University College for Academic Success
Strategic Plan 2018-2021
University College for Academic Success (UCAS) will help create and sustain a clear, coherent and inspiring academic environment for all undergraduate students, supporting their journey from orientation to commencement and on to employment. University College for Academic Success supports students, faculty and staff through programs and services that enhance intellectual engagement both in and out of the classroom. Our priorities align with the 2018-2021 URI Strategic Plan, focusing on innovative strategies for greater retention, on-time graduation, and successful employment. A consequence of this support will be more satisfied graduates, with a greater propensity to give back to their alma mater.
The Mission
The mission, strategic goals, data and trends tracked, serve as a foundation for the work accomplished in each unit within UCAS. We are committed to creating a culture of respect, ensuring that all students and colleagues, especially those with marginalized identities, are supported by policies and practices that are rooted in the standards of inclusion and equity. Our goal is to make this culture of respect permeate everything we do.
Academic Advising ⇡ MENU
Mission
Provide accurate and timely advisement to best supports students’ academic success. Use proactive interventions including frequent communication with advisees and academic departments to ensure curricular transparency and accuracy while emphasizing individual achievement, challenge, and inclusivity. Each student is encouraged to create an academic plan within their first year that is well-suited to their aptitudes and interests, with a long-term goal of maximizing use of campus resources and achieving timely graduation.
Summary and Purpose of Department
Academic Advising helps students to acclimate to the college environment, while encouraging achievement of each student’s personal best academic success. Advisors help students find challenging opportunities in and out of the classroom that support personal, academic and professional growth. We assure ready access to academic advising through individual and group advising, as well as proactive outreach in the classroom and residence halls.
Academic Advising serves many constituents, including:
- prospective students and their family members who seek to understand support services and resources as they make their college choices
- new and transfer students regarding the academic structure, registration processes, and major/program requirements
- continuing students to advise about policies, procedures and major requirements to ensure on-time graduation
- faculty and professional advisors both in and out of UCAS by providing on-going training and support in best advising practices and updated resources and policies regarding advisement
- the campus community, to inform about improved student academic experiences including credit completion, retention rates and overall satisfaction with their academic experiences
- deans, department chairs, faculty and staff in each degree granting college, to ensure timely matriculation and identification of barriers for progress to graduation
Data and Trends
UCAS Academic Advisors work in partnership with Enrollment Services, Institutional Research, the Provost’s Office, and the Office of Student Learning and Outcome Assessment to glean data pertaining to the efficacy and impact of proactive outreach by UCAS professional advisors on credit completion rates, freshmen retention rates, academic progress, transfer to degree colleges, and other consequences of the professional advising model.
UCAS advisors use proactive outreach to ensure that under-enrolled or non-enrolled students get registered. They review Starfish flags daily and send personal messages to students who have received academic warning or failing flags. Advisors also use Starfish flags to monitor students on academic probation and those who might be “off-track” for degree progress. Early Alert interventions through flag responses provide an efficient way for students to connect with essential support resources such as the Academic Enhancement Center, Career and Experiential Education services, Early Alert, Counseling, Disability Services and more.
Athletic academic advisors use Starfish progress reports to request feedback from faculty for varsity athletes who are eligible for “special advisement” so that course-specific information can be integrated into their weekly advising meetings. And advisors send personalized congratulatory notes to students who have achieved Dean’s List and have “kudos” for academic achievement.
We respond to students requests for on demand “just in time” services by providing both drop in advising and scheduled individual appointments. We track appointment usage as well as student satisfaction measures to address continuous improvement. Our advisors are trained in mental health concerns, so they can make appropriate referrals and/or take appropriate action when needed.
Moving students into their degree-granting college on time is another success measure. Advisors go into all URI 101 classes to ensure that students are prepared to register fully and on time in all majors. We work with the audit coordinator to find barriers to matriculation that can be remedied, positively impacting on-time graduation. This includes assessment of transfer requirements for the majors, implications of double majors, and factors impacting transfer students.
Academic Advising Strategic Goals
Goal 1: Enhance Student Success
Strategy 1: Ensure that each individual student receives proactive advising based on their needs (first generation, returning, transfer, adult learner etc.) through individual, group, drop-in, classroom, and “living learning community” settings.
Action: University College Professional Advisors (UCPAs) will collaborate closely with and be fully trained on what services are offered by departments within and outside of UCAS. This includes strong partnerships with Early Alert advisors, Talent Development, Disability Services, Transfer Resource Center, Counseling Center, Finish What You Started, CCEE, and the Office of Student Life and Housing and Residential Life LLC partners.
Action: UCPAs will be well versed in academic policies, academic support services, honors eligibility and program offerings to fully meet the needs of all students on the academic spectrum.
Action: UCPAs will be accessible and available to meet student needs through a variety of advising delivery channels based on student demand and trends, including maintaining a consistent presence in the living learning environments and offering alternative forms of advising such as skype/zoom, telephone, e-advising, website information and increased use of social media.
Action: Signage will reflect our commitment to and care for UCAS students (all advising offices have “Have we met your needs?” desk signs); with a strong emphasis on customer service at the reception and advising intern check-in stations.
Action: Advisors work with their degree granting colleges to provide programing in the residence halls Living Learning Communities, including appropriate study groups, advising sessions and career and internship programs related to their college.
Action: Advisors work with the Transfer Resource Center to provide advising at all CCRI campuses related to the transfer process at URI.
Action: Advisors send personalized messages to students deemed “In Danger of Failing” by Starfish flags raised by faculty.
Action: Advisors send notes to UCAS students with important academic deadlines and event and program information.
Action: Advisors send personalized notes of congratulations to students achieving the dean’s list.
Action: Advisors reach out to students who do poorly on their mid-semester progress reports.
Action: UCAS provides constant assessment of course demands throughout the registration cycles to ensure every student will have required courses available, as well as advisor appointments as needed.
Action: Advisors collaborate with Early Alert specialists to personalize advising for students in the Program for Academic Skills and Success (PASS).
Strategy 2: Make a sustained commitment to inclusion, equity, and social justice within academic advising.
Action: Recruit advisors who can demonstrate knowledge and fluency in inclusion and social justice issues.
Action: Advisors will participate in ongoing professional development and growth around these topics including monthly college-wide meetings, weekly discussion groups, reading and workshops.
Action: Leadership and staff will review student services, policies and practices in advising and teaching through the lens of inclusion and social justice.
Strategy 3: Increase student retention and timely matriculation into degree colleges
Action: Continue educating students and advisors about the “Take 5 Finish in 4” campaign.
Action: Update and provide students with accurate curriculum maps/sheets.
Action: Use and continually improve e-Campus APR and other advisement tools.
Action: Monitor credit completion and full credit enrollment of all assigned advisees each semester and over summer and winter breaks.
Action: Maintain close relationships with degree colleges and collaborate to matriculate students in a timely manner.
Action: Communicate with department chairs, deans and the provost’s office providing feedback on student concerns and alerts regarding insufficient course availability.
Action: Identify and communicate unintentional barriers to course access, major access, movement to degree colleges and program completion and partner with academic departments to strategize about how to eliminate or reduce these barriers for students.
Strategy 4: Train, support and integrate professional advisors into URI culture
Action: Commit to a high standard of excellence through ongoing training, professional development, and meaningful interactions with degree college faculty, department chairs, and deans.
Action: Stay abreast of curricular changes and degree requirements from admission to graduation by examining catalog changes resulting from curricular affairs or general education committees.
Action: Seek out members of assigned degree colleges to continuously learn specifics on the major.
Action: Work with the Center for Career and Experiential Education to assist students in connecting their major with career choices and preparation, right from the start.
Action: Work with assistant deans in degree colleges to understand and use the degree audit process, identifying any patterns of inconsistent and/or inaccurate advising.
Action: Work to continuously improve the process from admission to graduation, including working with advisors in the degree granting colleges so students have a seamless transition.
Strategy 5: Utilize Starfish system to assess student and faculty usage
Action: Maintain and examine data on usage of advising appointments, drop-in services and faculty office hours to inform changes to modes of advising delivery.
Action: Continue to examine, modify and improve modes of advising to best meet the changing needs of students.
Action: Enable multiple swipe/check-in areas in University College to collect data.
Action: Train student workers, support staff and advising interns to use the Starfish system and assist students in booking appointments and finding their advisors.
Action: Teach all students, faculty and staff how to use Starfish to maximize student support.
Strategy 6: Proactively respond to the increasing needs of students with mental health issues
Action: Address training needs regarding increasing number of students with personal and mental health issues. Commit several UCAS staff members to be trained as mental health first aid instructors.
Action: Maintain high degree of collaboration among early alert specialists, academic advisors and the dean of students’ office.
Action: Ensure that all advisors are trained in mental health interventions.
Strategy 7: Ongoing commitment to collect and assess data regarding student satisfaction and efficacy of advising services
Action: Use the IDEA advising survey each Spring semester in supervision for performance evaluation and improvement.
Action: Work with Institutional Research to understand retention, credit completion and major migration data.
Action: Ongoing analysis of Starfish data, including usage of appointments; posting of faculty office hours and creation of faculty profiles; usage by student service offices as well as CCEE, AEC, and TD; and number of flags and kudos created.
Strategy 8: Examine timely major declaration and major migration data for undeclared students and for those changing majors.
Action: Provide URI101 designed specifically for students undeclared in their major that integrates essential career development tasks to promote earlier declaration of major.
Action: Provide early access to TypeFocus assessment in every URI101, regardless of major, to reduce major migrations.
Action: Teach several sections of UCS 270, a major/educational decision-making course that helps students to choose majors before 30 credits.
Action: Teach UCS 270 and UCS 160 (learning skill development) to all incoming Talent Development students.
Action: Collaborate with CCEE Career Education Specialists on seamless major to career advising, programming and internships for all students.
Action: Work with the Living Learning Community for Exploring/Undeclared students to provide on-site advising and programming related to major declaration.
Strategy 9: Sustained commitment to advisor training for the university community
Action: Continue to develop and implement the online master advisor education program.
Action: Manage content and monitor progress of faculty participants, sending recognition letters to department chairs, deans and provost’s office and encouraging them to nominate a student for a $500.00 scholarship in their name.
Strategy 10: Academic Oversight and Evaluation of Student Progress
Action: Oversee end-of-term academic reviews for fall, spring, summer and winter J-term and identify students who are on academic probation or potentially dismissed.
Action: Notify students of their academic standing.
Action: Oversee the dismissal appeal process and provide individualized plans of action from the Scholastic Standing Committee to students for whom dismissals are waived.
Transfer Resource Center ⇡ MENU
Mission
The mission of the transfer resource center is to support all incoming transfer students through early advising services at the community college, reducing barriers to matriculation into majors, and connecting transfer students to the people and resources that will help them to be successfully graduate in a timely manner. We specifically focus on educating transfer students on the transition from CCRI to the University. We work with our many partners at URI, RIC, CCRI, and the Commissioner’s Office (OPC) to provide accurate and transparent information to facilitate the transfer process.
Summary and Purpose of the Department
The Transfer Resource Center plays a major role in helping our academic departments at URI to share and receive academic information from our off-campus partners. This communication process includes providing perspectives on how changing curriculum requirements impact incoming and continuing students at both URI and the community college. We work with the Office of the Post-Secondary Commissioner to ensure that information on the Transfer Web Portal is up to date and accurate concerning all articulation agreements. We are responsible for assessing transcripts for incoming students to University College for Academic Success who are Undeclared and those who are in the College of Arts and Sciences. We work with all incoming transfer students to help them connect with appropriate resources and people in Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, and Enrollment Services. We review and help to implement through university-wide communication, all policies impacting transfer students. The center provides transcript evaluations for all special populations, including student athletes for NCAA credit reviews, international students, and students with military credits. We train and update all academic advisors on articulation issues, TES (Transfer Evaluation System) and the ritransfers.org website. The Transfer Resource Center has just added Tau Sigma, the Transfer honor society, for our students.
Data and Trends
Numbers of transfer students continue to increase as the graduation rates of our RI high school students continue to decrease. New policies and trends that support transfer students include:
- RI Promise- the offer of free tuition at the community college for high school students who maintain a GPA of 2.5 or higher and complete 30 credits each year, for transfer students matriculating to Rhode Island College (still in process)
- Curriculum alignment – providing curriculum maps for students who transfer technical and other associate degrees, so they have a clear pathway for graduating in four years (2 years at CCRI plus 2 years at URI)
- JAA- increasing numbers of students and academic programs that enable CCRI students to be accepted at URI while they are still enrolled at CCRI, and be able to transfer at the end of 60 credits with an Associate degree with guaranteed access to their major at URI, including, in many cases, a reduced tuition.
- Dual/Concurrent Enrollment- Since 2016 there has been a state-wide effort to encourage high school students to earn college credits while still in high school.
- General education reform – both at URI and CCRI the general education programs have undergone major revision, such that students are able to transfer more courses that work for each institution.
Transfer Resource Center Strategic Goals
Goals 1, 3, 4, and 5 of URI’s strategic academic plan are reflected in the work of the Transfer Resource Center.
Goal One: Enhance Student Success
Strategy 1: Focus on access and affordability and improve credit and degree completion rates for all undergraduate and graduate students, with specific attention in data reporting to underrepresented, economically disadvantaged, international, out-of-state, and in-state populations.
Actions: Facilitate implementation of General Education by working with CCRI and RIC partners in understanding and supporting the general education requirements for transfer students.
Actions: Partner with CCRI and create new transfer pathways – curriculum maps that clearly delineate how to graduate in a timely manner.
Actions: Provide academic advising to all students enrolled in the JAA program – go to CCRI multiple times each semester, to multiple campuses.
Actions: Work with the Office of Admission to make clear exactly what students need to successfully matriculate to URI, to move between majors and colleges, and to eliminate the number of unneeded credits as much as possible.
Actions: Manage the statewide transfer articulation meeting between the department chair persons to better understand implications of the ever-changing transfer agreements for specific majors.
Actions: Support and expand dual enrollment and statewide articulation agreements to expand access to college credit-bearing courses.
Goal Two: Grow a Global Presence
Strategy 1: Expand support structures and efforts to increase number of domestic students engaging in international education experience.
Actions: Review and evaluate transfer of credits from international experiences.
Actions: Standardize all policies for transfer of credits gained abroad across all colleges and maintain a database of pre-approved transfer credits from international institutions.
Actions: Track all changes in curriculum with the Faculty Senate Office to ensure the university manual is correct and up to date.
Actions: Collaborate with each academic college, the international office, and Enrollment Services to have more standardized forms, procedures, and policies relevant for Transfer Students.
Actions: Centralize credit evaluation for incoming international freshmen.
Goal Three: Embrace Diversity and Social Justice
Strategy 1: Increase the recruitment, retention, and graduation of students from underrepresented groups, and provide support for their inclusion and success in the academic environment.
Actions: Designate academic program liaisons to work with the Office of Admission on recruitment efforts and develop outreach to engage and excite underrepresented K–12 students about URI.
Actions: Continue to collaborate with CCRI and the RI Promise students.
Actions: Work with Adult learners who are preparing to transfer, as well as with the “Finish what you started” student population.
Actions: Continue to collaborate on having consistent concurrent/dual enrollment and test credits (AP, IB, CLEP) evaluations for all students and all majors.
Goal Four: Streamline Processes to Improve Effectiveness
Strategy 1: Develop processes and practices that enable Academic Affairs to more nimbly update curriculum, solve problems, and work collaboratively across disciplines to better meet the needs of future learners.
Actions: Make clear to the university community all consequences and implications that curriculum changes have on transfer students.
Actions: Create policies that enable students to be “grandfathered in” when they are following previous and changing academic plans from CCRI or RIC.
Actions: Identify and help to address problems or “bottlenecks’ that keep transfer students from appropriate transitions into their majors (for example, courses that need to be offered at one or the other institutions, archaic rules that keep students moving into their major).
Academic Enhancement Center (AEC) ⇡ MENU
Mission
The mission of the Academic Enhancement Center is to empower students to become more skillful and successful in using effective learning strategies. We are committed to responding to student needs, collaborating with faculty and providing professional development for our student staff with the goal of enhancing student learning for academic success and on-time graduation.
Summary and Purpose of Department
The Academic Enhancement Center (AEC) offers a range of learning support for both undergraduate and graduate students. Our programs promote skill development of metacognition, critical thinking, writing, time management, and test taking. Our peer-to-peer tutoring uses collaborative learning methods that promote teaching and leadership for student staff. The AEC offers unique resources including 3 forms of tutoring in the STEM disciplines, Academic Skills Development programming, and the Writing Center.
Peer tutors log thousands of contact hours with undergraduates each semester via 3 forms of STEM tutoring including Weekly Tutoring Groups, One Time Group Appointments, and Drop-in tutoring centers, all focused on historically challenging undergraduate STEM courses. Peer tutors in our Writing Center provide one-to-one consultations, focusing on strengthening students’ overall skills as writers and understanding of expectations for college level writing assignments. Academic skills consultants and UCS 160 provide course-based and one-to-one support for students needing to address specific, individual academic learning needs. This support is also delivered through workshops and collaborations with campus partners to promote strategic thinking and planning around time management, studying and test taking.
Through our work with campus-wide committees and the Office for the Advancement of Teaching, we work with faculty on issues related to student success. The AEC strives to create equitable support programming, targeting historically underrepresented or academically underserved student populations including students of color, first generation students, students from low income backgrounds, and students with learning disabilities.
Data and Trends
Locally and nationally, colleges and universities are working to enhance student success by identifying and removing obstacles to student learning and academic progress. National initiatives such as Complete College America and the Gateways to Completion (G2C) project have focused specifically on supporting academic success and timely progress in the historically challenging and high-demand STEM disciplines. Collectively, these trends have placed a premium on both pedagogy and student engagement, recognizing that learning happens best where student’s cognitive engagement is deepest.
A partnership with the Office for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning has greatly expanded our capacity to engage with faculty on innovative teaching methods. Initiatives such as the Student Success Committee and the G2C (Gateway to Completion) effort have been incubators for collaboration across departments and divisions, bringing data experts, retention experts, learning experts, faculty, and student affairs experts together to learn from one another and collaborate on comprehensive reforms. These developments have contributed to the development of a more learner-centered academic culture.
The AEC has responded to increasing demand for academic support from students and families, resulting in major programming changes aimed at improving accessibility, availability, and impact. Some include the creation of the weekly tutoring group model for STEM, integration of the Writing Center into the AEC and with campus-wide writing initiatives, and using Starfish and Tutortrac to streamline appointments and data management systems. We continue to increase outreach to Talent Development and use our UCS 160 course to help prepare TD scholars, Nursing Pathways students and PASS participants for improved academic success.
Academic Enhancement Center Strategic Goals
Goal One: Enhance Student Success
Strategy 1: Enhance cross-campus collaboration and peer learning support to better meet demand in STEM courses the AEC serves.
Action: Continue to develop, expand and invest in the Weekly Tutoring Group program, leveraging technology whenever possible.
Action: Utilize Survey Trac technology to obtain timely feedback on tutorial experiences to improve services and guide tutor training topics.
Action: Increase services in response to increased demand whenever possible. Strive to fill 100% of requests in STEM courses the AEC serves.
Action: Establish a system of timely and consistent communication with academic departments, individual faculty and advisors that includes collaboration around tutor recruitment, sharing of AEC usage data and relevant program updates.
Strategy 2: Diversify access to opportunities for timely development of college-level learning strategies and skills, metacognitive skills, and planning skills.
Action: Expand availability of UCS 160 to include J-term, online versions, and half-semester sessions to improve student participation, access and just-in-time options.
Action: Offer workshops on relevant study skills topics to courses, groups and organizations.
Strategy 3: Enhance opportunities to support development of writing skills.
Action: Analyze utilization of Writing Center services during fall, spring, J-term and the summer sessions.
Action: Collaborate with Writing Across URI, OATL, academic departments, and interested faculty to support “writing across the curriculum” initiatives such as a Writing Fellows program and National Day on Writing at URI.
Strategy 4: Create academic support resource and referral hub to help match students in need with available help and offer resources to student support providers.
Action: Consult and survey bi-annually, deans, chairs, and faculty, to analyze college and departmental academic support needs and services.
Strategy 5: Gain a broader perspective on student learning needs from campus stakeholders.
Action: Established a campus-wide Learning Support Advisory Committee to provide feedback on AEC support programs, improve the University’s awareness and of students’ essential academic skill needs, and strengthen campus-wide support.
Action: Representative body of deans, faculty and staff serve on advisory committee
Action: Established mission statement, guidelines for participation
Action: Conduct two meetings per semester to meet strategic objectives, assess ongoing efforts, identify emerging needs, and provide update on progress.
Strategy 6: Continue to improve inclusivity of all AEC services, programs, staff and environments.
Action: Affirm the Writing Center and Academic Enhancement Center program spaces as Safe Zones through mandatory staff participation in Safe Zone training through the Gender and Sexuality Center.
Action: Engage all AEC staff (reception, tutor, and professional staff) in inclusion training.
Action: Recruit and retain diverse AEC tutorial staff by promoting open through URI offices that serve traditionally underrepresented groups.
Action: Continue to demonstrate the importance of diversity and inclusion during the hiring process through targeted questions and dialogue.
Goal Two: Streamline Processes to Improve Effectiveness
Strategy 1: Use technology to enhance AEC program accessibility.
Action: Upgrade TutorTrac or other relevant technology to function as a student-facing system for scheduling STEM tutoring appointments.
Action: Continue to offer online writing tutoring appointments through WC Online as a pilot program to ensure student accessibility to Writing Center services.
Action: Use Starfish as student facing system of appointment setting and needs identification for academic consultation referrals
Strategy 2: Streamline data collection, distribution, and analysis.
Action: Use TutorTrac, Starfish, SurveyTrac, and WC Online to analyze student use and assess satisfaction with AEC programs and services.
New Student Programs (NSP) ⇡ MENU
MISSION
The Office of New Student Programs (NSP) is provides orientation and transition programming that is inclusive, student-centered, and supports student retention. We offer services to students who are in academic distress as well as those who are eligible for academic honors. We provide opportunities and skills development in mentoring and leadership, and work in partnership with students, family members, degree granting colleges, and other University service providers to support student academic success. New Student Programs also manages all Starfish support services (advising appointment and contact services as well as faculty early alert communications) for the URI community.
Summary and Purpose of Department
NSP provides programs and services to new and continuing undergraduate students including orientation, early alert, and leadership and professional development opportunities. Our orientation programming serves all new first-year and transfer students and their families. First-year students participate in a two-day overnight orientation program that provides information and support in the following areas: academic advising, sense of belonging as a URI student, how to contribute to the campus “culture of respect,” empowerment of student to make healthy decisions, and successful navigation of URI’s academic technology systems. We host a family orientation program where guests meet the Deans of all the academic colleges and student support services such as the Dean of Students, Housing and Residential Life, Dining, Health Services, and campus police. Families also participate in a services fair that includes over 40 areas of student support such as athletics, the library, academic support services, gender and sexuality center, campus chaplains and many more. Transfer students are also invited to participate in their own advising days where they get assistance in academic advising, campus technologies and general transition to the University.
NSP provides oversight and curriculum review for approximately 150 sections of URI 101, a course required for all new first-year students. We recruit, hire, and train URI 101 mentors, upperclassmen who serve as co-facilitators with a faculty or staff instructor. URI 101 syllabi are created by us and shared with instructors to facilitate common learning across all sections. The focus of URI 101 is academic planning, including content on strategies for successful learning, connecting career preparation with majors, inclusion and equity lessons, health and safety information, and academic advising preparation. We also have a unique syllabus for students who are undeclared in their major, focused on career development and decision making, with the goal of major declaration before 30 earned credits. In addition, we provide the curriculum and instruction for five 3-credit community service course sections (CSV 302) in which all student mentors are required to enroll.
NSP oversees and administers the Phi Eta Sigma national honor society for first-time URI students who have a GPA of 3.5 or higher after their first semester. We provide programming focused on leadership, scholarship, and community service.
Our Early Alert Services are designed to help students when an intervention of academic support is needed. Primary issues that Early Alert Services support include academic performance, class attendance, and lack of engagement in the classroom. Early Alert’s Transition and Retention Advocates also offer support programming to first-year students who receive a 1.0 GPA and below their first semester. These students are academically dismissed and to continue attending the University, must be accepted into PASS (Program for Academic Skills and Success). Students in PASS meet with an academic coach weekly and are required to earn a 2.0 semester GPA to remain at URI. Early Alert works collaboratively with the graduate program in College Student Personnel to provide professional development opportunities to qualified master’s degree students who then serve as PASS Coaches. In addition, Early Alert staff work with the professional advisors in UCAS to support students on academic probation, and with mental health advocates in student affairs.
The Starfish Office serves the entire undergraduate population of URI, as well as faculty and support services for undergraduate students. Starfish has two primary focuses: a central appointment-making tool that is easy for students, faculty and staff to navigate; and an early alert tool that enables faculty to raise flags and/or kudos for students in their courses. This system enables faculty and advisors to use proactive outreach interventions. Starfish is used to varying degrees by each degree-granting college, as well as offices in Student Affairs (Disability Services, Talent Development, Housing and Residential Life), Enrollment Services, and other departments within University College (Center for Career and Experiential Education, Academic Enhancement Center).
New Student Programs provides numerous leadership and professional development opportunities including positions for orientation leaders, URI 101 mentors, peer mentors for program development, work study positions, and several semester and year-long internship opportunities for graduate students. We are committed to daily critical reflection and work around issues of equity, inclusion, and social justice. The staff in New Student Programs lead the professional development task force to help all UCAS employees to better understand their own biases, examine all aspects of privilege and power, and enhance their ability to support students and diminish barriers to success for marginalized populations.
Data and Trends
NSP is responsible for collecting data pertaining to: the numbers of students who attend orientation events (first-year and transfer), student and family satisfaction with orientation programming, the number of advising appointments that occur during orientation, the number of student eligible for membership in Phi Eta Sigma, year-to-year success rates for the Program for Academic Skills and Success (PASS), descriptive data about early alert services, including the types of alerts received and the process used to address the alerts, and University usage of Starfish.
We track our success in increasing racial and ethnic diversity of our student orientation staff and URI 101 mentor programs, as well as professional staff members. We use a lens of inclusion and equity in evaluating our policies and practices, as well as feedback from students, families and campus partners.
New Student Programs Strategic Goals
Our goals align with the University’s goals around enhancing student academic success and retention by supporting student success from orientation through graduation.
Goal One: Enhance Student Academic Success
Strategy 1: Cultivate a sense of belonging in students and support student success through Orientation programming.
Action: Communicate effectively with students and family members by enhancing web and print materials and customer service
Action: Work with campus partners to provide orientation experiences that meets the evolving needs of incoming students and families
Action: Use standards set for orientation programs by the Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) in Higher Education to assess programming for new students at orientation.
Action: Include in Orientation programming around the institution’s mission, culture and traditions to support integration of new students into the URI community.
Action: Address the needs of diverse student populations in orientation programming and procedures.
Action: Provide students with an opportunity to engage in conversations about equality, inclusion, and social justice.
Action: Ensure students meet with an academic advisor who explains academic advising and assists students in selecting academic courses, while making use of relevant advanced placement exams and transfer credits.
Action: Inform students about requirements for on-time graduation during academic advising meetings and through Take 5 Finish in 4 campaign
Action: Inform new students about the availability of institutional services and programs including student involvement, health, disability support, honors, safety and security.
Action: Provide students with information about accessing and managing campus technology.
Action: Maintaining that orientation is an institution-wide program, invite and support greater participation by the university community and work toward continual improvement of orientation sessions provided to students and families.
Action: Assess the hiring and training of Orientation Leaders
Strategy 2: Support academic success, retention, and graduation of students through expansion of Starfish usage across campus.
Action: Broaden support services available for appointments on Starfish, providing students with a simple way to interact with support offices they may need to succeed
Action: Increase usage of Starfish by faculty and staff
Action: Continue to work to fully integrate Starfish with any LMS system URI employs.
Action: Fully launch TutorTrac integration with Starfish, enabling greater information sharing during scholastic standing process and advising/faculty meetings with students
Action: Support change of major workflow in UCAS to ensure student majors are accurate and academic advisors are assigned in a timely way
Action: Work to constantly improve communication with campus community about the benefits of Starfish for improve workflow and how to effectively use Starfish to support student success
Strategy 3: Continue to assess and enhance Early Alert Services to meet the needs of the student population
Action: Educate students about campus policies and procedures and their rights and responsibilities
Action: Assess demographics of the PASS and probation populations and create appropriate interventions for these populations.
Action: Continue to enhance training of PASS coaches by integrating a positive “appreciative inquiry” methodology to better support these students.
Action: Better understand Early Alert referrals and adjust processes when appropriate to better support students.
Action: Continue to collaborate with Advising and the Academic Enhancement Center to provide a continuum of services to students on probation.
Action: Continue involvement in the university-wide A.N.C.H.O.R. committee to monitor high-risk students
Action: Establish small group topic conversations with students on academic probation, co-led with academic advisors
Action: Increase interactions with professional advisors for Early Alert interventions to support students’ academic success
Action: Present to campus community about how to use Early Alert services and how to support students
Strategy 4: Continue to enhance URI 101 program to better support student success
Action: Continue to develop ways to support URI 101’s focus on academic planning in the major
Action: Focus resources for undeclared students in 101 to help them declare a major by 30 credits
Action: Continue to provide content in URI 101 that supports student success in areas of sense of belonging and academic success
Action: Recruit a diverse group of mentors who are effective co-instructors of URI 101
Action: Continually assess the purpose, goals, and content of CSV 302 (course for URI 101 mentors)
Strategy 5: Continue to provide leadership to URI’s chapter of the PES (Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society) for first-time students who earn a GPA of 3.5 or higher after their first semester
Action: Provide a community for students who are members of PES
Goal Two: Embrace Diversity and Social Justice
Strategy 1: Intentionally work to create spaces in University College for Academic Success that are more equitable, inclusive and socially just.
Action: Continue to centralize the values of equity, inclusion, and social justice in the daily work of New Student Programs and UCAS
Action: Include equity, inclusion, and social justice as central to the policies, procedures, programs, and daily practices and conversations of New Student Programs
Action: Staff in NSP will continue to serve with other staff in UCAS on the UCAS Professional Development Task Force that works to advance a staff development agenda that provides ongoing opportunities for critically reflective engagement on issues of equity, inclusion and social justice in all areas of our professional lives.
Strategy 2: Engage at the University-level with conversations and efforts around equity, inclusion, and social justice
Action: Staff representation from UCAS and NSP on the President’s Commission for Status of Faculty, Staff, and Students of Color.
Action: Staff representation from UCAS and NSP on the President’s Commission for Status of LGBTQ Faculty, Staff, and Students.
Action: Staff representation from UCAS and NSP on the Bias Response Team, helping to ensure that the University supports individuals or groups through the reporting process of any incidences of bias, and to then communicate those and any needs and concerns of our community members around bias response.
Strategy 3: Continue to enhance URI 101 program to better support student success
Action: Continue to develop ways to support URI 101’s focus on academic planning in the major
Action: Focus resources for undeclared students in 101 to help them declare a major by 30 credits
Action: Continue to provide content in URI 101 that supports student success in areas of sense of belonging and academic success
Action: Recruit a diverse group of mentors who are effective co-instructors of URI 101
Action: Continually assess the purpose, goals, and content of CSV 302 (course for URI 101 mentors)
Center for Career and Experiential Education (CCEE) ⇡ MENU
Mission
The Center for Career and Experiential Education is committed to engaging students and alumni in connecting their academic foundation with their career pathways. We do this by providing high impact career education, professional development, and experiential learning opportunities. We partner with faculty, community partners, employers and the Rhode Island state government entities to better foster a connection between education and employment.
Summary and Purpose of Department
The University of Rhode Island’s Center for Career and Experiential Education (CCEE) engages undergraduate students and alumni in a high quality personal and professional educational experience, from admission through employment. We value our relationships with local and national employer partners and use innovative ways to connect students, alumni, faculty, and employers in the career education and development process.
Career Education Specialists (CES) offer individual and group professional development sessions and online modules for students and alumni. The topics include self-assessments to discover ones’ strengths, job and internship searching, networking and brand development strategies, resume and cover letter development, salary negotiation, interviewing skills, and major to career industry clusters. We offer CSV and ITR courses to explore a variety of occupations and gain practical experience through an internship or civic engagement.
Experiential Education Coordinators (EEC) work to integrate experiential learning (service learning, project-based learning, internships) into the curriculum. The Coordinator works with faculty to help develop relationships with employers to expand internships, identify opportunities for threading experiential learning into coursework and assess learning outcomes.
Our Employer Relations team works with local and national employers to connect students and alumni with their desired industries. We do this through the Rhody Alumni Mentoring (RAM) program, career and volunteer fairs, networking events, on-campus interviewing, job, internship and volunteer posting, and professional development week. CCEE tracks events, appointments, drop in advising, presentation outreach, on-campus interviews, and postings in the RhodyNet database.
Data and Trends
CCEE is responsible for collecting data pertaining to performance-based funding including high wage high demand jobs (HWHD), experiential learning enrollment, and employer engagement. In addition, the center administers the survey of recent graduates (SORG) annually and summarizes the responses for each degree granting college dean. The center has been recording student satisfaction data on all students engaged in the Feinstein Civic Engagement projects, alternative spring break programs, as well as student soft-skill development (communication skills, teamwork, initiative, and analytical thinking) through enrollment in an internship through the ITR program. Finally, the center is tasked with recording internship details for the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (NC-SARA), starting in 2019.
The Center for Career and Experiential Education provides information regarding URI’s economic impact on the community. One way we impact the economy is through community engagement such as volunteer activities, alternative spring break trips, and organized service learning opportunities through academic courses.
CCEE Strategic Goals
Two key goals that incorporate experiential learning in the academic strategic plan include enhancing student success and expanding research, scholarship, and creative works. Several of the strategies for achieving these goals include: expanding pedagogical approaches focused on engaging students in learning across the curriculum, expanding opportunities for experiential learning within all majors, and involving students in current research and creative projects.
Goal One: Enhance Student Success
Strategy 1: Offer comprehensive career education online and in person to continue to increase, improve and enhance professional development and prepare students for career decision making.
Actions: Career Education Specialists (CES) and Experiential Education Coordinators (EEC) partner with faculty to integrate career education into curriculum using modules, presentations, CSV or ITR.
Actions: CES and EEC offer faculty language for syllabi to incorporate career education assignments into appropriate courses.
Actions: CES assists students with connecting experiences with the world of work.
Actions: CES engage in professional development within their industry cluster to enhance their knowledge of the field and create a wider network of professionals for students.
Actions: Rhody Alumni Mentoring Program (RAM) will provide a platform for student and alumni discussion on the career decision making process.
Strategy 2: Enhance relationships with employers in Rhode Island and Nationally to better connect students with high impact experiential learning opportunities and meaningful jobs.
Actions: Create cluster-based career education activities including industry specific fairs, large and small-scale networking events, and Professional Development Week activities for employers to engage with students and faculty.
Actions: Track the opportunities posted in RhodyNet by cluster and conduct intentional outreach to employers less engaged clusters.
Actions: Work with campus partners to track employer engagement within the degree granting colleges.
Actions: Utilize the data in SORG to reach out to employers hiring students to fully engage them earlier on in a student’s academic career.
Actions: Establish clear pathways for employers seeking to recruit Ram talent.
Actions: Continue to identify new and diverse employers who have the potential to serve on boards for the University.
Strategy 3: Determine an efficient and cost-effective approach to increasing the response rate for SORG to learn more about our recent graduates.
Actions: Create learning outcomes for major-to-career pathways for each major.
Actions: Partner with the SORG committee and UCAS to determine how to use human and financial resources to increase the response rate.
Actions: Involve the alumni career advisors in active engagement with recent alumni in their transition from major to career.
Actions: Work with all degree-granting colleges to increase participation of graduates in the SORG process, through graduation required forms and surveys.
Goal Two: Embrace Diversity and Social Justice
Strategy 1: Create an inclusive advising approach.
Actions: Partner with Talent Development Program, International Education, and Disability Services staff to better understand any barriers to employment for students of color, international students, and students with disabilities.
Actions: Identify more supervisors of color who can mentor all students, and particularly those historically under-represented.
Actions: Review policies within the center that may hinder students from accessing internships like transportation, GPA, unmet accommodations, and visa restrictions.
Actions: Design and teach a lesson in ITR on inclusivity in the workplace so students enter communities with a greater awareness of personal bias and understanding of respect in the workplace.
Goal Three: Expand Research, Scholarship and Creative Work
Strategy 1: Engage faculty and students in capstone classes with project-based learning, experiential learning, and/or networking opportunities.
Actions: Utilize RhodyNet for employers to post project-based learning opportunities.
Actions: Provide employer and student networking “meetups” by cluster.
Actions: Work with faculty to design and deliver D1 – general education “integrate and apply” courses.
Actions: Identify faculty who could benefit from additional professional development in experiential learning and invite them to engage with the staff.
Actions: Collaborate with living learning communities and involve employers, faculty, and students in project-based opportunities by cluster.
Strategy 2:Develop a marketing plan on and off campus to communicate the success in experiential learning occurring annually.
Actions: Create a brand for the center with the support of campus partners in marketing and web design.
Actions: Highlight students engaged in service, advocacy, alternative spring breaks, internships, and other creative projects.
Actions: Create a celebratory event for faculty, students, and employers highlighting experiential learning as the hallmark of the University of Rhode Island.
Actions: Collaborate with BEC, Undergraduate research and innovation, and professional academic advisors to market experiential learning.