1. Erin Alanson & Jessica King University Honors Program
Appreciative Advising in a Group Setting: Balancing Advisor Time and Student Development
Erin Alanson & Jessica King
University Honors Program
Our respective introductions & amount of time we’ve been with the UHP

2. Our Session UHP overview Advising frameworks Second year student needs
Group advising model
Impact & implementation
Jess

3. Key Questions What are the needs of our students?
What are our goals for advising?
What can we accomplish individually and in groups? What are the trade-offs?
How can we help our students become members of an intellectual community?
Jess

4. University Honors Program
University Honors is committed to helping students maximize their educational opportunities at UC while discovering and pursuing their passions in life and using their gifts and talents to make meaningful contributions to society.
Jess
Our students represent the academic top 7% of UC’s population
Vision: Students are transformed through their University Honors experience

5. Development & Framework
Student Presentation
4/23/2017 7:51 PM
Development & Framework
Jess
History of UHP at UC
Redeveloped to be more meaningful and relevant to students
UC 2019 and Academic Master Plan – threaded throughout
UHP was intentionally designed to be a showcase for ICL and best practices so that they could be replicated throughout the University for all UC students.
Experiential learning
Focus on thematic areas
Best practices
Innovation and Transformation
Interdisciplinary
Reflection
Emphasis on experiential learning

6. Consultant Visit & Results
Comprehensive review of program and structure
October 2010, per then-Provost Ono
Expanded responsibilities & staff size
Continue use and integration/reflection via learning portfolios
Annual mandatory advising for all students
Jess
Annual mandatory advising – 1200 students & challenged to grow program size
Challenge to raise average standards, grow OOS numbers and A&S – strategic recr’t initiatives
Continue work with e-portfolios and reflective models

7. Touch Points with UHP Students
HNRS 1010: Gateway to University Honors
First year advising
30 min. individual appointment
Year in review reflective essay
Submitted through a learning portfolio
Second and third year advising
Group advising sessions
Fourth year advising
TBD
Erin

8. Models of Reflection What? What happened? So What?
What impact did the experience make?
Now What?
Where do you go and what do you do next?
Gibb’s Model of Learning by Doing (1988)
Erin
Kolb’s Model of Experiential Education (1984)

9. Appreciative Advising
Student-centered and relational framework for helping support pursuit of dreams, passions, and goals
Collaborative, six-phase process using positive, open-ended questions
Phases covered in 2Y advising:
Dream: Inquire about students’ hopes and dreams for the future
Design: Co-create a plan for making dreams a reality
Erin

10. Second Year Student Needs
According to Schaller (2005), 2Y students:
feel frustrated with relationships or academic experiences.
need to explore opportunities and begin taking responsibility for their actions.
Schaller suggests that students need to be taught to reflect on their curricular and co-curricular experiences
Jess

11. Addressing 2Y Student Needs
Through reflection and guided conversations help students:
select meaningful experiences
identify salient pieces of their identity (interpersonal, intrapersonal & cognitive)
set personal and professional goals
refine and/or identify their passion
Jess

12. Overview of 2Y Group Advising
Session Outline:
Welcome and check-in (10 minutes)
Introductions (10-15 minutes)
Building connections w/ others surrounding identity development (25 minutes)
Individual written reflection followed by pair & share (30 minutes)
Program updates and opportunities for exploration (30 minutes)
Questions/concerns (15 minutes)
Erin

13. How are our identities evolving?
Best Learning Experience
Most Challenging Experience
Growth and Development
Accomplishments
Uncertainty
Erin/Jess

14. Sample Reflection Questions
What did you learn about yourself during your first year? Why is this information meaningful?
Describe a significant relationship and what you’ve learned as a result.
In the efforts you’ve made to achieve your goals, consider who has challenged and/or persuaded you to change your path. How did you respond?
Erin/Jess

15. Final
Jeopardy!
UHP
Requirements
UHP
Updates
Campus
Opportunities
Professional
Development
UHP
Involvement
$100
$100
$100
$100
$100
$200
$200
$200
$200
$200
$300
$300
$300
$300
$300
Erin/Jess
$400
$400
$400
$400
$400
$500
$500
$500
$500
$500

16. Overview of 2Y Group Advising
Logistics
2 hour sessions (1 hour 45 minutes of content followed by time for individual questions)
Up to 20 students per session
Location: Swift Hall
Students register via Starfish
Advisors follow up with individualized after the session and record notes
Erin
20 students x 45 minute appointments = 15 hours
20 students & 4 hours

17. Student Satisfaction Results
Students appreciated the opportunity to reflect on their accomplishments, receive updates, and network with peers
Some students thought the session was too long and still wanted to meet individually with their advisor
“[Second Year Group Advising] really forced me to slow down and think about the most important things I have learned in my first year of college, not only in the classroom, but also in life experiences.”
Jess

18. Significance & Impact Experiential education and integrative learning
Interviews (e.g., jobs, PLME, NCA)
Co-op, internship, and professional placements
Personal statements & grad school applications
Participating in an intellectual community
“I think that the opportunities for reflection were extremely valuable. I don't always have a lot of time to sit and reflect about what has been the best experience or where I need to grow so doing the activity with the post-its and the reflective worksheet were both good ways to go through [and] reflect on where I am.”
Jess

19. Implementation Challenges
Time-intensive follow up
Blocks of time conducive to student schedules
Relies on existing relationships
Fostering student buy-in
Staffing/advising transitions
Not exclusively about saving advisor time
More aptly focused on deepening student learning and development through peer collaboration
20 students x 45 minutes each = 15 hours // We can go into more depth in interactions with a total commitment of 4 hrs
Follow up – scanning and saving worksheets, individual s to students
Created form messages that were easily adaptable to help with this process
Have worksheets and content to follow up with students in a concrete way
Aligning time blocks with class, studio, rehearsal schedules, etc.
Relationship building through appreciative advising

20. References
Bloom, J.L., Huston, B.L., & He, Y. (2008). The Appreciative Advising Revolution. Champaign, Stipes Publishing, LLC.
Sanchez, L. “Two’s Company, Three’s a Crowd: Can Group Advising be Appreciate and Effective.” The Mentor, July 2008.
Schaller, M. “Wandering and Wondering: Traversing the Uneven Terrain of the Second College Year.” About Campus, 10(3),

21. http://www.uc.edu/honors honors@uc.edu 705 Swift Hall
Contact Information
705 Swift Hall
Erin Alanson
Assistant Director
Academic Advisor
Jessica King
Sr. Assistant Director &
Academic Advisor
Should we use this as a place to plug our transition process?