Campus News
Update on Transforming Advising initiative
Academic advising is central to the student experience, helping students explore their interests, connect with resources, and chart meaningful academic paths.
Dear Colleagues,
I’m writing to share an update on the Transforming Advising initiative and the next steps we will be taking.
Academic advising is central to the student experience, helping students explore their interests, connect with resources, and chart meaningful academic paths. Guided by a campuswide commitment to student success, we launched the initiative in early 2026 with the goal of identifying opportunities to improve student retention and time-to-degree.
Over the past several weeks, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Richard Hughey and I have held listening sessions with department chairs and department managers in all five academic divisions. A number of groups have also submitted thoughtful written responses to the working group’s report. I want to thank everyone who took the time to engage. The feedback was candid and consistent, and it has shaped the decision I’m sharing today.
We are temporarily pausing further work toward a campuswide reorganization of Undergraduate Advising. That includes the proposals to move advisor supervision to the Office of Campus Advising Coordination (OCAC), to separate advising from program coordination, and to organize advising around new pathways. We heard clear concerns about how essential departmental work would be sustained, about the pathway model and faculty consultation, about the student data underlying the recommendations, and about whether other models were fully considered. Those concerns deserve serious attention before any structural change moves forward.
We also heard broad agreement on where we can make progress now. Our priority going forward will be on:
- Common advising standards, training, and onboarding for advisors across campus
- Professional development and support for advisors at every career stage
- Shared tools and better degree-planning technology for students and advisors
I will also be asking each dean to look at advising within their division and how these shared standards can be implemented, and asking Vice Provost Hughey to develop an approach that better connects College advising with divisional and departmental advising.
I want to recognize the members of the working group and the OCAC team for the substantial time and care they put into this effort. Much of what they identified, including the need for a more coherent student experience and more consistent support for advisors, remains important, and their work will inform what comes next.
Most of all, I want to thank our advisors, who continue to do outstanding work for our students. Future discussions will build upon what the campus has learned through this process and include engagement with advisors, department managers, faculty and the Academic Senate.
Divisional meetings with advisors begin next week. We will share further updates as this work develops.
John
John MacMillan
Interim Campus Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor