Undergraduate Academic Advising...

ON THE HORIZON:

The Council on Academic advising (CAA) is currently discussing a proposed campus-wide review of advising goals and practices for 1st and 2nd year undergraduate students. The Council has created a subcommittee to develop (1) a focus/charge for the review and (2) a process for conducting the review.

At the moment, the focus of the review is expected to be primarily an exploration and articulation of overall “goals & principles of undergraduate advising. Other points of interest will include (a) actual advising practices on campus, (b) the nature of student/parent expectations for advising, and (c) the interconnectedness of undergraduate advising with other aspects of campus and student life.

CAA has not yet established a firm time line for the review. But the Council plans to have preparatory work -- a charge/mission statement and review process guidelines -- completed and adopted by the end of the spring 2008 term. The hope is that next year's CAA members will join the Council and serve with an expectation that the 08/09 work of CAA will focus heavily on the advising review. However, CAA does not expect the review to be its only work next year -- the Council will continue to serve its many other functions.

Anyone with questions or comments regarding this advising review can connect J. Edward Connery (student rep to CAA) at jeconnery@wisc.edu. I will be glad to relay any additional input received from fellow students.

OTHER NOTES FROM CAA:

The proposed review is the largest agenda item as of late. However, Council members have also discussed ideas about “early detection” methods for staff and faculty to identify students who may find themselves in academic difficulty – for a variety of reasons. This was not an action item, but members seemed genuinely interested in sharing best practices and hopefully helping students before "things get really hard." (Editorial Note: CAA is only one group of campus staff, but they seem to represent a great deal of good will and awareness of student needs on the part of advisors from all areas of campus.)

-ed connery (jeconnery@wisc.edu)