The interdepartmental collaboration and communication between the Office of Advising and the Online Campus administration produces effective programming and support for the success of the online program at Columbia University School of Social Work, including instructors and students. This innovative approach may be applicable to a variety of university contexts.
The Office of Advising and the Online Campus at Columbia University’s School of Social Work (CSSW) collaborate and communicate in a variety of ways that lead to programmatic and student success. In this session, the facilitators will share ways the offices intersect and lessons learned that we hope will be applicable to a variety of university contexts. The session will be interactive and will include opportunities for attendees to share their ideas and ask questions.
The goals/outcomes for this session include sharing:
-
The impact of the advising model for online students at the Columbia University School of Social Work
-
The intersectionality between CSSW’s Online Campus administration and the Office of Advising
-
Lessons learned from CSSW’s Online Campus experience and future directions
Examples of the collaboration between CSSW’s Online Campus administration and the Office of Advising include:
-
Interdepartmental Online Operations meetings with directors and deans, where future planning around programming and policies takes place, issues are discussed, and information is shared so that all departments are on the same page
-
Sharing of feedback from advisors, students, and instructors to inform course development and program operations
-
The Office of Advising guest-speaking at Online Campus faculty meetings to share policies and answer faculty questions
-
Advisors participating in the Online Campus’s Institute on Pedagogy and Technology for Online Courses to understand the Online Campus’s academic programming
-
Online Campus administration and faculty supporting the recruitment of remote advisors across the country
-
Ad-hoc meetings to address issues as they arise
Benefits of this intersectional collaboration include:
-
A comprehensive experience for students, focused on student success
-
Increased program success by fostering open communication among all team members across all departments and management levels