduated from a master’s degree with a specialization in academic advising, or is making a transition from another area of higher education, is on a college campus for the first time, or is a faculty member taking on new academic advising responsibilities, they have a lot to learn. Academic advising is a wide interdisciplinary activity that will challenge them personally, professionally, academically, emotionally, and physically. How will you prepare them for this challenge? You should be waiting for your new advisor on the first day with an agenda for their development into a quality academic advisor. This agenda will include the details the advisor needs to know to answer student questions and assist students with making and meeting goals, an understanding of what quality academic advising is and how it impacts student […]
Many educational institutions benefit from large matching or challenge gifts (not to be confused with corporate matching gift programs). A donor makes a gift or pledge with the expectation that the advancement shop will raise the same amount of funds from other donors. For example, a donor may pledge $50M to a new building project if the development staff can raise an additional $50M from other donors. These are exciting opportunities because they show your biggest donors that you care about growing the impact of their giving, but you also know they require a lot of hard work and careful management, often on a tight timeline. You probably have more questions than answers on how to manage these campaigns. Join us online to learn how to show your biggest donors that you care about growing the impact of their giving. You will hear from two experts who can answer your questions and provide best practices on how to successfully approach match and challenge gift campaigns. In this training, you’ll learn how to: Secure and cultivate donors who wish to provide a challenge gift as well as matching gifts. Structure a matching gift campaign that meets the development goals for both […]
The 2020 Title IX federal regulations require live hearings to include a cross-examination of both parties by the other party’s Advisor. This revised process brings certain challenges. First, cross-examination can feel overwhelming, and even traumatizing to survivors of sexual assault who must recount and relive their trauma in front of others. Second, the process can feel debilitating to both parties, as their credibility and character appear under attack. Third, cross-examination can produce anxiety in the Advisor, who may struggle to navigate such emotionally charged conversations. Mismanaging cross-examination and witness preparation or lacking the tools to assist participants through the revised process can compound an already stressful situation. Join us for this webcast to learn how you, as an Advisor or Hearing Panelist, can have a more positive impact on the cross-examination by preparing both parties to endure the process. During this training, you’ll acquire a toolkit of simple yet profound grounding and communication strategies that you can use to engage your witnesses and make them feel as safe and comfortable as possible throughout the process. No two witnesses are the same and as such, your approach to cross-examination cannot be one-size-fits-all. Our expert will give you the toolkit you need […]
Dr. Michelle Payne serves as Vice Provost for Academic Leadership and Faculty Affairs at Boise State University. As Vice Provost she is responsible for coordinating programs and services in Academic Affairs that support the career development of faculty and the growth of effective academic leaders. She works with partners across Boise State and Idaho to provide leadership development programs for Academic Affairs; support faculty shared governance processes and policies; facilitate healthy department cultures; manage faculty personnel processes; and contribute to Boise State’s strategic goal to foster thriving communities. Dr. Payne facilitates Boise State’s biweekly New Academic Leaders Program, manages programming for regular meetings of the Academic Leadership Council (department chairs, deans, and associate deans), and is a member of the planning team for the inaugural Idaho Academic Leadership Academy, which is funded by the Idaho State Board of Education. Dr. Payne is a Professor of Writing Studies and has a Ph.D. in English, Composition, and Literature from the University of New Hampshire, an M.A. in Composition and Rhetoric from Florida State University, and a B.A. in English Literature, with a minor in Creative Writing, from Miami University in Ohio. Prior to serving as Vice Provost, Dr. Payne served as chair […]
Many application processes do not assess for persistence and grit, yet these qualities are often a better predictor of success than academic ability. Traditional admissions processes that focus solely on academics put some students at a disadvantage – especially first-generation or low-income students. Incorporating the right questions into your application processes will help you better predict success for students who might not meet traditional requirements. Join us online to learn how to enhance your own admissions processes. This webcast will provide strategies and tools to help you assess non-cognitive variables by rethinking: The questions you ask in applications How you phrase essay prompts The reviewal process of extra-curricular activities and recommendations
Campuses continue to struggle with coordinating and solving campus-wide retention and enrollment challenges. Yet, the University of Tennessee used a problem-solving approach to pull together key partners to address an enrollment challenge. This approach worked so well that they have continued to meet to solve enrollment and retention challenges across campus, such as: Understanding why students leave Increasing low-income student success Balancing enrollment targets with financial goals. Join us to explore an alternative approach to solving enrollment and retention challenges. Using a case-study framework, this event will walk you through several different enrollment and retention challenges to demonstrate how your campus can make a case for rethinking key collaborations, success goals, and decision-making.
Funding for higher education ebbs and flows based on government support and tuition revenue. When the dollars flow, we have the tendency to spread our wings. New capital infrastructure adds valuable square feet that are filled quickly, whether they are needed or not. These periods of space affluence are generally short but they favor a high degree of space and timetabling flexibility for faculty. In some cases, this flexibility lends value to teaching and learning but in many others, it is simply a case of hoarding, serving wants more than needs. So, what is space flexibility? Space flexibility is more than just adding square feet to a school’s footprint. Flexibility can include scheduling two spaces at once to be able to move fluidly between two types of lessons (such as lab and lecture). It can include a space that is designed for both classroom lecture and student project work. It can also involve flexibility in faculty schedules, such as not teaching before 10:30 am or not teaching on Friday afternoons. Any behavior that contributes to lower room or seat utilization rate can be attributed to space flexibility. Space flexibility can provide value but it comes at a cost that few […]
