Our association has seven equally important strategic goals. Of those, there are three that I can most meaningfully contribute to:
• Expand and communicate the scholarship of academic advising (#1)
• Promote the role of effective academic advising in student success to college and university decision makers (#3) and
• Foster inclusive practices within the Association that respect the principle of equity and the diversity of advising professionals across the vast array of intersections of identity (#4).

As I will expound on below, I am passionate about professionalizing our field. I believe that we need to do so by continuing to produce scholarship (#1) that communicates the value of the work that we do (#3). My ten years as an advisor has shown me that advising is gravely misunderstood and under-valued. Rather than accept that, I believe we need to continue to build our field and produce evidence about the work that we do to change our student’s lives. This goes beyond... Display More...

Our association has seven equally important strategic goals. Of those, there are three that I can most meaningfully contribute to:
• Expand and communicate the scholarship of academic advising (#1)
• Promote the role of effective academic advising in student success to college and university decision makers (#3) and
• Foster inclusive practices within the Association that respect the principle of equity and the diversity of advising professionals across the vast array of intersections of identity (#4).

As I will expound on below, I am passionate about professionalizing our field. I believe that we need to do so by continuing to produce scholarship (#1) that communicates the value of the work that we do (#3). My ten years as an advisor has shown me that advising is gravely misunderstood and under-valued. Rather than accept that, I believe we need to continue to build our field and produce evidence about the work that we do to change our student’s lives. This goes beyond improving retention and graduation rates. In particular, we need more publication outlets and we need more voices represented in the published literature (#4). I hope to continue working with the research center, research committee (current member) and sustainable leadership committee (former member) on building systems and structures for research and publication support for budding scholars.    Display Less...

Apart from serving on the NACADA Journal editorial board, the role that has the most meaning for me is the Florida State Liaison. In addition to being very challenging, it was also a lot of fun. Because I was new to Florida (back in 2012), I relied on several people—both at my institution and from across the state—to help me find my way. The best decision I ever made during my tenure was to start a steering committee. With their help, we accomplished many things: we got a state drive-in conference up and going, produced an ongoing newsletter, formed bylaws, and now, have established FLACADA as a non-profit, NACADA-affiliated association. I am thrilled that the organization has continued to thrive after my time ended.

My passion for both the field and the association drives me to help others find their way. I’m not sure if I’m just lucky or if I have a natural tendency to connect, but I have found it to be very easy to get involved in NACADA. I know that this is not the case... Display More...

Apart from serving on the NACADA Journal editorial board, the role that has the most meaning for me is the Florida State Liaison. In addition to being very challenging, it was also a lot of fun. Because I was new to Florida (back in 2012), I relied on several people—both at my institution and from across the state—to help me find my way. The best decision I ever made during my tenure was to start a steering committee. With their help, we accomplished many things: we got a state drive-in conference up and going, produced an ongoing newsletter, formed bylaws, and now, have established FLACADA as a non-profit, NACADA-affiliated association. I am thrilled that the organization has continued to thrive after my time ended.

My passion for both the field and the association drives me to help others find their way. I’m not sure if I’m just lucky or if I have a natural tendency to connect, but I have found it to be very easy to get involved in NACADA. I know that this is not the case for everyone, and I think that I might be of some use to someone who was looking to get more connected to the association. At my previous institution, I worked with advisors on campus to find their way in NACADA. I urged them to think about what in the advising world ignites passion—everyone is different. Once they find that niche, I helped them find ways to get involved or to connect with the people who could help them.  Display Less...

NACADA has occupied a significant part of my life since 2009. What has influenced my decision to run is that I am passionate about developing the knowledgebase of academic advising. In my dissertation, I explored the professionalization of the field. Although this can be a contentious topic, it is an extremely important one. I think it’s a knee-jerk reaction to say “wait, why don’t you think we’re a profession”? A perfectly valid response. But as I emphasize in my work, it is not so much a matter of whether advising is or is not a profession, but rather, an examination of the ways that we can continue to professionalize. It is a process, not an end in and of itself. The act of introspection as a field can help us to develop our practice, to develop our knowledgebase. This is not only a very interesting exercise, but indeed, a deeply important and ethical one. Ultimately, my view is that the professionalization project only helps us and our advancement.

This year, my professional... Display More...

NACADA has occupied a significant part of my life since 2009. What has influenced my decision to run is that I am passionate about developing the knowledgebase of academic advising. In my dissertation, I explored the professionalization of the field. Although this can be a contentious topic, it is an extremely important one. I think it’s a knee-jerk reaction to say “wait, why don’t you think we’re a profession”? A perfectly valid response. But as I emphasize in my work, it is not so much a matter of whether advising is or is not a profession, but rather, an examination of the ways that we can continue to professionalize. It is a process, not an end in and of itself. The act of introspection as a field can help us to develop our practice, to develop our knowledgebase. This is not only a very interesting exercise, but indeed, a deeply important and ethical one. Ultimately, my view is that the professionalization project only helps us and our advancement.

This year, my professional role switched from an advisor (after nearly a decade) to a post-doctoral researcher seeking a tenure-track faculty position. Advising is an active part my research agenda and I anticipate that it always will be. I am passionate about research collaboration, learning from more seasoned scholars, and helping budding researchers to generate scholarship in academic advising and to help grow our knowledgebase.  Display Less...

As a cisgender white man, I had some reservations about running for the board. When we need more diversity, how could I run? I still grapple with it, but having worked on the diversity committee and serving as chair of the LGBTQA Advising and Advocacy Community, I have given a lot of thought to diversity and inclusion within our association. As part of the diversity committee, I advocated for the inclusion of this statement on the platforms for those running for offices. A few years ago, my colleagues and I presented a webinar exploring the intersecting identities of individuals. People often feel compelled to store their identities in compartmentalized boxes. We need to work to open this up and allow people to live multiple identities freely. My experience working at the largest Hispanic-serving institution in the United States has opened my eyes to the experiences of students who have had wildly different experiences than I have. As member of the board of directors, I will do the best... Display More...

As a cisgender white man, I had some reservations about running for the board. When we need more diversity, how could I run? I still grapple with it, but having worked on the diversity committee and serving as chair of the LGBTQA Advising and Advocacy Community, I have given a lot of thought to diversity and inclusion within our association. As part of the diversity committee, I advocated for the inclusion of this statement on the platforms for those running for offices. A few years ago, my colleagues and I presented a webinar exploring the intersecting identities of individuals. People often feel compelled to store their identities in compartmentalized boxes. We need to work to open this up and allow people to live multiple identities freely. My experience working at the largest Hispanic-serving institution in the United States has opened my eyes to the experiences of students who have had wildly different experiences than I have. As member of the board of directors, I will do the best I can to encourage this dialogue and promote opportunities for everyone. If it weren’t already clear to me, this became very evident at the NACADA townhall meeting this year. We should always be actively thinking about ways that we can challenge our assumptions and be more open to people with different identities, ideas and perspectives outside of our own.  Display Less...

I have been a NACADA member since September 2009. I recently finished my two-year term as the chair for the LGBTQA Advising and Advocacy Community. I have also served on the Diversity Committee, Sustainable Leadership Committee, and Publications Advisory Board. I have twice been a member of the Emerging Leaders Program: first as a mentee (paired with Jennifer Joslin) and most recently as a mentor (with Fabiola Mora); I’ve been the state liaison for two states (Nebraska and Florida). My two current commitments represent my passion for the scholarship of academic advising: the research committee and the NACADA Journal editorial board.

I have presented extensively within NACADA (19 annual presentations; 25 regional presentations; and several state and local presentations) and published widely in the field (two book chapters; three articles in scholarly journals—with two currently under review; and 11 non-peer reviewed articles). For my dissertation research, I was awarded $1,000 one-year... Display More...

I have been a NACADA member since September 2009. I recently finished my two-year term as the chair for the LGBTQA Advising and Advocacy Community. I have also served on the Diversity Committee, Sustainable Leadership Committee, and Publications Advisory Board. I have twice been a member of the Emerging Leaders Program: first as a mentee (paired with Jennifer Joslin) and most recently as a mentor (with Fabiola Mora); I’ve been the state liaison for two states (Nebraska and Florida). My two current commitments represent my passion for the scholarship of academic advising: the research committee and the NACADA Journal editorial board.

I have presented extensively within NACADA (19 annual presentations; 25 regional presentations; and several state and local presentations) and published widely in the field (two book chapters; three articles in scholarly journals—with two currently under review; and 11 non-peer reviewed articles). For my dissertation research, I was awarded $1,000 one-year NACADA research grant, and in 2014, I was awarded the NACADA CIGD Service Award for the Commission for LGBTQA Advising and Advocacy. Display Less...