Vice provost announces reorganization of the Office of First-Year Experience


LAWRENCE — The Office of First-Year Experience (FYE) is being restructured in order to provide incoming students a more comprehensive and intentional transition, one that extends across their first year at KU. Current FYE programs and staff will be reorganized to better align with the existing units and initiatives in Academic Success. The goal of this realignment is to provide leadership, resources and support needed to strengthen the two functional areas within FYE  — Academic Programs and Orientation/Welcome Programs. No current staff positions will be eliminated with this restructuring.

“This restructuring will provide a more systematic approach to the first-year experience by harnessing the expertise found throughout Academic Success units and extending the responsibility for new Jayhawks across offices,” said Susan Klusmeier, vice provost of academic success.

The reorganization is in response to a recent program review of FYE. The review examined programmatic assessment data, including student surveys and measures of student learning and evaluated feedback from campus partners, stakeholders and FYE staff through individual interviews and surveys. Campus partners and stakeholders communicated an appreciation for the work and dedication of the FYE staff while acknowledging the small staff size limited FYE’s abilities to effectively develop, expand, modify and assess programming. The following changes will occur over the course of the spring semester: 

  • The Orientation/Welcome Programs will be renamed the Center for Orientation and Transition Programs. It will retain responsibility for domestic undergraduate student orientation programs, Hawk Week and additional programming that assists students in the transition to KU.  
  • A newly created Center for Orientation and Academic Advising Programs will house the Undergraduate Advising Center (UAC) and the Center for Orientation and Transition Programs. Abby Coffin will serve as the executive director of the Center for Orientation and Academic Advising Programs.  
  • The current FYE staff responsible for Academic Programs, including First-Year Seminars, UNIV 101, the KU Common Book and Learning Communities will join the existing academic programs housed within Academic Success to form the Office of Academic Programs & Experiential Learning. Millinda Fowles will serve as director of this office.  
  • The Center for Undergraduate Research, led by Alison Olcott, center director and associate professor of geology, will assist in coordinating faculty outreach and training efforts related to First-Year Seminars and the Common Book. 

The reorganization considered the fiscal challenges KU is facing. It allows Academic Success to leverage existing strengths to enhance the support provided to the KU community through programs and initiatives, Klusmeier, and they look forward to continued partnerships with the KU community to collaboratively create an optimized first-year experience that recognizes the diversity of students, their experiences and needs.  

Mon, 02/08/2021

author

Millinda Fowles

Media Contacts

Millinda Fowles

University Career Center

785-864-8360