Services for Students: Communities of Practice | Process Re ...

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Services for Students: Communities of Practice

The University?s Academic Plan and White Paper prioritize academic quality and, specifically, strategies aimed ? directly and indirectly ? at enhancing the student experience at York. To that end, developing ?Communities of Practice? was proposed as a strategy for enhancing existing institutional capacity; the first two will be focused on Academic Advising and Peer Mentoring.

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Initiative Summary	Communities of Practice facilitate dialogue on issues of shared interest to student services personnel, build relationships and creat networks.? These outcomes are identified in the literature (Seifert, 2011) as contributors to increased staff engagement in fostering student success and furthering the institution?s academic mission.? They are also cited as a covert strategy for moving towards more ?student-focused? structures (regardless of whether those structures are centralized, decentralized, or ?hub and spoke?). Most immediately, the following outcomes will be pursued:? conduct regular meetings with participants from across campus; define roles and responsibilities related to each service;? embrace theoretical knowledge;? adopt best practices;? and, invest in developing measurements of success.??
Aligning to the Vision of PRASE ?	The purpose of this project is to better leverage the significant human resource investment York currently makes in delivering student services.? Related objectives include: enhanced service, increased institutional intelligence, improved morale, and ? ultimately ? an enhanced student experience.
Timeline ?	In October, 2011, the Chairs and key leaders involved in the two relevant sub-committees of Retention Council (Academic Advising and Peer Mentoring) were approached individually and asked to participate.? All were enthusiastic and agreed to leverage their personal networks to foster the Communities. On January 5, 2012, a group meeting of colleagues invested in Academic Advising and/or Peer Mentoring was convened; on January 10, 2012, a meeting of the sub-committee on Peer Advising was convened.? The Academic Advising sub-committee will be meeting in February, 2012.
Leadership ?	Janet Morrison, Project Director, PRASE is leading this project with functional leadership provided by the Vice President, Students and academic leadership provided by the Associate Vice President, Teaching & Learning.??
Project Tracking?	On track.

Source: http://prase.news.yorku.ca/2012/07/30/services-for-students-communities-of-practice/

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