Dear Faculty Colleagues,
We’re almost to the halfway point of the semester! The Office of Advising & Co-Curricular Programs has put together some information and resources that we hope will be helpful during the midterm and pre-registration periods.
- Spring Registration –Stay tuned for announcements for spring ‘24 registration which will include some new changes to the Banner 9 registration interface. We will work closely with the Registrar’s Office in hopes of a smooth transition. PINs will be distributed later on in the month.
- Scenarios in Advising (Registration) – The class deans are your partners in fostering student success! Join us on Wednesday, October 18th for a virtual faculty open meeting to discuss scenarios related to advising and registration – including the new registration interface in Banner Self-Service.
- Dean’s Review Form – The dean’s review serves as an early academic alert that allows faculty to document and relay significant concerns related to academic performance prior to midterm grades. Upon receipt of the form, the class dean will meet with the student to determine the stressors impacting their behavior, connect the student to appropriate resources, and formulate a plan to improve in the course. If the student continues to miss class in excess of the formal warning without an excuse, faculty can notify the class dean, prompting the student’s mandatory withdrawal from the course. The deadline for students to withdraw from individual courses this semester is Tuesday, November 14th.
- College Transition Workshops – Dean Abigail Close is hosting a series of Academic Success Workshops. While many are designed to assist first-year students with their transition to both the campus and academic classroom, every student may also find value in attending a session. For a complete list of what is being offered, click here!
Academic Resource Hub – The Hub has partnered with 75+ student peer educators and 30+ faculty members to provide academic support programming for students through Supplemental Instruction, Mentored Study Groups, and Individual Peer Tutoring. Sessions run September 3rd through December 8th. No sessions over fall break. Students can find the resources associated with supported classes in TracCloud, the Hub’s appointment management system. The Hub will begin recruiting in mid-October for peer educator as well as SI leader positions for Spring 2024. The application will be available for submission by student candidates beginning October 30th. Faculty are welcome to contact, Jill Heilman, heilmanj@lafayette.edu with any questions or to learn more about the Hub’s support programming.
Accessibility Services – Students registered with Accessibility Services have been reminded to request their Letter of Accommodation: a document provided by Accessibility Services which outlines the reasonable accommodations that are to be provided to the student. The letter is sent electronically to each instructor and the student is responsible for communicating directly with each faculty member regarding the accommodations and how the accommodations apply to the course. Please contact Marty Sullivan sullivma@lafayette.edu with any questions.
Health Professions – If you have students expressing interest in a career in Health Professions, please encourage them to review our HP website here. You can direct them to alert us of their interest by emailing us at healthprofessions@lafayette.edu. Additionally, they can register for an individual advising appointment with Prof. Waters (RISC 218, watersn@lafayette.edu) or Ms. Simona Glaus (101 Scott Hall, glauss@lafayette.edu) via email. Information about our upcoming Health Professions events can be found on our HP website at this link. We will be adding new programs as they become finalized. Juniors and Seniors who are considering applying to a health professions school this spring are required to attend our application meetings on 10/4 and 11/1.
Multi-language Learner Academic Support – The English for Academic Purposes Center will continue to provide academic support services for multi-language learners. Such services include workshops, ENG100 class, the Conversation PARDner Program, one-on-one English language tutoring sessions, the center’s Spaces site for language learning materials, etc.
- On Tuesday, October 24, from 12:00 – 1:00pm, we will be offering a workshop entitled, “Inclusive Teaching & Excellence Series: Teaching International Students -Case Applications,” by collaborating with CITLS and International Student Advising. Click this link to learn more: https://calendar.lafayette.edu/node/63392
- The online magazine Global Expressions: Writing Beyond the Mother Tongue is calling for paper submissions. Especially, if you are teaching a writing class, please encourage your multi-language students to submit their second language writings or become a contributor to the magazine.
- To better support the incoming first-year international students transitioning to academic life in the U.S., the EAP Center is offering a new program called EAP First Year Institute, where we will be discussing topics including campus resources, academic writing and reading, U.S. classroom, ChatGPT, academic integrity, college academic technology tools, and cultural diversity. Please encourage your students to sign up. Here is a link to the program flyer.
- When advising international students, cultural differences as well as communication barriers can make it challenging for both student and advisor. Please check out the Four-Year Academic Success Plan for International Students, a sample advising syllabus developed for Lafayette advisors, some tips summarized for successful communication with international students, and a series of videos discussing areas that were mentioned by many international students as areas important but unfamiliar when they were adjusting to college life.
- You can also find teaching suggestions for working with multilingual students posted on the center’s website. Please contact Tingting Kang at kangt@lafayette.edu with any questions.
Scholarships & Fellowships Office – Please encourage students to make an appointment to meet with Dean Goldberg at externalscholarships@lafayette.edu to learn about different scholarship and fellowship opportunities regardless of their class year. The earlier students are made aware of the diverse opportunities available to them, the earlier and better prepared they are to put forward competitive applications. Additionally, we encourage you to check out our Office website to explore the myriad opportunities available.
Speech and Debate – The award-winning Lafayette Speech and Debate team (also known as Forensics) is hosting our annual tournament on our campus on Oct. 14-15.
We still need your help!!!
Judges are necessary to operate the tournament. Each round of student performances is observed and ranked by a judge. The competitors will be involved in events like Drama, Poetry, Impromptu, and Persuasion. That is where Lafayette faculty and staff can be part of the action. Don’t worry if you have ZERO experience. The team will provide informational packets and training sessions. After one round you’ll be an expert and you will be amazed by what the students have accomplished.
Each round is a little over an hour. The team really appreciates anyone who is able to judge two or three rounds… or even the day. Even a single round would be a huge help too! If you have questions or would like to sign up to judge, please contact Scott Placke at plackeh@lafayette.edu. We are hoping to have our judges signed up by Thursday, Oct. 5.
Student-Athlete Academic Support – Athletics offers a range of services to student-athletes who have the dual challenge of performing well in the classroom while maintaining a commitment to Division I athletics. The Peer Mentor program matches first-year student-athletes with experienced athletes for weekly mentoring and guidance. In addition, semester-long academic coaching is provided to support select student-athletes in a variety of areas. Study Flex is available to all student-athletes to assist with time management and to take advantage of studying during the academic day. Lastly, student-athletes who don’t personally own a laptop may rent equipment at no cost when traveling to competitions. Please contact Carly Riepenhoff with any questions or concerns regarding student-athletes.
See you in a few weeks,
Office of Advising & Co-Curricular Programs