Category: Student Affairs

Implementing Best Practices: CSN Transitions to a Shared-Split Model of Advising

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September 6, 2013

10:42 am

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Student Affairs, Uncategorized

In June of this year, CSN’s academic Counseling unit experienced extensive re-structuring, as did the Academic Coachingformer Retention operation which no longer goes by that name. Former advisors and retention specialists cross-trained over the summer and became Advisors/Success Coaches operating under the Advising and Coaching Services Department umbrella. Also notable is the fact that faculty counselors moved to the academic schools in the Division of Academic Affairs.
Advisor/Success Coaches assist first-time college students and students without a declared major in the selection of appropriate coursework, schedule building, and choosing of a suitable academic program based on skills and interests. They also reach out to students referred by the Faculty Early Alert System to help them assess academic strengths and limitations, learn academic success strategies, explore careers, navigate the educational system, access campus and community resources, and connect to campus life. Advisors/Success Coaches help students start on strong, organized, and better prepared to reach their academic goal. From that point forward, the student will meet with the faculty Counselor assigned to the academic school containing his/her major.
The core principles in this shared-split model of developmental advising include: 1) Early engagement of students; 2) Strong collaboration between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs as students confirm or declare a major and transition to a faculty counselor; and 3) Front-loading of critical academic and career information with tailored support services for new to college and undeclared students. Under the new model, all new students who come in contact with the Advising and Coaching Services Department – either from visiting the First Steps Desk for service assessment, meeting one-on-one with an Advisor/Success Coach, or from participating in orientation and/or an advising workshop – receive a Welcome Packet containing CSN’s:

• 15-step Intake Process for new students
• Placement test review and testing procedures information
• Orientation & Advising Workshop schedule
• Degree listing by year
• FAFSA application Roadmap
• MyCSN User Guide
• Math Course Sequence with Course Fundamentals
• English & ESL Course Sequences
• Career Exploration assessment and appointment directions
• Top Habits of a Successful Student
• 4-page Resources for Student Success
• The name and contact information for the Counselor(s) in the student’s academic school based on declared major.

In conclusion, CSN’s new operational model of advising incorporates steps from intake to goal completion, including practices and activities shared by Advisors/Success Coaches and Counselors that impact the student from application through degree completion

by Laura Latimer, Assistant Vice-President of Community Engagement Services

Announcing the New Assistant Vice President for College Access

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February 19, 2013

10:00 pm

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Financial Aid, Student Affairs

Honious_Brad_picCSN welcomes its new Assistant Vice President, College Access Services, Mr. Bradley Honious.  He is an experienced financial aid administrator, an innovator in developing effective delivery services, and a change agent in transforming the student experience.   His experience includes service as Associate VP of Enrollment Management for Onondaga Community College; Managing Director of Financial Aid and Veteran’s Affairs for Valencia College District; Director of Student Financial Assistance for Gateway Community College, part of the Maricopa Community College System; Acting District Director of Student Affairs for the Maricopa Community College District; and, Program Coordinator, Financial Aid Information Services and Counseling, Arizona State University. AVP Honious was selected after a national search conducted by Cizek Associated, Inc.

AVP Honious has two major areas of responsibility: the Office of Student Financial Services, the Office of Veterans’ Affairs.  These major operations are critical in providing access to higher education and in shaping the student experience.  The Office of Student Financial Services disbursed approximately $90 million (grants, loans, scholarships, and student employment) to 21,000 students.  The Office of Student Financial Services administers over 150 programs with a staff of 27.  During 2011-2012, the Office of Veterans’ Affairs serves approximately 1800 veterans per semester providing enrollment, financial assistance, orientation, and support services information.

Mr. Honious holds the Master of Education from Arizona State University (2001), the B.A degree (Political Science) from Northeastern State University, a Graduate Certificate (Enrollment Management) from the University of Florida, and a Graduate Certificate (Institutional Research) from Arizona State University.  Most importantly, he is a Triton Community College graduate (1995).

Mr. Honious has participated in and served in leadership roles in many professional organizations.  The depth of his involvement in these organizations is extensive and impressive.  In addition to the recognition of peers, he has received numerous awards and honors.

Milestone for the College of Southern Nevada Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa

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February 19, 2013

10:52 am

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Student Affairs

Phi Theta Kappa Officers
Phi Theta Kappa Officers

The 2012-2013 school year marks a milestone for CSN’s chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. For the first time ever, CSN students are serving in leadership positions at all three levels in the international honor society. Locally, we have five officers running CSN’s chapter, Alpha Xi Beta. The officers host monthly member meetings, orientations, and induction ceremonies amongst other responsibilities. At the regional level, CSN student Christopher Marshall is serving as the Vice President of the Nevada District. His job is to represent the five chapters in the state of Nevada. Finally, CSN student Gail San Diego was elected International Vice President of Division IV at the international convention held in Nashville, TN. In her position, she represents the 286 chapters that comprise the western region of the United States as well as Alberta, Canada, Guam, the Republic of Palau, American Samoa, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia. Gail ran against 5 other students and delivered a campaign speech in front of an audience of over 4,000 Phi Theta Kappans. Congratulations to all of our CSN Phi Theta Kappa officers.

Message from Dr. Martinez, Vice President for Student Affairs

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February 19, 2013

10:10 am

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Office of the VP for Student Affairs, Student Affairs

Student Affairs is changing with a renewed commitment to improving the student experience, providing engaging opportunities for student development, and for collaborating with Academic Affairs in developing an even more challenging and supportive learning environment.  Student Affairs is reorganizing and one of the first steps forward is the promotion of the following individuals to Assistant Vice Presidents:

 Stephanie HillStephanie Hill has assumed her role as Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement.  Her duties include supervision of personnel, operations, resources, budgetary oversight, planning, programmatic implementation, and outcome evaluation over the following major areas: CSN Central, CSN Serves,  Intramurals, CSN Call Center, Sports Center, Student Government, Student Life, and Commencement.  Her responsibilities include: Leading collaborative efforts with academic and student affairs to provide appropriate service delivery and promote understanding of how personal and social development, institutional practices, and academic processes affect student success; Providing leadership to the development of initiatives for promoting the development of a student-centered environment which supports the personal, social, and academic development of all students;  Providing leadership to the development of initiatives which support the development of a college success culture; Helps to educate the campus community on trends related to Student Affairs; and, Leads in the development of Customer Service Training.  The AVP serves as the leader in the development, implementation, and evaluation of an infrastructure designed to engage students in the successful pursuit of higher education.  In addition, she serves as Student Conduct Officer for all disciplinary and academic integrity cases adjudicated on the Henderson and Online campuses.

Ms. Hill began her service at CSN in 1999.  She holds the Associate of Arts degree from CCSN (2000), the Masters in Public Administration degree from UNLV (2007), and is currently pursuing the Doctorate in Education (Organizational Leadership) from NOVA Southeastern University.

Laura Latimer-Professioanl Photo1Laura Latimer has assumed her role as Assistant Vice President for Community Engagement.  Her duties include supervision of personnel, operations, resources, budgetary oversight, strategic planning, programmatic implementation, and outcome evaluation over the following major areas: Admissions, Alumni Services, Gear Up, Student Recruitment, Retention, Orientation Services, Project Graduation, TRiO Student Support Services, Learn and Earn, CSN College Connection, CSN Ambassadors, Success Coaches, and Transfer Centers.  Her responsibilities include: Leading collaborative efforts with  academic and student affairs to provide appropriate service delivery and promote understanding of how personal and social development, institutional practices, and academic processes affect student success; Developing initiatives and strategies for promoting the development of a student-centered environment which supports the personal, social, and academic development of all students;  Providing leadership to the development of community-based initiatives which support the development of a college-going/ college success community culture;  and, serving as the leader in the development, implementation, and evaluation of an infrastructure designed to engage the internal and external communities in supporting students in their pursuit of higher education.   In addition, she serves as Student Conduct Officer for all disciplinary and academic integrity cases adjudicated on the Cheyenne campus.

Ms. Latimer first came to CSN in 2001 from UNLV to assume the Director, Millennium Services. She holds the Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology from the University of Kentucky (1986) and the Masters of Arts in Education from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, Virginia (1989).  She completed the Leadership Academy, Clark County & City of Las Vegas (2003) and the Advanced Leadership Academy, College Of Southern Nevada (2011).                                                                   

Gruner_photo (1047x1440)Dr. Bradley Gruner has assumed his role as Assistant Vice President for Student Services.  His duties include supervision of personnel, operations, resources, budgetary oversight, strategic planning, programmatic implementation, and outcome evaluation over the following major areas: Counseling and Psychological Services, Career & Re-Entry, the Disability Resource Center, the International Center, Ombudsman, and Testing.  He is responsible for: Providing leadership and supervision to services designed to support students in the learning environment, the pursuit of higher education, and hence enhance student success.  His duties include: Leading collaborative efforts with academic and student affairs to provide appropriate service delivery of student support services; Promoting the understanding of how personal and social development, institutional practices, and academic processes affect student success; and, Developing initiatives and strategies for promoting the development of a student-centered environment which supports the personal, social, and academic development of all students.  In this role, he will develop staffing recommendations, division specific policies, and determine type of professional development needed for the emerging structure to be effective.  Additional responsibility includes service as Student Conduct Officer for all disciplinary and academic integrity cases adjudicated on the Charleston campus.

Dr. Gruner began his experience with CSN in 2005 as a Clinical Psychologist with  Counseling and Psychological Service.  He is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist in the State of Nevada, holds the Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Marist College (1991), the Master of Arts degree from Marist College in Counseling / Community Psychology (1992) and the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the University of Denver (2001).  Dr. Gruner completed a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Pediatric Neuropsychology at the Neurodevelopmental Center, North Shore Medical Center/North Shore Children’s Hospital in MA (2001-2002).

Archive Spring 2012 Student Affairs Newsletter

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February 20, 2012

10:03 am

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Student Affairs

Growing Pains by Dr. Brad Gruner

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February 16, 2012

9:06 pm

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Student Affairs

Growing Pains

Growing pains are sharp, throbbing, intermittent pains that affect 25-40% of people during their developmental years.  These pains often occur in the legs.  Similarly, in Student Affairs, we are in a developmental period and are experiencing sharp, throbbing and intermittent pains.  Our pains may sometimes occur in the neck or in the area just above the legs.

When we expect that growth and development should be smooth, easy and trouble-free, we set ourselves up for very painful growing pains.  Negative emotional responses like frustration, anger and resentment are born from unmet unrealistic expectations.  More realistic expectations, those which anticipate some intermittent pain and plan to cope with it, typically lead to more successful growth and change.

Realistic expectations for Student Affairs can include the following:

  • MyCSN will get better and better.  Like a new baseball or softball glove, it started out stiff and difficult to use, but we are “breaking it in” with every problem solved and training attended.
  • New MyCSN features are coming online.  Recently, the Counseling department had their module turned on.  DRC is on the way.
  • We have “done more with less.”  A lot of it worked, some of it did not.  Having learned this, we are now better informed to do what we have to do.
  • Better communication takes effort and innovation.  When the phone lines overloaded, SFS staff adopted a chat program to communicate quickly and efficiently.  Counseling, SFS, the Office of the Registrar and the campus deans kept each other informed about urgent issues through email notifications.  KC Brekken has helped many Student Affairs departments to better communicate with students via social media.  Continuing in these efforts and innovations, we will soon have an Intranet that will add a new dimension to inter and intradepartmental communication.
  • Customer service is getting better.  Associate Dean Stephanie Hill continues to facilitate training for our employees, including our student employees.

It is realistic to appreciate that we are not done improving yet…and to beware of any department or employee who says they are!  We do most of what we do quite well and the proof of that is in our results:  our Division got over 40,000 students successfully enrolled!  Think about your role in that accomplishment.  What did you do very well?  What was “good enough?”  What could be improved?  Are there processes in your area that create bottlenecks or barriers for students?  Think about the common frustrations that are communicated to you and what can be done about them.  Please, pass these thoughts on to your supervisors, managers, directors and deans.

Growing pains can be treated with stretching and exercising.  Acknowledge the successes of your staff and co-workers, growing pains can be treated with massage.  And don’t forget, a lot of times growing pains are gone the next morning.

Expanding, Redefining, & Strengthening Student Success at CSN

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February 16, 2012

9:01 pm

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Student Affairs

Expanding, Redefining, & Strengthening Student Success at CSN

by Laura E. Latimer, Interim Dean of Student Affairs, Cheyenne Campus and

 

More than ever, both Student Affairs and Academic Affairs are vested in partnering to promote student success, graduation, and program completion at CSN. Both Divisions are collaborating to make sure:

  • Existing student resources are effectively utilized and coordinated
  • New resources fill gaps in existing services; and
  • Students connect to resources that meet their individual needs

 

The reinforced collaboration between Student and Academic Affairs gathers momentum in efforts to meet the goals set forth by President Obama’s Complete College America agenda of increasing the number of young college graduates to 60% by the year 2020. This means that CSN will have to add 181 students to each graduating class between 2011 and 2020.  In percentages, it signifies increasing CSN’s graduation rate by almost 19% in 9 years. Fortunately, CSN is off to a great start; not only did CSN meet its 2011 goal of graduating 2,217 students; it surpassed that year’s goal by 19%, graduating 2,271 students.

 

While student completion goals serve as the umbrella for student achievement at the institution, the following projects currently underway at CSN are integral to the success of CSN students:

 

 

–          General Education Course Review and 60/120 Credit Limit for transferrable degrees

–          A multimedia Online Orientation with built-in assessments and compliance-tracking features

–          Assignment of Counselor/Advisor Liaisons to the Division of Academic Affairs to further an advising curriculum centered on excellence and exploration of degrees and occupations

–          College Access Challenge Grants (CACG), one linking secondary students to postsecondary Career and Technical Education pathways and a second providing Accelerated Degree Completion pilots in both Business and Education

–          Curricular Changes in Developmental Math and English coursework

–          Don’t Wait Graduate for CSN stop-outs and drop-outs to reconnect with CSN and complete their degrees

–          Non Traditional No More for local firefighters with previously earned college credits but have not earned a degree

–          Project Graduate reaching out to students with 45 or more transferable credits to get them on track to graduate

–          PeopleSoft granting students access to personal, academic and financial information, as well as educational plans to help them monitor their own progress

–          Revised Admissions requirements promoting high school graduation and GED completion to ensure increase college preparedness

–          Achieving the Dream (ATD) application from CSN to join dozens of other institutions in the country working with experts to assess, interpret and use the correct institutional data linked to direct interventions reducing time to completion while simultaneously increasing the number of disadvantaged students who graduate.

 

Finally, involvement in Achieving the Dream could help CSN accurately track and capture other measures of student successbesides the standard graduation rate.  Why is it important to expand the current scope of what is traditionally considered student success? Because graduation rates for federal reporting-purposes are solely based on the achievement of full-time degree-seeking, first-time college attending students who graduate from two-year schools in three and a half years.  This antiquated measure, developed in the early 1980’s for primarily residential schools, certainly does not do justice to community colleges. To put it in perspective, only 11% to 12% of CSN’s entering class calculates into the federal government’s standard graduation rate in any given reporting period.  This very narrow definition of success has prompted CSN, along with hundreds of other community colleges in the nation, to consider the following measures as additional indicators of student success:

 

  • Advancement from remedial to college level courses
  • Completion of general education “gatekeeper” courses
  • Course success with a grade of C or higher
  • Persistence rates of students from term to term and form year to year
    • Transfer rates to 4-year institutions
    • Training for job advancement and gainful employment

 

Paramont to the success of these projects is continued collaboration between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs.  In working togher, the CSN campus community creates multiple pathways to success and student achievement.