Washington State University’s Academic Advising Association [WSU ACADA] is now accepting letters of nomination for Outstanding Achievements in Academic Advising by WSU faculty and professional advisors.  WSU ACADA is the primary organized group of professional and faculty advisors and student support personnel at WSU.  One of the main purposes of our organization is to increase advising effectiveness at WSU by strengthening communication on academic advising issues within the academic community among faculty and professional advisors.

WSU ACADA would like to be the first to recognize outstanding advisors within our university by presenting a plaque to the recipient of each category at an awards ceremony next spring. WSU ACADA Awards will be given in the following categories:

New Advisor category (advising for 3 or fewer years)

1. Academic Advising Primary Role – Individuals whose primary role at Washington State University is the direct delivery of academic advising services to students.
2. Faculty Academic Advising – Individuals whose primary responsibility is teaching and who spend a portion of their time at Washington State University providing academic advising/mentoring/support services to students.

Advising category (advising for more than 3 years)

1. Academic Advising Primary Role – Individuals whose primary role at Washington State University is the direct delivery of academic advising services to students.
2. Faculty Academic Advising – Individuals whose primary responsibility is teaching and who spend a portion of their time at Washington State University providing academic advising/mentoring/support services to students.  Must have faculty status at Washington State University.
3. Academic Advising Administrator — Individuals who may provide direct academic advising services but whose primary responsibility is as an administrator or director, and is responsible for an academic advising program at Washington State University.

The criteria used by the NACADA Awards Committee when evaluating applications are:

• Strong interpersonal skills
• Availability to advisees, faculty, or staff
• Frequency of contact with advisees
• Appropriate referral activity
• Use and dissemination of appropriate information sources
• Evidence of student success rate, by advisor or department
• Caring, helpful attitude toward advisees, faculty, and staff
• Meeting advisees in informal settings
• Participation in and support of intrusive advising to build strong relationships with advisees
• Monitoring of student progress toward academic and career goals
• Mastery of institutional regulations, policies, and procedures
• Ability to engage in, promote, and support developmental advising
• Evidence of administering an academic advising program that supports NACADA’s Core Values
• Evidence that the advising program reflects the standards of good practice in the CAS Standards and Guidelines for Academic Advising
• Participation in and support of advisor development programs
• Perception by colleagues of nominee’s advising or advising administration skills
• Institutional recognition of nominee for outstanding advising or advising administration

Anyone can nominate a WSU employee for an award!  To nominate an advisor/administrator for one of the above categories, the nomination process will require a 1-2 page letter of nomination (support) addressing and providing examples of the applicant’s use of developmental advising, involvement in and use of the university network in advising students, and encouraging student responsibility for his/her education.  Include the name, college, department and contact email and phone number of the person being nominated.  The nomination deadline is August 15, 2014 and letters should be sent to Yung-Hwa Anna Chow, Chair, WSU ACADA Awards Committee, ZIP 2421 or ychow@wsu.edu.

• Instructions for Award Application
• Example Nomination Letter

WSU award recipients will be entered to compete for regional (October 2014 deadline) and national (March 2015 deadline) level advising awards as well.  Thank you for your support to recognize outstanding advisors at Washington State University.

Yung-Hwa Anna Chow, Chair

WSU ACADA Awards Committee

Please fill out our RSVP for the WSU ACADA Spring Social in Sunnyside Park in Pullman on May 15, 2014 from 4-6 pm. This is a potluck and family friendly event to celebrate the end of the semester!

Suggested potluck items if you would like to bring something to share:
WSU-ACADA: Burgers, veggie burgers, hot dogs, and all the fixings!
Last Names A-J: Side dishes
Last Names K-N: Drinks
Last Names O-Z: Desserts

Submit RSVP by Wednesday May 13th.

[Form id=”12″]

Thank you and we hope to see you there!

MEDIA CONTACT:  Brooke Whiting, WSU ACADA Awards Chair, 509-335-7632

Jared Brickman, Communications Assistant, WSU Office of Undergraduate Education, 509-335-8070, UCHCCommMar.4@wsu.edu

PULLMAN, Wash. — Alicia Petersen and Patrick Carter from Washington State University were recently rewarded for their academic advising efforts by the Region 8 chapter of the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA).

Petersen, who is an advisor in the Center for Advising and Career Development (CACD),  received the NACADA Region 8 Excellence in Advising – New Advisor Award.  This is given based upon qualities and practices that distinguish the advisor as promising for future advising excellence, along with early development of their craft. She has been with CACD since summer 2012. CACD is part of the WSU Office of Undergraduate Education.

Carter, an associate professor in the School of Biological Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences, was awarded the NACADA Region 8 Faculty Academic Advisor Award – Certificate of Merit. This honor reflects evidence of a faculty member with an excellent record in academic advising along with documented success of advisees and laudable professional practices. In addition to advising pre-veterinary medicine students for nearly two decades, Carter also mentors students in his research lab.

The mission of NACADA is to encourage student success through advising resources such as networking and professional development.

Previously, Carter and Petersen were named top advisors in their categories by the local professional advising organization, WSU ACADA (Academic Advising Association). Carter and Petersen join several others in the WSU chapter who have earned top advising awards at the regional and national levels.

Schools in states and provinces in the Pacific Northwest are members of Region 8. Those include British Columbia, Alberta, Alaska, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Washington.