As I've been enjoying the conference sessions so far, I've found myself thinking a lot about TRANSFERABLE SKILLS. We talk about these issues with our students A LOT, particularly those of us focused on liberal arts advising. But, I hadn't really thought about how important an awareness of transferable skills is for making the most of conference presentations.
Let me explain. I work at a 4-year state university and have oversight of about 4,000new first year students each year. When I first began to attend NACADA conferences, I focused exclusively on presentations about first year students or from like institutions. What I've found, though, as I've gotten further into this crazy profession of advising is that I can mine real GEMS from sessions that may not seemingly have much in common with my regular advising perspective.
Simply, hearing from other advisers from dissimilar institutions about the realities of their daily lives, I gain a new perspective on my advising landscape, which has become so routine to me. It's helpful to identify the common problems and joys that we have with our students and our administrations, even if it's just to see that the grass is, in fact, of a similar hue over the fence.
Sometimes it's hard not to dismiss sessions with a "we don't have those students/problems" or "they only have X number of students," but I'm making a concerted effort not to do that -- because when I do, I lose new important perspectives which in turn help reflect back (Sankofa, Peter?) to my view of my institution and my challenges with new eyes.
Transferable skills, indeed - just trying to remember to practice what I preach.
Julie Traxler, Rutgers University
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Trave(b)logue, Part I
Considering that this will be my sample submission to Conde Nast Traveler, you should all feel very privileged to read this before I become super-famous, like Samantha Brown (how do you get a job where you stay in fancy hotels all the time?).
Wednesday, April 6th, 2011
2:30pm: I gotta be honest here--I'm a little traveled out, after a marathon weekend in Vegas for a friend's (incredibly gorgeous) wedding. Between a 72-hour turnaround and it taking an hour for our luggage to get from the plane to baggage claim (all occurring after midnight. Thanks, PHL!), my enthusiasm for any more "living out of a suitcase" is wearing a little thin. (Hmm...maybe I should re-think my "travel journalist" dream career idea...)
7:30pm: After a lull-inducing 5 hours aboard the Northeast Regional, we finally make it to Charlottesville. Hooray! Our staff proceeds to eat some very delicious and highly recommended pub fare at Horse & Hound, and then the six of us pack into a Honda Accord (yes, you did the "seat" math right) and begin to marvel not only at how gorgeous UVA is, but also at how many wonderful amenities the suburbs have to offer. A Kroger! Old Navy! Gee wiz, we're easily impressed!
10:15pm: I just realized that I'm really presenting tomorrow. The anxiety kicks in.
---
Thursday, April 7th, 2011
7:00am: Rise and shine! I can't wait to get some new ideas to incorporate into our practices! I can't wait to meet new people, people who are excited about their profession, people--WHAT? THERE IS NO HOT WATER? I shower, a grimace on my face. This is not a good omen.
8:15am: I claim to be a history buff, but I never said anything about also being good about geography, and seem to have gone my entire life until this moment not realizing that Jefferson's Monticello is basically down the street. (I should really sankofa to my state presentation on Virginia in 5th grade for a refresher.) I try to solicit enthusiastic volunteers for a quick trip, though nobody seems to be as excited to see the original dumbwaiter and Lazy Susan as I am.
8:30am: Concurrent presentations--so exciting! I get some great ideas about incorporating technology, particularly video via tools like Camtasia, into our practices to cut down on transactional advising. Many thanks to Richard Sigal from Rutgers and Stephen Brown and Alissa Carpenter from Penn State--Abington for some useful info!
12:00pm: Lunchtime! Nom nom nom (nobody ever say this out loud, please. Cookie Monster owns this, it's his.) Peter Hagan gives a truly wonderful keynote about reflecting on the role of advising throughout history and how we build upon the successes of the past as we venture into NACADA's fourth decade. I loved the point about students being the product, not the consumer, and that they're not always right--after all, they're still learning. It's not always our role as advisors to provide customer service a la retail; we should always be personable and keep in mind where the student is coming from, but sometimes it's okay to say no and point out where students are misinformed about a class, a policy, and so on.
Somehow, I also win the raffle for Virginia state basket. Only later did I realize that I had also gotten chocolate frosting all over the front of my pants, soooo that was pretty embarassing.
3:01pm: I give my first presentation on effective assessment practices and establishing an office/department-level assessment program in just 44 minutes. Still fine-tuning! (See previous post.) Will the lukewarm shower prophecy from earlier in the day bear fruit? Stay tuned!
Wednesday, April 6th, 2011
2:30pm: I gotta be honest here--I'm a little traveled out, after a marathon weekend in Vegas for a friend's (incredibly gorgeous) wedding. Between a 72-hour turnaround and it taking an hour for our luggage to get from the plane to baggage claim (all occurring after midnight. Thanks, PHL!), my enthusiasm for any more "living out of a suitcase" is wearing a little thin. (Hmm...maybe I should re-think my "travel journalist" dream career idea...)
7:30pm: After a lull-inducing 5 hours aboard the Northeast Regional, we finally make it to Charlottesville. Hooray! Our staff proceeds to eat some very delicious and highly recommended pub fare at Horse & Hound, and then the six of us pack into a Honda Accord (yes, you did the "seat" math right) and begin to marvel not only at how gorgeous UVA is, but also at how many wonderful amenities the suburbs have to offer. A Kroger! Old Navy! Gee wiz, we're easily impressed!
10:15pm: I just realized that I'm really presenting tomorrow. The anxiety kicks in.
---
Thursday, April 7th, 2011
7:00am: Rise and shine! I can't wait to get some new ideas to incorporate into our practices! I can't wait to meet new people, people who are excited about their profession, people--WHAT? THERE IS NO HOT WATER? I shower, a grimace on my face. This is not a good omen.
8:15am: I claim to be a history buff, but I never said anything about also being good about geography, and seem to have gone my entire life until this moment not realizing that Jefferson's Monticello is basically down the street. (I should really sankofa to my state presentation on Virginia in 5th grade for a refresher.) I try to solicit enthusiastic volunteers for a quick trip, though nobody seems to be as excited to see the original dumbwaiter and Lazy Susan as I am.
8:30am: Concurrent presentations--so exciting! I get some great ideas about incorporating technology, particularly video via tools like Camtasia, into our practices to cut down on transactional advising. Many thanks to Richard Sigal from Rutgers and Stephen Brown and Alissa Carpenter from Penn State--Abington for some useful info!
12:00pm: Lunchtime! Nom nom nom (nobody ever say this out loud, please. Cookie Monster owns this, it's his.) Peter Hagan gives a truly wonderful keynote about reflecting on the role of advising throughout history and how we build upon the successes of the past as we venture into NACADA's fourth decade. I loved the point about students being the product, not the consumer, and that they're not always right--after all, they're still learning. It's not always our role as advisors to provide customer service a la retail; we should always be personable and keep in mind where the student is coming from, but sometimes it's okay to say no and point out where students are misinformed about a class, a policy, and so on.
Somehow, I also win the raffle for Virginia state basket. Only later did I realize that I had also gotten chocolate frosting all over the front of my pants, soooo that was pretty embarassing.
3:01pm: I give my first presentation on effective assessment practices and establishing an office/department-level assessment program in just 44 minutes. Still fine-tuning! (See previous post.) Will the lukewarm shower prophecy from earlier in the day bear fruit? Stay tuned!
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
And the train has left the station
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| New Professionals Pre-Con |
 |
| Hospitality Table |
 |
| Technology Pre-Con |
Well, just a couple of pics from today's events (we hope to get more up tomorrow) and then it's off to bed. Apparently, to keep the train running smoothly, the conference committee has to be up bright and early. I hope everyone who is unable to attend will keep up with the live stream tomorrow and maybe join us on Twitter for some backchannel chat.
Let The Fun Begin!
This is the view from the window of the Hospitality Suite. There isn't as much green as I was hoping for, and fewer flowers on the trees, but the sky is clear and the weather almost balmy. Registration opened less than an hour ago and already the hotel is teeming with energy and excitement. Can't wait to get this conference going.
See you all in the twitter-sphere!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Pre-Conference Jitters
Do you ever get that "college exam" feeling before a conference? Like, whatever you do, no matter how much time you devote to polishing slides and verbage, you're never going to feel 100 percent prepared?
Maybe you can liken the pre-conference anxiety to a blind date: you're presenting yourself in front of a bunch of people you probably don't know (but should!), revealing your deepest, more precious best practices for all the world to judge and comment on. I know tomorrow, as I take the 5-hour train ride down to Charlottesville, I'll be nervously twiddling my thumbs, wondering, "Will they like me?"
If you're like me, presenting--especially new, untested material--can be sort of nerve-wracking. You've probably been tweaking the flow, wondering where to insert time for audience questions and feedback, and you'll most definitely be staying up a little too late the night before and getting up really early the day of your presentation to make some overhauls. Maybe you're still working on putting your information together, and wondering to yourself: "Is my topic any good? How am I going to fill an entire hour with useful information?"
Well, I'm here to tell you: you're not alone! My colleagues and I have been combing through our presentation for the last few weeks. Finding quality time to devote to preparing has been challenging, since we just started a new term (we're a quarter school) and our attentions are seemingly divided in a million different directions. When you're adjusting schedules, meeting with students on probation, and fielding hundreds of different questions and concerns, time suddenly starts working against you, especially when you're trying to create a whole new presentation from scratch. We're still making some adjustments, with probably a few more to come before our presentation on Friday, and perhaps you find yourself in the same situation.
We can commiserate...erm, I mean, relate! Part of the reason we're all getting together for this conference is to share ideas, find better ways to tackle our ever-increasing arena of responsibilities. The fact that you may have a few dozen other things to do besides working on your presentation is exactly why you're presenting, and why people will attend your presentation. The Big Idea here, really, is: How do we do more and be better with the resources we have? Your input is valuable, as an advising professional and as a presenter--we want to hear your ideas! Even if you may not feel confident in your presentation, believe me--your ideas, your best practices, your honest concerns, are what are most important. As long as those can be communicated, we can have a productive discourse that everybody can benefit from.
So if you're nervous about your presentation, if you're fretting about this bullet point or that handout, or maybe you just feel like you don't have enough time to get everything done, I just want to say--we're there with you, we're in the same boat, and we'll be there to learn new ideas and discuss innovations with you in Charlottesville!
Maybe you can liken the pre-conference anxiety to a blind date: you're presenting yourself in front of a bunch of people you probably don't know (but should!), revealing your deepest, more precious best practices for all the world to judge and comment on. I know tomorrow, as I take the 5-hour train ride down to Charlottesville, I'll be nervously twiddling my thumbs, wondering, "Will they like me?"
If you're like me, presenting--especially new, untested material--can be sort of nerve-wracking. You've probably been tweaking the flow, wondering where to insert time for audience questions and feedback, and you'll most definitely be staying up a little too late the night before and getting up really early the day of your presentation to make some overhauls. Maybe you're still working on putting your information together, and wondering to yourself: "Is my topic any good? How am I going to fill an entire hour with useful information?"
Well, I'm here to tell you: you're not alone! My colleagues and I have been combing through our presentation for the last few weeks. Finding quality time to devote to preparing has been challenging, since we just started a new term (we're a quarter school) and our attentions are seemingly divided in a million different directions. When you're adjusting schedules, meeting with students on probation, and fielding hundreds of different questions and concerns, time suddenly starts working against you, especially when you're trying to create a whole new presentation from scratch. We're still making some adjustments, with probably a few more to come before our presentation on Friday, and perhaps you find yourself in the same situation.
We can commiserate...erm, I mean, relate! Part of the reason we're all getting together for this conference is to share ideas, find better ways to tackle our ever-increasing arena of responsibilities. The fact that you may have a few dozen other things to do besides working on your presentation is exactly why you're presenting, and why people will attend your presentation. The Big Idea here, really, is: How do we do more and be better with the resources we have? Your input is valuable, as an advising professional and as a presenter--we want to hear your ideas! Even if you may not feel confident in your presentation, believe me--your ideas, your best practices, your honest concerns, are what are most important. As long as those can be communicated, we can have a productive discourse that everybody can benefit from.
So if you're nervous about your presentation, if you're fretting about this bullet point or that handout, or maybe you just feel like you don't have enough time to get everything done, I just want to say--we're there with you, we're in the same boat, and we'll be there to learn new ideas and discuss innovations with you in Charlottesville!
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