The Advisor

Midterm grades are due March 13. Please submit midterm grades for 100-299 level classes and for any student in an upper level or graduate class who is not performing well. It is important students are aware of their current grade so they can take action to maintain or improve the grade. They may also need to consider the W-drop option. Further, with the Starfish Student Success Network, we can outreach to those who have a D or E grade at midterm and provide support and assistance to the student.

"I would say that submitting midterm grades for 100- and 200-level courses is a requirement, but students really need to be provided meaningful grades. Simply providing students a grade, such as all As or all Cs, does not provide students with an understanding of how they are actually doing," said Ashley Ireland, Assistant Provost and Director of Online Learning. She continued, "Grades in Canvas (with timely assignment grading) are good but don't provide student support staff an idea of the full picture of how the student is doing."

Murray State students said....

• “Midterm grades are important so we can be successful and determine what we need to be doing to get good grades.” Lexi
• "Not knowing how I'm doing at midterm creates unwanted stress. It would put me at ease to be able to see my midterm grades." Arionna
  
• "It would have been helpful to know how I was doing along the way. Very frustrating because I couldn't make changes to improve, if necessary." Emily
• "I use midterm grades as a gauge so I know what I need to do the rest of the semester." Isaac
• “An unreasonably high number of professors do not actively record grades in Canvas or any other student-accessible fashion, and I believe there is nothing more important than knowing where you stand in a class. I think midterms grades are crucial motivators.” Hayden
• “Many students see their midterm grade as a judge of their work ethic. If their grade is around a C or below, that is motivation to bring the grade up before the class ends. If the grade is a high C or above, they know that they are doing good and need to keep going in order to succeed. If there is no midterm grade, students are clueless on how to help themselves by helping their grades via adjusting their work ethic.” Madeline
  

• “Midterm grades are a good way for students to gauge how they are doing in the class. I always look at my midterm grades to help me decide how much work I put into each class on a weekly basis. If I make an A I might only put in an 1-2 hours, but if I make a C I am more likely to put in 2-3 hours of study and time to email my professor questions about course content.” Jill

Thanks to Murray State University’s faculty who raise flags and the success of workflows developed and refined by the Student Engagement and Success team, Murray State closes the loop on concerns by contacting students and driving them towards needed resources on campus. By using Closure Reasons to track outcomes, Murray State can determine the correlated impact of these outreach efforts as they relate to student persistence. The data show that technology-enabled interventions that led to direct, two-way communication support students’ retention, leading to both a stronger student experience and greater revenue for the institution.

In 2014, Murray State University partnered with Need Line of Murray-Calloway County to create the

Racers Helping Racers food pantry for students. On February 14, 2024, a 10 year celebration will take place in the food pantry.

Join in the celebration!

Wednesday, February 14, 2024

2:00-4:00 pm

Blackburn Room 244

• When advising students, create a personal advising philosophy: How do you approach students? How do you advise students? What are your individual beliefs and experiences? Once created, you can use the philosophy as a guide when meeting with students.
• To be more student-centered, consider renaming "office hours" to "student hours."

As a result of many months of research, analysis, preparation, and collaboration completed by those on the President’s Commission on Academic Advising, as well as the Coalition for Academic Advising Excellence, last April 2023, we officially launched our First-Year Dual Advising pilot for the Fall 2023 student cohort with the Department of Management, Marketing, and Business Administration. Later, in May, we began working with the Human Services program. Through partnership with faculty and thorough planning, our Professional Advisors were able to assist students at their RNO session, during the remainder of the summer, and into their first weeks of classes at MSU. Our First-Year Professional Advisor team continues to communicate and connect with students during their “first year here,” by hosting in-person and virtual office hours, sending out timely information, and assisting students in navigating the college experience. While preliminary data is still be collected, we are pleased to see indicators of positive impact for these students. As the pilot approaches year two, we are excited to expand to more departments and programs on campus. This April, for the Fall 2024 student cohort, we will be including the Departments of Accounting, Computer Science and Information Systems, Economics and Finance, Criminal Justice and Social Work, and the School of Agriculture (all programs except Pre-Vet, Vet Tech, and Animal/Equine Science). We look forward to serving and supporting more students, and one another, as we continue to build this model together.

• The Professional Advisor team extends a sincere thank you to the many individuals that have contributed to the launch of this pilot!
• A special thank you to Dr. Heath Keller, Kelsey Johnson, and Dr. Justin Brogan for allowing us the opportunity to launch with you!
  

Learn More! Contact Leanna McClure (llinnmcclure@murraystate.edu) with questions.

NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising is the premier Association for student success through academic advising in higher education. Formally chartered on May 2, 1979, NACADA serves its members through a variety of professional development and networking opportunities. In addition, the Association supports student success at the institution level through its comprehensive consulting services, Outcomes of Advising Surveys, and NACADA Excellence in Academic Advising program. NACADA’s elected and appointed leadership works in cooperation with the NACADA Executive Office to lead the 15,000-member not-for-profit Association. Learn More!

The Kentucky Advising Academy (KAA) provides a free comprehensive series of professional learning and resources for school counselors, Family Resource/Youth Service Center (FRYSC) coordinators, and all professional educators as well as flexible opportunities to connect with higher education and postsecondary advising leaders. The goal of the Kentucky Advising Academy (KAA) is to support Kentucky educators in providing students equitable access to postsecondary advising for a successful transition from their secondary education to their desired career. The KAA supports educators serving in advising roles by providing comprehensive professional learning sessions, online resources and networking opportunities centered around postsecondary advising.

Learn More!

Kentucky Advising Academy's Advising Toolkit

Below are a important resources to view now and reference throughout the semester.

• Academic Advising Website for YOU and Students
  
• Academic Deadlines and Important Dates
• Mental Health Resources (Includes on and off campus resources)
  
• Not Sure Where to Start? Start with us! Center for Student Engagement and Success
• Registration Resources (Includes myRegistration resources)
• Student Financial Services:
  
• Bursar's Office
  
• Financial Aid Office
  
• Scholarship Office
  
• University Catalog

If you have article or resource suggestions or questions, please email Peggy Whaley, Director of Student Engagement and Success, at pwhaley@murraystate.edu.

_____________________________

The Advisor | February 2024