September 2004
Fall Quarter Bustle
September was a month that I had been awaiting eagerly, as fall quarter began on September 22nd. Summer was slowly coming to an end, and I could feel an increasing energy on campus. More and more faculty, students, parents, and staff members were appearing, and it was exciting to see the first-year students beginning to move into the residence halls. I couldn't help but think of the student development theories I had worked with in graduate school, and it was going to be interesting to think about individuals and where they fell within Chickering's seven vectors, Perry's nine positions of ethical and intellectual development, Kohlberg's moral stages, and so on.
That is not to say that I was ready for some grand experiment but rather that I was ready to make use of what I had learned in graduate school. More importantly, I wanted to see what theoretical information would prove useful in practice. In the past, I had read through a myriad of research on student development, and now was the time to see what worked for me and what seemed to match up with my students. I am pleased that our advising office works on a caseload basis, as it allows me to work with students continuously as they progress throughout the year. It would be a bit more difficult to utilize theory if I didn't have continuous contact with my students. With consistent reflection, an adviser has the opportunity to perform a rough and unofficial longitudinal study on his or her advisees. I was looking forward to identifying student success variables that I could analyze each quarter and using student development theory to help inform my interactions in subsequent quarters.
However, when all was said and done at the end of September, I don't know that my intentions of being mindful of theory actually matched my experiences. When classes started on September 22nd, my job did a complete 180 in terms of workload. I don't think theory crossed my mind a single time that first day of classes, as our office does drop-in advising at the start of each quarter. Students were lined up in the waiting area, and it seemed that most of them had one form of emergency or another to work through. It was extremely difficult for me not to feel rushed, as I could feel the pressure of all the waiting students. By the end of that first day, I was mentally exhausted, my mouth and lips were parched, and I really, really had to go to the bathroom.
One issue that became apparent on the 22nd was that detailed record keeping is of key importance. I'm not simply talking about recording correct grades, classes, and grade-point averages. I'm talking about writing down almost everything I had time to write down. I am becoming a Post-It fanatic. We have a few staff members who have the uncanny ability to remember for months what happened in each and every appointment, but I acknowledge that I don't function like that. So I put a sticky note on each file that I keep in my office to record details (sometimes academic, sometimes more personal) that jog my memory for the next appointment. I still use our student database system to record most anecdotal information, but the sticky notes serve to record items that likely aren't relevant to other college staff and faculty. For instance, I might write on a sticky note, “Laura is an avid skier and was looking for a first-aid course to take. Ask her about the coming ski season during our next appointment.” When the next appointment comes around, I can ask Laura about something that matters to her personally, thus furthering our relationship and making it easier to quickly transition to Laura's academics.
Relating to the above paragraph are the concepts of marginality versus mattering. Schlossberg's (1989) work on these ideas has proven useful to me in my appointments since the theory is easily adaptable to each individual. Creating an environment in which the students feel they matter increases student involvement, and this increased involvement can influence student satisfaction with college, academic achievement, and persistence towards graduation (Astin, 1977, 1984, as cited in Schlossberg, 1989). My hope is that using brief notes to record a student's academic and leisurely interests brings a new level of personalization to the next appointment. This individualization is particularly important for new first-year and transfer students who may feel marginalized on a large and unfamiliar campus. It is oftentimes advisers who are these students' first extended college or university contacts, and we have the ability to create environments that foster a sense of mattering. It's a simple concept that is often overlooked, but I thought about it often during my first month of advising. In a conversation with a co-worker, he recommended that I pose this question to myself: “In what ways do some people treat me that make me want to do better and/or return to see them again?” I want to do better and am attracted to those who make me feel I matter.
Another issue that came up this month was time management. With the exception of our walk-in day on the first day of the quarter, we operate on an appointment-only basis. As classes get rolling, each adviser's schedule will often be comprised of nothing but half-hour appointments. All . . . day . . . long. That being said, I found that if I got behind on one appointment it threw off my whole day. I would hope for a no-show or two in order to get back on track, but that was usually where Murphy's Law came into play and every student showed up right on time.
It was difficult for me to tell a student, “I'm sorry, but we've run out of time. Should we schedule another appointment?” When I did, I felt uncaring and as though I didn't completely help the student work through his or her problem or thought process. I felt like I was cutting students off and treating them more like numbers than actual people. I would learn in the months to come, however, that there are ways to end appointments so that students feel they've been treated wonderfully, even though time has run out.
Still on the same topic but veering slightly, triage, a term that is heard often in our office, also comes to mind. Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary defines triage as “the sorting of and allocation of treatment to patients and especially battle and disaster victims according to a system of priorities designed to maximize the number of survivors.” I think we can all draw a few parallels to the world of advising. Anyhow, I realized that some students will need more than their half an hour and that their situations may need more time right then and there. Their situations are urgent. Prioritizing is key in these interactions, and I found that if I knew an appointment would run over I could head out to the waiting area to briefly ask the next student why he or she was coming to see me. If the waiting student's concern was not immediate and could be handled at a later time, I would simply be honest in saying, “The student I'm with right now has a few things that need to be worked through immediately. Would you mind if we set you up with a different appointment time?” I'm still amazed at how understanding the waiting students are when I say this. Most of them don't think it's a big deal and are glad that I am honest with them. I also tell the waiting students that if they ever happen to need urgent assistance, I will return the favor. (Note: These triage moments do not happen frequently and are reserved for students who have taken responsible steps until their problems arise. I do not give procrastinators or irresponsible students extraordinary care when there are other students needing to be served.)
This month was truly one to remember due to much learning, excitement, and new challenges. I am looking forward to my first group advising sessions next month.