The Furman Advantage: Developing a Culture of Enhanced

Advising and Mentoring

Brad Harmon, Ph.D.

Assistant Dean for the First-Year and Second-Year

Experience

Michelle Horhota, Ph.D.

Associate Dean for Mentoring and Advising

Presentation Outcomes

• Learn about The Furman Advantage and its promises.

• Learn about Furman’s Four Year Pathway and the intentional

advising/mentoring initiatives it has inspired.

• Learn about the development of the Pathways Advising Program.

• Learn how Furman defines the roles of advisors and mentors.

• Learn about important changes Furman has made to advisor

assessment and training/development to support The Furman

Advantage and its promises/outcomes.

Furman University at a Glance• A private co-educational liberal arts university founded in 1826 in

Greenville, South Carolina

• 2,800 undergraduates from 45 states and 49 countries

• 60+ academic programs within 3

degrees (BA, BS, BM)

• Student-to-Faculty Ratio: 11:1

• Average Class Size: 19 students

• Division I Athletic Program

Furman University at a Glance• A residential campus (four-year residency requirement)

• 92.5% of Furman first-year students return for their second year

• 73.0% graduate in four years; 80.3% in five years

• 97% placement rate 6 months post-

graduation

• #5 “Best Schools for Making an

Impact” (Princeton Review)

Furman’s VisionThe Furman Advantage guarantees

every student an unparalleled education

that combines classroom learning with

real-world experiences and self-

discovery. This integrated four-year

pathway, guided by a diverse

community of mentors, prepares

students for lives of purpose and

accelerated career and community

impact — demonstrating in concrete

terms the value of a Furman education.

The Furman Advantage Promises• Excellent academic instruction

• Variety of applied- or engaged-learning experiences that are

appropriate for students’ interests and developmental stage

• Intentional reflection to help students deepen learning and

better understand their own skills, values, and next steps

• Thoughtful guidance provided by a team of advisors and mentors

• Opportunities to engage globally and locally

• Meaningful connection to career opportunities and professional

development

The Four-Year Pathway

The Furman Advantage: A Four-Year Pathway

The Furman Advantage: A Four-Year PathwayYear 1: Explore & Discover

Year 1: Explore & Discover• Implemented enhancements to new

student orientation

• Summer model built around college student thriving

• Academic Pathways Fair added during summer orientation to help students and parents/families better understand available academic opportunities

• Opening convocation moved to start of fall orientation and reimagined

New Student Survey• Annual survey given to new students in May

• Redesigned survey this year to reflect The Furman Advantage

messages

• Survey asks students to indicate: • Academic interests

• Interests in campus involvement (co-curricular and extra-curricular)

• Confidence in various academic abilities (writing, learning from

setbacks, etc.)

New Student Survey• Students were asked to respond to two open-ended questions:

“Describe what you, as a thriving college student, would look like.

What do you think may help or hinder that from happening?”

“Is there anything you would like your advisor to know about you?”

• New student survey responses shared with academic advisors prior

to the advisor’s first meeting with students during fall orientation

Sample of New Student Survey Thriving Responses

• I will be a student-athlete playing for the men's soccer team and will try

my best to develop real, raw, and authentic relationships…I will work

hard off the field and in the classroom to do my absolute best at

managing my work and my soccer schedule. I will get involved with my

professors and use them as great resources to help me out through my

years there.

• I would like to see myself trying classes that I would not have normally

chosen for myself in order that I get a feel for everything and hopefully

this would allow me to eliminate or reinforce a certain major/life purpose

path. I think adjusting to the academics will set me back a little bit but

that is normal and expected.

Year 1: Explore & Discover

• Re-envisioned advising program

• Supports first-year student thriving

and development

• Holistic advising approach that

emphasizes mentoring and

reflection along a student’s pathway

• Furman Engaged! featured a new first-

year student session

• Cohort 1 (2017-2019): 98 students in 8 classes led by academic

advisors

• Cohort 2 (2018-2020): 175 students in 12 classes led by academic

advisors

• Student participants randomly selected from incoming class in a

way that ensures a representative class sample

• Academic advisors mentor students during their first two years at

Furman

• Meet once per week and cover common curriculum created by

faculty and staff

Pathways Advising Program

Pathways Advising Program Goals

Year 1: Explore & DiscoverPathways Fall Term Curriculum

Finding your place

Time management

Strategic involvement

Conflict resolution, making good choices

Academic integrity

Stress management and mental health

Thriving & responding to failures

Library & academic success resources

Family adjustments

Spring course planning

Reflection

Year 1: Explore & DiscoverPathways Spring Term Curriculum

Time management

Physical health (diet, sleep)

Strengths

Leadership identity

Summer & MayX planning

Career exploration

Academic majors

Fall planning

Personal finances

Communicating across differences

Reflection

Pathways Program Assessment• Assess each module after every class

• Quantitative assessment on academic progress, well-being,

connection with resources, coping, etc.

Beginning of Year 1 (pre-test, establish baseline)

December of Year 1

April of Year 1

Two assessments in Year 2

• Compare pilot students to control group of students

• Qualitative Assessment (e.g., focus groups)

Preliminary Pathways Program Assessment

• Compared to the control group, pilot participants:

Report higher satisfaction with advising*

Report higher sense of belonging*

Report an average of 6 professors who would recognize and say hi

outside of class

Report improvements in speaking clearly and effectively

Report higher levels of “Accepting yourself even when things fail or go

badly”

*Differences in these variables were most notable in students with a GPA

lower than 3.0

Preliminary Pathways Program Assessment: Qualitative Focus Groups (n=18)

Do you think you have benefitted from being in the Pilot?

General feeling of support. Even if you can’t use what you specifically learned that week, I'm glad that someone thought to tell me. I’ve been able to share what I’ve learned with other people.

~First-year Pathways student

Preliminary Pathways Program Assessment:Qualitative Focus Groups

It’s made the transition from high school to college easier. You have your constant once a week group of people where you talk about personal stuff. You can get so caught up in academics that it’s easy to forget about growing as a person. It helps center your thoughts.

~First-year Pathways student

The Furman Advantage: A Four-Year PathwayYear 2: Examine & Decide

Year 2: Examine and Decide Pathways Curriculum

Identity Development

Diversity

Strengths

Leadership development

Professional Interactions

Career exploration

Academic majors and

course planning

Preparing for High-Impact

Experiences

Finding a mentor

Reflection for meaning

and purpose

Year 2: Examine and Decide

• Sophomore Engaged Program

• Major Declaration Survey and

Reflection

The Furman Advantage: A Four-Year PathwayYear 3: Connect & Refine

• Academic departments create Year 3 and

Year 4 of the pathway• Includes initiatives in career and professional

development, reflection, and connections with

alumni/university partners

• Engaged Learning Experiences (Research,

Internship, Study Away)

Year 3: Connect and Refine

The Furman Advantage: A Four-Year PathwayYear 4: Synthesize & Initiate

Year 4: Synthesize & Initiate

Initiatives in career and professional

development:

•Malone Center for Career Engagement

−Career Learning Communities

(CLCs)

−Career Treks (e.g., to Research

Triangle Park & Atlanta)

• Free personal finance course for seniors

Training and Assessment

Advisor Training and Development: The Roles of Advisors and Mentors

1. Instructor

2. Interpreter/Translator/Advocate

3. Resource Connector/Facilitator

4. Mentor/GuideDerived from The Power of Advising: Seven

Significant Educational Roles of Academic

Advisors, by Joe Cuseo

Advisor Training and Development: The Academic Advising Guide

• Provides expectations of advisors and advisees

• Introduces the four-year pathway

• Provides advisors with suggested advising topics for discussion at targeted developmental checkpoints along each year of a student’s pathway

• Offers recommended activities for advisees

• Provides key campus resources for advisors to support students

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Advisor Training and Development Opportunities

• New Advisor Institute• 1 ½ day institute for new academic advisors (August & January)

• Modified to teach new advisors about their roles and responsibilities

under The Furman Advantage

• Added a two hour session dedicated to inclusive advising

• Returning Advisor Institute• 2 hour institute for experienced academic advisors

• Distributed The Furman Advantage “talking points” cards to advisors

• Share assessment results and New Advising Assessment

Advisor Training and Development Opportunities

• Pathways Advisor Training• 2 day institute in August, 1 ½ day institute in January

• Trained by the experts who created the modules

• Follow-up “refresher” sessions for new advisors prior to spring

registration window

Advisor Training and Development Opportunities

• Lunch and Learn Series September 6th & 7th – Challenge and Support

September 25th – Validation Theory and Student Success Workshop

(presented by Dr. Laura Rendón)

September 27th – Advising First-Gen students and Creating a Sense of

Belonging

October 11th – How to use the results of the Fourtitude Project for

Advising

October 19th – International Students and their Academic Challenges

October 25th – Inclusive Advising for Students on the Autism Spectrum

Advisor Assessment• Academic Advising Committee charged with developing an assessment

last year:

Reviewed assessments from other institutions and national organizations

Created items connected to roles of advisor and expectations of advisee

Tested assessment with 817 respondents in April

Institutional Research analyzed the items and selected three items per role for advisors, 10 items for students to self-reflect

Revised survey will be given later this year

• Assessing current students and alumni to examine the impact of the

Furman Advantage on student outcomes

• Gallup’s “Big 5” from the Gallup-Purdue Index (now STRADA Student)

• Individualized items to assess accelerated transition to life after Furman

• Data are pending!

Gallup Partnership

Any Questions?