EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMIC ADVISING

The Global Community for Academic Advising (NACADA) Excellence in Academic Advising (EAA) program engages institutions in a holistic and systemic review of academic advising from a teaching and learning perspective, with support and guidance from experts in the field and experts in educational and organizational change. The program rests upon the Conditions of Excellence in Academic Advising, created jointly by NACADA and the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education (Gardner Institute), “which establishes the aspirational standards for colleges and universities to evaluate and improve academic advising.” Data shows that academic advising is pivotal in promoting student success, retention, and completion. NACADA, along with its collaborators, created the EAA process because it understands that academic advising is a complex and critical function for institutions in realizing their goals of high quality and equitable care for students. The evidence-based decisions and action plans that emerge from this focused and intentional review support student success during their college experience.

 

The EAA process will be completed in three phases as established by NACADA and adapted by UVU’s academic advising community and leadership. The following details UVU’s progress:

 

Phase I: Complete NACADA’s Excellence in Academic Advising (EAA) Self-Evaluation Process

  • Completed November 2021 – June 2022
  • Bottom to top review of UVU advising practices
  • 200+ UVU employees participated
  • Evaluated 9 Conditions of Excellence:
    • Commitment
    • Learning
    • Building Community (Renamed)
    • Advisor Selection and Development
    • Improvement and Scholarship of Advising
    • Collaboration and Communication
    • Organization
    • Student Purpose and Pathways
    • Technology Enabled Advising
  • Facilitated by National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) fellows
  • Final report submitted July 2022
  • Results organized into 6 recommendation clusters
    • Quick Wins
    • Outcomes
    • Communication
    • Organization
    • Assessment
    • Technology

 

Phase II: Develop strategic plan for advising utilizing EAA self-evaluation results

  • Developed charter and created EAA Implementation Committee (EAAIC)
  • Took immediate action on several “quick wins” and completed comprehensive Implementation Plan in February 2024

 

 

Phase III: Execute strategic plan to improve student and advisor experience

  • Execute action steps in Implementation plan; goal to complete majority of steps by end of 2025

 

As part of the EAA process, UVU will strive to:

 

  • Foster an enhanced institution-wide commitment to academic advising as integral to the institution’s teaching and learning mission;
  • Build an institution-wide academic advising delivery system as determined from close examination of each of the Nine Conditions of Excellence that is responsive to and equitable for ALL students;
  • Increase student success, retention, and persistence through evidence-based decision making, assessment, and evaluation;
  • Support the development and implementation of a set of prioritized institutional recommendations for change;
  • Engage in and promote a culture of continuous improvement as measured by intentional linkages between UVU’s NACADA EAA efforts and:
    • institutional reaffirmation of accreditation quality improvement projects;
    • institutional strategic planning processes;
    • other related strategic student learning and success efforts.
  • Work with NACADA to reflect on and shape the body of scholarship on academic advising and learning and success as measured by presentations and other germane scholarly output; and
  • Provide feedback to NACADA to enable continuous improvement of the Excellence in Academic Advising self-study process.

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Excellence in Academic Advising is demonstrated by evidence of student and program success through:

 

  • Academic advising mission and goal statements that align advising with the institution's mission and strategic goals for teaching and learning.
  • A comprehensive, collaboratively developed academic advising delivery system that is responsive to student needs and designed for their benefit.
  • Personal and professional ethics manifested throughout the academic advising process.
  • Evidence-based decision making and assessment that guide improvement of initiatives, including the use of technology in academic advising.

 

Source: NACADA (2022). Excellence in Academic Advising (EAA). https://nacada.ksu.edu/Programs/Excellence-in-Academic-Advising.aspx