September 2, 2014
It's here: New KSU Advisor Center in iSIS
Submitted by Diana Blake and Steve Dandaneau
Dear colleagues,
The new KSU Advisor Center, a tool set made specifically for academic advising at K-State, is now available. See how to access the KSU Advisor Center for details.
Hundreds of K-State faculty and staff engage in academic advising, which is intrinsically important for students. For example, academic advising is critical for the success of first-generation students who may not have as much ready access to knowledge about higher education and who, not incidentally, comprise fully 40 percent of K-State's undergraduate students.
It is also the case that undergraduate education is increasingly complicated by precollege course work; the propensity of students to change majors or to pursue multiple majors, minors and certificates; the increasing availability and quality of virtual learning opportunities; the increasing availability and use of data analytics in academic advising; and the increasing importance of so-called enrichments like undergraduate research, study abroad and professional internships, among others, for shaping our students' chances for postbaccalaureate success.
Thus, advisors now have a greater need for efficient and effective advising tools like the KSU Advisor Center which facilitates their valuable time with advisees. As Lisa Last, an advisor in the College of Architecture, Planning & Design, recently noted, "I have been using the KSU Advisor Center's filters and groups this morning and I love them!" Ashley Blake of Global Campus said that using the KSU Advisor Center was "easy as pie," while Julie Hunt, an open option advisor in the College of Arts & Sciences, said the center's introduction is the source of excitement for advising across campus.
Faculty and staff who advise undergraduate students are encouraged to visit iSIS Help for Advisors. This site provides a wealth of information on the new KSU Advisor Center, including:
- Detailed instructions "How To's" for each feature in the September release
- Frequently asked questions
- Product road map
- Feature comparison
- And more
Open forum presentations and hands-on instructor led trainings are scheduled throughout September. This K-State Today article provides dates, times and locations for each session.
An online training course in Canvas is also available for people unable to attend instructor-led training. It provides an overview for the major functions provided in the KSU Advisor Center, allowing advisors to begin using the new tools. To obtain access to the online course, contact Fred Darkow at fdarkow@k-state.edu or the iSIS ambassador for your college or department.
We want to thank the members of the project team for their commitment and expertise. We are fortunate to have such a talented and collegial group of academic advisors and technology experts to move this initiative forward. We also wish to thank all of the iSIS ambassadors, who are academic advisors who have volunteered to serve as a local point of contact and subject matter expert within their college or department.