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Academic Affairs Merges with Advising to Streamline Services
By Fran Rensbarger
The offices of Student Academic Affairs (SAA) and Academic Support and Advising
Services (ASAS) have merged to form Student Academic Affairs and Advising. Primary
fuctions of both offices will remain the same, but new projects—such as
an effort to improve student retention—will become a joint initiative.
“The centers have collaborated in many ways in the past,” says
Nancy Dickerson, associate director for the advising center. While Academic Affairs
administers the UNIV courses, she says, Advising staff members teach five sections
of a course for undeclared no preference majors. “Additionally, we have
worked on retention issues together to include an exit interview survey for students
leaving the university and other proactive initiatives.”
But under the leadership of Stephen Greenfeld, new director of SAAA, the centers
will work more closely on student retention services. “The merging of SAA
and ASAS will create an environment of enhanced communication and the coordinated
delivery of student services that will better facilitate each student’s
discovery and fulfillment of his or her individual academic goals,” says
Greenfeld.
With the merger, “a major change will be that academic actions for undeclared-no
preference majors, undergraduate extended studies students, guest matriculants,
English Language Institute students, students in exchange programs, and high school
dual enrollment students will now be administered under SAAA,” says Dickerson.
“The change will streamline services to these student populations, providing
advising and academic actions.”
The retirement of Noreen McGuire, director of Student Academic Affairs, and
the resignation of Mary Lee Vance, director of Academic Support and Advising Services,
in December 2001 set the stage to reorganize and expand student services and improve
retention.
SAA, located in the Johnson Center, Room 245, will continue to focus on retention
initiatives and transition issues for students, says Peggy Chalker, associate
director, SAA. “The division housed five centers prior to the merger of
the advising center. Those five units include the Freshman Center; the University
Ombudsman; the Department of UNIV Courses; the Center for Retention Initiatives
and Research, which includes supplemental instruction; and the home for the University
Scholars.”
In SUB I, Room 304, ASAS is the advising home for all undergraduates who have
not yet declared their majors, all undergraduates who are changing majors, all
undergraduates in pre-med and pre-allied-health majors, and special populations,
such as students of the English Language Institute. ASAS also conducts advising
roundtables for faculty and professional advisors on campus and coordinates general
advising information.
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