Spring Advisor Week

PDF/Printable version of Schedule and Descriptions

Check out the – Advisor Week 2026 Spotify Playlist! 

Crochet & Chill Schedule – Why Crochet? Crochet is a simple, accessible craft known to reduce stress, improve focus, and give your busy advising brain a gentle reset. Whether you’re following the kit or just exploring, this series is all about rest, creativity, and community.

• Monday: Learn to Crochet – VIRTUAL tutorial, log on with your kit
  Stacie McCloud will walk through the basics so you can start your project with confidence.
• Tuesday & Wednesday: Crochet & Connect (VIRTUAL during Lunch)
  Bring your lunch and your yarn! These casual drop‑in sessions are a chance to relax, stitch, chat, and enjoy creative downtime with colleagues.
• Thursday: Show & Tell (Virtual during Lunch)
  Share your finished (or in‑progress!) creations. Celebrate the creativity, effort, and joy that comes from trying something new.

Craft & Care-e-oke – Advisor Community Service and Social Hour
Join us on Wednesday for a feel‑good, end‑of‑day sing‑along and service session! We’ll gather in Burnham Hall to support our neighbors at the Illinois Medical District Guest House (SSR) by assembling care items—and we’ll keep the vibe lively with Care‑e‑oke: pick up the mic, sing a favorite tune, cheer on your colleagues, and enjoy a relaxed space to unwind, connect, and give back together.

We’ll work assembly‑line style to create: (All supplies will be provided)

• Comfort Cards – short, handwritten notes of support and encouragement
• Welcome/Breakfast Bags – thoughtfully filled treat bags for guests
• Cozy Blankets – simple, no‑sew fleece blankets made together

IMD Guest House guests (patients, loved ones, veterans, and caregivers) are all navigating challenging seasons. A warm message or small comfort item can mean more than we realize.

Monday, March 23rd

 Session:              Coffee Talk and Art Walk: UIC History Through a Campus Art Tour
Presenter(s):     Joey Volpe, Executive Associate Vice Provost, Advising Development and Student Systems
Description:       Kick off your morning with coffee, conversation, and community and head out on a guided art walk through campus. This social session invites you to meet someone new, or catch up with a colleague, while exploring UIC’s history through the art pieces that tell the story of our campus.
Core Competency: Informational

Session:              Advisor Conference Presentation 1: Transfer Success: Understanding Students’ Journeys and Creating Support That Helps Them Thrive
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording  and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Melvin Wolfolk and Simona Stankevicius, AHS Senior Academic Advisors
Description:       This session explores who UIC’s transfer students are, the strengths they bring, and the challenges they face during transition. Through interactive dialogue, participants will share advising practices and connect them to research on transfer shock, credit loss, and belonging to strengthen support for transfer student success.
Core Competency: Conceptual

Lunch:  Craft & Connect: Advisor Crochet and Chill  (See additional Information at the beginning of this document)
Stacie McCloud will walk through the basics of crocheting in this virtual tutorial.
Core Competency: Social

 Session:              Collaborating for Student Success: A Process Improvement Review of Cross-Unit Advising – OAD Fellows Project
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck 
Presenter(s):     Joseph Chambers, Assistant Director Summer Session and Jo Wagner, AHS Lead Academic Advisor
Description:       In this session, the OAD Fellows present findings from their mixed‑methods study, which examines how UIC advisors experience cross‑unit referrals, handoffs, and collaborative problem‑solving. Drawing on survey data and focus group insights, they highlight what advisors said is going well and what can improve the process.
Core Competency: Conceptual

 Session:              Advisor Conference Presentation 2: Supporting Parenting Students at UIC: Advising Practices Grounded in Data, Policy, and Care
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Melinda Young, Little Sparks Program Coordinator and Brandi France, LAS Academic Advisor
Description:       Pregnant and parenting students remain under-supported in higher education. Using Fall 2025 UIC data and national research, this session equips advisors to apply core advising competencies to real advising scenarios. Through case discussions and practical strategies, participants gain tools to promote consistency, belonging, persistence, and success for parenting students.
Core Competency: Informational

 Session:              Advisor Conference Presentation 3: Incorporating Youth Voice into Pre-Health Program Design
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Maya Smith, CHANCE Academic Advising and Program Specialist
Description:       This session shares focus group findings from CHANCE Future Leaders in Health participants, highlighting challenges, supports, and misconceptions among Pre-Health students at UIC. In addition to introducing student-informed advising topics, this session will explore the benefits of incorporating youth voice into program design.
Core Competency: Conceptual

Tuesday, March 24^th

Session:              Advisor Conference Presentation 4: Experiential Learning and Professionalism with a GPPA Focus
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Celia DeBoer, Honors College Academic Advisor & Program Specialist
Description:       Students view experiential requirements as mere tasks, failing to recognize how they are developing professional skills that lead to future opportunities. This presentation offers greater clarity on the GPPA program, provides advising practices to help students understand the importance of experiential learning, and the time needed to develop the professionalism sought by graduate and professional programs.
Core Competency: Conceptual

Session:              Making Summer Count: Programs Through Summer Session & Summer College
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Dr. Aginah Muhammad, Assistant Vice Provost and Joseph Chambers, Assistant Director Summer Session
Description:       Learn how Summer Session and Summer College support students through distinct programs and opportunities. This session highlights how each office helps students build momentum—whether through early transition experiences, academic head starts, or recovery options for those continuing into the next year.
Core Competency: Informational

Session:              Part 1 Human Resources Training Series: The Trust Factor: Building Stronger Workplace Relationships
Presenter(s):     University Human Resources
Description:       Trust is the cornerstone of workplace success. Without it, communication breaks down, collaboration weakens, and growth stalls. In this dynamic 60-minute webinar, you’ll discover practical strategies to build, strengthen, and sustain trust—whether you’re an employee, manager, or leader. Learn how to foster stronger relationships, drive results, and create a thriving, high-trust workplace culture.
Core Competency: Relational

Lunch:                 Crochet & Connect – Virtual
Bring your lunch and your yarn! A casual drop‑in session to relax, stitch, chat, and enjoy with colleagues.
Core Competency: Social

Session:              Helping Students Thrive: An Overview of the UIC SUCCEEDS Program
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Nicole Zolli, MA, Fourth year doctoral student, Clinical Psychology
Description:       Discover how UIC SUCCEEDS helps students get organized, stay motivated, and manage academic demands through individualized coaching and weekly evidence‑based group sessions. Learn how students can participate and how advisors can connect them with this powerful resource.
Core Competency: Informational

Session:              Advisor Conference Presentation 5: They Not Like Us! How to Stay Motivated When You are the Veteran Advisor in the Room
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Lisa Lyons, AAAN Academic Advisor and Program Specialist
Description:       Cue Kendrick Lamar’s, “They Not Like Us”; because veteran academic advisors often find themselves navigating a unique professional reality: years of experience, deep institutional knowledge, and unwavering commitment to student success, yet sometimes feeling overlooked, disconnected, or out of place in rapidly evolving advising environments. This session explores both the challenges and opportunities of being a long-serving Advisor in spaces shaped by generational shifts, and changing
Core Competency: Conceptual

Wednesday, March 25^th – IN-PERSON DAY!

 Session:              “So… What Do You Think Happens in a Library These Days?” – Richard J. Daley Library Tour
Presenter(s):      Dr. Paula Dempsey, Associate Professor and Research Services and Resources Librarian
Description:       Tour the Daley Library and see how its spaces and services reflect what libraries do today; from study zones and collections to research help, technology, and collaborative learning.
Core Competency: Informational

 Keynote Session with Guest Speaker:
Session:              Reinforcing Neurodivergent Student Strengths for Motivation, Persistence, and Success
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):   Dr. Laura Ferdinand, Assistant Director of Content and Communications at Northwestern University’s Searle Center for Advancing Learning and Teaching
Laura is an educational developer dedicated to cultivating learning environments where all students can experience belonging, deep learning, and academic success, she translates research on how students learn into practical, inclusive, and sustainable teaching strategies.
As part of her commitment to expanding access to meaningful learning, her work on neuroinclusion empowers instructors and staff with evidence-driven strategies that help students feel more seen, supported, and able to do their best work.
Laura holds a PhD in Interdisciplinary Theatre and Drama from Northwestern University and has taught at Miami University, Columbia College Chicago, and Northwestern. Her scholarship appears in Theatre History Studies, Enveloping Worlds, and the forthcoming Cultivating a Sense of Belonging in Higher Education.

Description:       Identity-based motivation theory argues that how individuals make sense of their identities deeply informs how they pursue their goals. Yet many educational environments and pedagogical approaches, designed without neurodiversity in mind, can unintentionally signal to neurodivergent students that their identities conflict with their academic pursuits. Emerging research highlights the critical role of social supports, including advisors, success coaches, and instructors, in helping students recognize how their identities are assets to achieving academic success, reinforcing student motivation and persistence in the classroom (Bauer et al., 2025; Hernandez et al., 2021; Silverman et al., 2025).

This interactive presentation deepens participants’ understanding of the common challenges neurodivergent students encounter in higher education and equips advisors and success coaches with strengths-based, evidence-informed strategies to foster both academic success and holistic wellbeing. It also offers a shared vocabulary advisors and coaches can use to help students identify areas of growth, explore study skills that enhance learning, utilize beneficial campus resources, and advocate for themselves in and beyond the classroom.
Core Competency: Conceptual

 Session:              Advising Community Lunch and Advisor T-Shirt Distribution
Presenter(s):     Imee’s Mediterranean Kitchen
Description:       Lunch for anyone in the advising community, please RSVP. Crochet and chill if you wish!
Core Competency: Social

Session:              What We Say Matters: How Advisor Language Shapes Student Confidence
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck 
Presenter(s):     Rachel Najdzin, AHS Executive Director of Academic Advising and Jo Wagner, ASH Lead Advisor
Description:       Advisors shape how students understand their academic experience and often serve as the first interpreters of institutional expectations. This session examines how everyday advising language—though well-intentioned—can affect anxiety, confidence, and belonging. Through real examples, participants will explore deficit-based framing and learn strategies to communicate expectations with clarity and empathy, supporting student agency, especially for first-generation and underserved students.
Core Competency: Relational

Session:              Humanizing Advising through an Anti-Deficit Approach: Modeling Community- Cultural Wealth as First-Generation Professionals
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Issy Marquez and Cristian Baeza
Description:       As first-generation Latinx advisors from the Honors College, we build upon our educational and professional experiences to center Community Cultural Wealth (Yosso, 2005) in our advising and student programming initiatives. In this session, we will share key tools we utilize to enact anti-deficit approaches in a diverse university setting.
Core Competency: Relational

 Session:              Craft & Care-e-oke: Advisor Community Service and Social Hour
Presenter(s):     OAD and PAVE
Description:       Join us on Wednesday for a feel‑good, end‑of‑day sing‑along and service session! We’ll gather to support our neighbors at the Illinois Medical District Guest House (SSR) by assembling care items—and we’ll keep the vibe lively with Care‑e‑oke: pick up the mic, sing a favorite tune, cheer on your colleagues, and enjoy a relaxed space to unwind, connect, and give back together.
Core Competency: Social

Thursday, March 26^th 

 Session:              A Trauma-Informed Approach to Military-Connected Culturally Competent Student Support
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Mia Garcia-Hills, Director of Student Veteran Affairs
Description:       Drawing on Phillips’ (2017) and Shalka’s (2024) research on Critical Theory and Trauma-Informed practice, this presentation will focus on strategies that college faculty, staff and administrators can apply to better acknowledge and understand how personal assumptions about how trauma may influence or limit the work done to engage and support student veterans and military connected communities.
Core Competency: Conceptual

 Session:              When Students Share & Advisors Must Care: Best Practices for Mandated Reporting
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck
Presenter(s):     Tasha Quinn, Assistant Director Student Academic Affairs LAS, Departmental Advising
Description:       Learn the essentials of mandated reporting and the Title IX process, along with effective ways to explain reporting requirements to students. The session includes examples and brief role‑play scenarios to build confidence in responding to disclosures.
Core Competency: Informational

Lunch:                 Crochet & Connect: Show & Tell!  – Virtual
Share your finished (or in‑progress!) creations. Celebrate the creativity, effort, and joy that comes from trying something new.
Core Competency: Social

 Session:              Part 2 HR Training Series: The Power of Emotional Intelligence in Everyday Conversations
Presenter(s):      University Human Resources
Description:       Emotional intelligence is key to stronger relationships, personally and professionally. In this 45-minute webinar, you’ll learn what emotional intelligence really is and how to use it to manage your emotions and understand others’ perspectives. Discover techniques to balance empathy with accountability, interpret verbal and nonverbal cues, listen actively, and respond effectively. Walk away with practical strategies to make every conversation more productive, satisfying, and impactful.
Core Competency: Relational

 Session:              UIC Student Success in Focus: Data Insights and Impact of Proactive Advising
Materials:           Zoom Video Recording and PowerPoint Slide Deck 
Presenter(s):     The Office for Research on Student Success
Description:       Discover the latest insights from UIC’s student success initiatives, including trends in retention, graduation, and equity‑centered outcomes. This presentation breaks down what’s working, where barriers remain, and how advisor-led interventions continue to transform the student experience. Attendees will leave with practical tools and campus resources to strengthen evidence‑based advising and foster even greater levels of student achievement.
Core Competency: Conceptual

Check out our UIC Advising Development LinkedIn for updates and pictures of events!