UNews - learning strategist

Student Success Centre launching

trevor.kenney — Mon, 29 Jul 2013 16:48:06 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is launching a Student Success Centre – a new business unit that brings together a number of different resources and services to help students successfully navigate through their university experiences.

"This is a great step for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, as we move forward with a co-ordinated approach to student engagement," says Dr. Judith Lapadat, the U of L's Associate Vice-President (Students).

Building on the recommendations of an all-campus recruitment strategy committee, the Student Success Centre will be managed by Trish Jackson, a U of L grad (BASc '03), former SU executive member and international recruitment officer.

Jackson will be joined by campus outreach coordinator Auburn Philips (MA'12) and support personnel drawn from other offices on campus to work with students to ensure they get the most out of their university experience.

A Learning Strategist position and a Tutoring Coordinator position are in the process of being filled, and will add tutoring assistance, time management help and student leadership development to complement of services offered through the centre.

The centre is an extension of activities that the Recruitment & Student Life office and Counselling Services have created over the past seven years to assist high school students with their transition to university life, only it will be extended to all years and levels of study, and to the U of L's campuses in Calgary and Edmonton.

"We are going to take the programming we already operate and make it more obvious to students who may, at any point in their university career, feel they need some extra help in a variety of ways," says Lapadat. "That can include students looking for tutoring assistance, study skill development and general information about how to be a successful student.

"Attending university is a big decision, and we know it is the right decision for a variety of reasons. We are also mindful of how to help students get the most out of this experience so that they successfully complete their programs."

In the start-up phase, the Student Success Centre team will work to increase awareness and understanding of all student services, and increase the quality of the student experience for students (particularly those who do not live on campus), among other projects.

Jackson says that input and collaboration will be two of the key success points for the group as they move forward.

"We are developing the programming by consulting with Faculties, Student Service Units, the Students' Union, and the Graduate Students' Association. Student input will be solicited to ensure we are working for the students, and from a student perspective."

The Student Success Centre will be housed in Anderson Hall near the Career & Co-Op Services and Scholarships & Student Finance offices, and will be open for business in late August.

Enhancing student engagement the focus of learning circles

trevor.kenney — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 20:49:52 +0000

How better to engage students in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge community than to involve them in building the supportive culture they want and need?

This creative method of developing a supportive campus community is the basis of the Learning Circles project, and involves the creation of high performance teams (HPTs). Learning Circles is another Recruitment and Retention Project (RRP) with a goal of enhancing the student-centred service commitment of the U of L.

Craig Milner, an instructor in the Faculty of Management, and Heather Mirau, director of integrated planning, have been co-leading a group of employees and two sets of students who represent various disciplines and years of study in this pilot project. Its goal is to establish a process for developing a culture of HPTs based on self-management principles.

"Each team develops its own team culture within a guided process for achieving a level of high performance," explains Milner, who is well acquainted with the use of HPTs, and has a rich background in guiding and training high performance teams. He brings this knowledge into the classroom as well, teaching management students on how to construct effective HPTs.

Through valuable teamwork, students support each other in helping to build a supportive campus community.

To date, the teams have been meeting on a weekly basis, sometimes independently and sometimes in a group setting.

The employee team is known as the Dots and is meant to serve only as a source of connectivity for the students to find the expertise they need on campus to help them succeed. In cases where the employees may not know the department or person a student needs, it is their role to find that contact. In so doing, both the employee and the student learn what services are available and how they can be accessed.

"We really have great resources and expertise on campus, and sometimes it's a matter of simply finding those connections," says Mirau. "This is a great opportunity for both our students and employees to learn about all the services that are available to our students."

The project will look to add more individuals to each team in the spring semester, giving them an opportunity to ease into the team culture, at which time the teams will organically split and repeat the process to continue to take in more students and employees.

The Learning Circles have been well received by those participating in the pilot project.

"The experience has helped me analyze my own education and in turn create a strategy to improve my campus experience," says Nicole Meurs, a second-year management student majoring in human resources. "With the support of my fellow teammates and the knowledge sharing and resources of our Dots, it has really opened my eyes to everything that is available to us."

Jennifer McArthur, a learning strategist in the Counselling Services office, says her involvement with the HPTs has been very rewarding.

"It's been great to work with the students and help create those connections for them, and it's also been a real learning experience for our group too," she says.

Anyone wishing to participate in a Learning Circle is urged to contact any of the following: Kristy Burke (kristy.burke@uleth.ca), Lynette LaCroix (lynette.lacroix@uleth.ca), Nicole Leusink (nicole.leusink@uleth.ca), Jennifer McArthur (j.mcarthur@uleth.ca), Craig Milner (craig.milner@uleth.ca), and Heather Mirau (mirau@uleth.ca).

This story first appeared in the January 2013 edition of the Legend. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

New space allows DRC staff to better serve students

trevor.kenney — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 20:51:30 +0000

Update - The Disabilities Resource Centre is now referred to as the Accommodated Learning Centre

The next time you walk into a classroom, take a look around and try and find a student with a disability. With just over three per cent of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's student body currently registered with the Disabilities Resource Centre (DRC), chances are there's at least one there – they're just not as obvious as you might think.

With a supportive, personal approach that focuses on helping these students blend seamlessly into the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community, the DRC has had to expand to keep pace with the ever-growing number of students in need of its services. A move to a new office space (B760) just prior to Christmas was therefore greeted with open arms.

"We made it work before and we were able to do it, but this is like luxury," exclaims Resource Centre Manager and learning strategist Christine Johnson. "We guarantee confidentiality and to have an office like we had, it was very difficult to ensure that. We try and normalize the process, it's not an awful thing to come into this office, and it's more respectful this way. Having a disability is just one part of who you are, and you don't necessarily want everyone in the world to know about it."

Johnson came on staff just over four years ago when disabilities resources consisted of a half-time position housed in the counselling services office. Now, Johnson has four full-time staffers to work with as they tend to the needs of about 260 registered students.

So, where are all these students? Likely, they're studying and learning right next to you. Disabilities are not as obvious as some might think.

"The highest percentage of people registered with us have learning disabilities," Johnson says. "It's quite a large segment and it's growing. Part of that is because the kids here have been accommodated throughout their schooling because these disabilities have become more recognized and diagnosed earlier. When they come into post-secondary school, the expectation is that the accommodations will continue to be there."

Those who register with the DRC must provide documentation of their disability, whether it is from a doctor, a psychologist or psychiatrist. Disabilities range from physical and medical conditions to mental health difficulties such as depression and anxiety.

The centre can help in a variety of ways. Some are as subtle as providing tutoring to help students with exam anxiety, while Karl Rejman is in charge of the assistive technology aspect of the DRC. Rejman's AT devices can aid students with auditory and visual disabilities for example. There's nothing Johnson and her staff won't tackle to help a student in the pursuit of their education.

"If there is a student with a chronic medical condition and they're confined to bed, we can put their textbooks on CD, which is really a wonderful way to deal with their condition," Johnson says. "It also keeps them feeling like they are moving towards their goal, and that's very important."

One of the great advantages of the new DRC office is the addition of eight separate and private exam rooms. Many students require the most help at exam time and previously the office had just 11 rooms located in the Web unit area.

"Until we moved in here, during mid-terms and finals, we would have to book labs and other classrooms because of our numbers," says Johnson. "This has given us the ability to really accommodate students appropriately."

Not all students ask for help. Most find out about the DRC through referrals from friends, but Johnson has found professors are beginning to recognize learning disabilities more frequently and have sent students to the centre for screenings.

"This is a really comfortable place to come," she says. "It's very important you create an atmosphere where people feel good about coming in, and I believe I see that with the students who come here.

"We're able to provide a really individualized service. We're fortunate with our numbers that we can do that as opposed to some of the other, bigger universities who have so many students that they just aren't able to work as personally with students."

Students with disabilities, or those who want more information about the Disabilities Resource Centre, can visit the new location in B760, or call 403-329-2766.

UNews - learning strategist

Student Success Centre launching

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