NODA Region V: May 2016 Edition by Erin Sullivan

NODA Region V Newsletter

May, 2016

Let’s Get to Know the NODA President: Dr. Andrew Cinoman

REGION V Newsletter INSIDE:

Q: Describe a typical year of the NODA President role. A: Since the Association transitioned from a “working” board to a “governing” board a few years ago, the role of the President has changed a great deal. In fact, there are now THREE Presidents, each with different core responsibilities: The President Elect (Shawn Smee), the President, and the Past President (Beth Lingren Clark).

Region V Coordinator Corner: Lisa Gruszka & NODA Region V: 2

Recharge! Continued…Let’s Get to Know the NODA President: Dr. Andrew

Cinoman 2016 NODA Regional Conference Highlights

Spring 2016 Edition

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State/Province Coordinator Highlights

2017 NODA Regional Conference 7 NODA Region V Newsletter Updates & Save the Dates & Social Media Updates & Newsletter Poll

The best way to describe the Presidential role(s) is that they are focused on providing strategic, visionary leadership of the Board of Directors. It isn’t our role to make decisions, push for particular actions to take place, or suggest an “agenda” that ought to be pursued. Our focus is always on working with the Board in a system of shared governance to ensure that the Association is taking positive steps toward achieving the goals we have laid out in our Strategic Plan. This means that the Presidents are not doing the work of the Association. We are always thinking “big picture”, always looking at the future of the Association, and always asking questions about what is in the best interests of the membership that we serve. So…a typical year in the Presidential role revolves around a LOT of strategic discussion, and engaging the Board, the broader volunteer leadership, and the Association staff in conversations about how NODA is operating and the actions we are taking to meet the needs of our members and solidify our place in the higher education landscape as the premier Association for Orientation, Transition, and Retention. Q: What is your passion that drives your professional role or in general? A: As I have progressed in my career, I’ve moved from working directly with students, to supervising professionals who work directly with students, to providing leadership of an office whose role it is to orient students to the university and advise them in their first college year…but I have always been driven by the understanding that “it’s all about the students”. The programs we offer, the services, we provide, and the executive decisions that are made, should always be made with the success of the student in mind at all times. Knowing that I have made (and will continue to make) decisions that have impacted students in positive ways gives me great satisfaction. (Continued on Page 3)

Follow us on Twitter/Instagram @NODARegionV and Facebook/Snapchat at NODA Region V #NODARegionV (Learn more about Dr. Andrew Cinoman, NODA President on page

NODA Region V: Recharge! As we think ahead to our busy time, how do you find time to recharge? -- How do you find time for yourself? Lisa Gruszka, University of Minnesota: During a busy program day sometime I like to step outside and find someplace to sit and feel the sun on my cheeks. Some call it hiding but I see it as taking the opportunity to recharge before going in to manage the next situation. Abbey Wolfman, Northern Illinois University: Although summer is our busiest time of year—it’s still summer! I make sure to take advantage of the nice weather even if that means just sitting outside with a cup of coffee or wine—it always seems to recharge me for the long days ahead. Cordy Love, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale: It’s really important for me to find a few minutes during the day of orientation program for myself to just recharge and prepare myself to interact with all aspects of the orientation program. What I do is find a quite place on campus where I just take a few minutes without anyone around to just relax. This might be me stepping out for a short walk around campus or stepping into my office and chatting with a few staff members to vent about an issue. Most of all I really do like interacting with people so I found the best method for me is sitting with a family or a student and just ask how they day is going. I really enjoy the times when I can just be me and interact with a family on a small scale. That really energizes me and prepares me to tackle the rest of the orientation program. I encourage everyone to find that place on your campus where you can go and just be you for a few minutes. It helps so much and makes you a better professional for the students, family members and guests you serve. What do you do to recharge? Share your stories and pictures this summer at #NODARegionVRecharge #NODARegionV

Region V Coordinator Corner: Lisa Gruszka Hello Region V! The semester is quickly winding down already and summer programming is right around the corner. Hopefully, you’ve been able to implement some innovative ideas from the annual and regional conference. This year, we are incorporating new social media initiatives into our programs thanks to an awesome session by NIU at the regional conference! Let’s give a shout out and a big Thank You to our 2016 regional conference co-hosts, Adam White, Cara Wiebel and Cordy Love. The “Writing the Next Chapter” conference offered our region so much and I really appreciated all of the new opportunities for our graduate students to get involved and network at the conference. Additionally, the theme really offered us the opportunity to take a step back and think ahead to where our next ventures lie – professionally, personally and programmatically. The theme of appreciation has been on my mind. I truly believe that Region V has some of the best Orientation, Transition and Retention professionals in the country. Personally, I have developed strong relationships with many of you and I am grateful for those relationships – both old and new. It is important for us to take time to appreciate and celebrate the good work that is being done in our region by some outstanding professionals. I challenge you all to appreciate and recognize one another for the good work being done. So think about your NODA colleagues and nominate a peer for a regional or annual leadership award - it doesn’t have to be someone from your own institution! Some of us work at institutions with a team of professionals while some of us are leading the programs on our own. It can sometimes mean even more coming from a colleague and friend in the field!

Currently the Minnesota, South Dakota and Manitoba state/province coordinators positions are open. Watch your email for information about how to apply for these positions over the summer. Good luck with your summer programming! Your Region V Coordinator, Lisa Lisa Gruska Juhli001@umn.edu Region V Coordinator

Continued….Let’s Get to Know the NODA President: Dr. Andrew Cinoman Q: What is your most memorable moment as NODA President? A: This is tough to say, since I am only about halfway through my three-year term! On an Association level, I might point to the development of Core Competencies to guide professional development in the field of OTR. As President-Elect, I served on the Ad Hoc Committee that has worked extremely hard to create and refine these competencies, and it is our hope that the Board will approve their adoption by NODA at our next meeting in August so we can share them with the membership and begin to use them to guide future educational initiatives. On a personal level, I will always remember taking the gavel from Beth Lingren Clark and closing the 2015 Annual Conference in Denver. Even though one doesn’t assume the role of President until the following January, there is something about that moment that is very special. Q: What are your short-term and long-term goals as NODA President? A: My goals for my term as President are intertwined with those of the Association: to ensure that the Association continues to take the steps that are necessary to achieve the goals that are articulated in our Strategic Plan. I also want to play my part in strengthening the governance structure and process we have put in place and partner with the Board of Directors to empower th e Association Office to continue to grow in meaningful and intentional ways to meet the ever changing needs of our membership, which now totals over 2400 members! If I can look back on my three years in the Presidential roles and know that the Association has continued to move forward in positive ways…then I have accomplished my goals! Q: What are some tips or piece of advice for (seasoned professionals, mid professionals, new professionals, graduate students , and undergraduate students)? A: If I can close with one piece of advice for our membership (the majority of whom are relatively new to the field of OTR) it would be this – be open to new experiences and professional opportunities that present themselves, and be open to your career moving in a direction that you didn’t anticipate. While it’s good to have a broad sense of the direction you want to take your career (working in higher education, for example), it’s OK to not have your entire future figured out at this point! I am a developmental psychologist by training; my educational background is not in higher education or student affairs. While in graduate school, I knew I wanted to work in a university setting and the expectation of my faculty advisor and my academic department was that I would find a faculty position, teach psychology, and conduct research…but I wasn’t locked into that idea as I continued my studies. After several years of serving as a teaching assistant, I ran out of funding in my department and had to find another opportunity, so I applied for and was offered an assistantship as an academic advisor…and it changed the course of my career! My first professional position was as an advisor, not a professor…and after a number of years of serving in that role, the opportunity presented itself to take on the challenge of directing the orientation program at that institution, which I did without hesitation. Flash forward to my current role as Director of New Student Programs, which oversees orientation and first year advising. Did I ever envision being in a position like this when I was a graduate student? Absolutely not…but I was open to taking on new challenges and they opened doors that I never knew existed. Do I know what the future holds for me professionally? No I don’t…but the possibilities are endless and I find that exciting!  

Thank-you, Dr. Andrew Cinoman NODA President acinoman@fgcu.edu Follow us on Twitter/Instagram @NODARegionV and Facebook/Snapchat at NODA Region V #NODARegionV

2016 NODA Regional Conference Highlights Greetings from the 2016 Regional Conference Hosts!

We want to thank everyone in the Region for traveling to Iowa City, Iowa in April for this year’s Regional Conference. We enjoyed hosting this year’s conference and hope that you left the conference with ideas and inspiration for “Writing the Next Chapter” on your campuses. We had over 200 professional, graduate and undergraduate attend the conference this year and we couldn’t be prouder to be part of such an awesome region. The conference would not have been successful without the time and dedication from our wonderful planning committee- thank you to everyone that served! We hope that the conference offered something special for all attendees. Some highlights from this year’s conference included:  “Going Green” initiative. This year, we moved away from printing an entire conference booklet and instead utilized Guidebook for the conference.  Keynote address from David Gould during the opening banquet: Play, Passion and Purpose: A New Arc for Higher Education  A Graduate Student Track within the conference  Roundtable discussions led by experienced professionals within the Region  25 educational sessions for attendees Student Leader and Graduate Student Experience One of our goals as hosts was to provide additional programming for the graduate student attendees in our region. The Graduate Student Programming Committee was able to create specific offerings for graduate students that included a graduate student case study, resume review, professionals’ panel and breakout sessions around creating a professional brand and negotiating and accepting a job offer. We offered a wide range of programming for the undergraduate student population including Playfair, an opportunity to climb the University of Iowa’s 75-foot climbing wall and a Regional Orientation Leadership Institute hosted by Megan Watt with Dream Catalyst Labs. Undergraduate students were also able to partner with other students in the region and compete in the Undergraduate Student Case Study Competition. Thank you to all of the professional staff members in the region that gave some of their time during the conference to judge the Case Study Competitions, review resumes and present material to undergraduate and graduate students!

Commitment of the Professionals at the Conference At this year conference the NODA regional planning committee was excited about offering several new aspects of the conference such as the roundtable discussions format for professional NODA members only. The NODA planning committee reached out to seasoned professionals in Region V to facilitate three discussion topics that related to the O,T, R field. Those topics were Writing Your Next Chapter on Assessment presented by Dr. Beth Lingren Clark from the University of Minnesota, International Student Orientation presented by Patrick McBride from the University of Nebraska and Title IX presented by Liz Kurt from the Iowa State University. The feedback from professionals were positive and encouraged to continue these types of discussions at future regional conference. Other sessions were geared towards our NODA professional members in order for the association to gain feedback on new and continuing initiatives such as the NODA Core Competencies Feedback & Review session lead by past NODA president Dr. Beth Lingren Clark. During this session Dr. Lingren Clark shared with the NODA members the draft of the NODA Core Competencies and allowed members to provide feedback and input on specific competencies that in turn she will share with the board. Overall we had 60 professional NODA members register to attend the conference and many of our professional members were first time attendees. Which made a great opportunity for NODA to showcase all the experience and opportunities that are provide to our members.

Continued 2016 NODA Regional Conference Highlights Keynote Speakers or Highlighted Events Our keynote speaker was Mr. David L. Gould from the University of Iowa where he served as the Associate Director of Professional Student Development in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Mr. Gould provided an impactful message to our students & professionals from his many experiences in the classroom and outside of the classroom as a filmmaker. Also at this year’s NODA regional conference we provided several options for professionals to network with each other in both a professional and social environment. Which included attending the Professional and Graduate Student Dessert Reception hosted on Friday night and on Saturday night we provided an off-site location at the “Airliner” for professional to meet and mingle. The NODA regional conference offered opportunity for professionals to meet as a state and discuss issues that are directly affecting their university or college within their states at the NODA State Meetings. Our new Regional Coordinator shared the updates from the Region as well as updates regarding the NODA Home Office and the Board of Directors. Many professional enjoyed their time reconnecting with NODA members and welcoming new NODA members to the family.

Award Winners For this year’s conference, we handed out multiple regional awards. The Awards Committee had a difficult time choosing between all of the fantastic nominations that were submitted, however winners had to be selected. The categories were, Outstanding Undergraduate Student Leader, Outstanding Graduate Student, and Outstanding New Professional. During the luncheon on Saturday—it was announced that the winners were:  Outstanding Undergraduate Student Leader – Michael Dixon, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities  Outstanding Graduate Student – Kristin Armstrong, University of Wisconsin – Whitewater  Outstanding New Professional – Cara Wiebel, University of Iowa Congratulations to all of our winners! Thanks so much to everyone who submitted a nomination as well.

Good Luck Words of Wisdom to 2016 Conference Co-Hosts Region V is in great hands as we look toward 2017! It was announced at the closing brunch on Sunday, that next year’s Region V conference will take place in Sioux Falls, South Dakota starting March 31 and will conclude on April 2. The co-hosts for the conference will be Adam Karnopp, South Dakota State University; Shannon Gilligan Wehr, University of Nebraska-Omaha; and Kristi Okerlund, University of North Dakota. All three of these professionals have had a wealth of experiences within NODA, and are the perfect trio to put together an amazing conference experience. We wish them nothing but luck! --Adam White, Cara Wiebel, and Cordy Love 2016 NODA Regional Conference Co-Hosts

State/Province Coordinator Updates Wisconsin State Coordinator Highlight: Schools in the UW System continue to monitor their budgets and have shared how the budget reductions have impacted their campuses. Each school sent a summary sheet of how exactly people and students have or will be impacted by the cuts. In addition, the Affordable Care Act continues to be a struggle for many offices who have long Orientation hours. Paying for meals and housing may begin to be an issue in the future and adding in breaks may be a good strategy to help alleviate some budget-related stress. My term as the Wisconsin State Coordinator is wrapping up, so if anyone is interested in the position, please email me at daly@uwm.edu. Thanks to Chika from UW-Madison who took notes during our state meeting at the Regional Conference! She noted the following expectations about the position:  Plan the State Drive In (don’t necessarily have to host it) o There’s a manual to help with the logistics of the event o This has typically been in early December o It’s a great way to increase NODA membership and idea share o It’s less expensive than a Regional or Annual Conference (free to NODA members!)  Send updates to the Region Communications Coordinator  Host State Meeting at the Regional Conference (if applicable)  The term is for 3 years Some other ideas expressed by the Wisconsin membership include a great one from Katie at Viterbo University. She suggested we could partner with WAICU (Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities) to plan a meeting since they don’t get together as an organization in the state. -Colin Daly, Wisconsin State Coordinator University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee North Dakota Coordinator:

Updates coming soon. -Kristi Okerlund, North Dakota State Coordinator University of North Dakota

Illinois State Coordinator Update:

Updates coming soon.

-Adam White, Illinois State Coordinator Northern Illinois University

Nebraska State Coordinator Updates coming soon. -Jenni Brost, Nebraska State Coordinator University of Nebraska-Lincoln

South Dakota Coordinator: Vacant, contact Regional Coordinator if you’re interested. -This could be you!

Minnesota State Coordinator: Vacant, contact Regional Coordinator if you’re interested.

Manitoba Province Coordinator:

Vacant, contact Regional Coordinator if you’re interested.

-This could be you!

Iowa State Coordinator Regional Conference State Meeting: It was great meeting those of you in attendance at the Regional Conference. We had a productive state meeting and discussed the next drive-in possibilities and some ways to engage our students in peer-to-peer discussions. Based on that discussion an idea was posed to host a facilitated Google Chat evening for our student orientation leaders. This will be looked into and more information will be forthcoming. Please let me know if you are interested in assisting in the organization/facilitation of this discussion. State of Iowa Drive-In: It’s time to start thinking about our State of Iowa Drive-In in an effort to get it on our calendars. If your school is interested in hosting the drive-in, which entails providing approximately 1 room for up to 30 people and an additional 2 rooms for breakout sessions, plus recommendations for lunch spots nearby please contact me via email or phone. The potential dates are Friday, September 23 or Friday, October 21. Institution Updates: Here’s a great opportunity to share! Let’s hear what’s going on with your institutions. What are you doing with Title IX, assessment, retention and orientation activities? Email me with your story (300 words or less) and you could be featured in the newsletter. Ashley Lang, Iowa State Coordinator Wartburg College ashley.lang@wartburg.edu 319-352-8486

2017 NODA Regional Conference: South Dakota Save the Date! 2017 NODA Region V Conference!  March 31 – April 2, 2017  Sioux Falls, South Dakota  Holiday Inn City Centre o http://www.holidayinn.com/redirect?path=hd&brandCode=hi&localeCode=en&regionCode=1&hotelCode=fsddt &_PMID=99801505&GPC=ndo  Theme: The Heart of OTR, which is a play on Sioux Falls’ “The Heart of America” theme. Here’s the link to a nice video about the city: http://visitsiouxfalls.com/why-sioux-falls/. Get Involved!  Co-chair a committee! As with any conference, there are lots of moving parts, and we’d love some help with those parts! Committees include: o Educations Programs & Assessment – coordinate the solicitation, selection, notification, review, and assessment of educational sessions; also charged with conference evaluation process o Local Arrangements & Hospitality – coordinate information for local attractions, side trips, off-site events o On-site Logistics & Volunteers – manage conference office and storage; coordinate recruitment, training, supervision, and recognition of conference volunteers o Publications, Marketing & Social Media – work with NODA office to coordinate conference communication, create conference guide and signage, manage social media outlets o Registration – work with conference hosts and NODA office to facilitate online registration process; coordinate on-site registration/check-in process o Undergraduate Programming & Workshops – coordinate logistics and evaluation of all workshops and social programming for undergraduate students (e.g., welcome, fashion show, evening entertainment); facilitate case study competition o Graduate Programming & Workshops – design and implement a package of programs geared toward graduate students (e.g., welcome, roundtable/panel, resume review) o Awards – solicit, review, create, and distribute awards given at conference  We’re still early in the planning process, but if you think you’d like to get involved, please send a quick no te to one of the regional co-hosts about your interest.

Co-host Contact Information:  Adam Karnopp o Director of Orientation at South Dakota State University, adam.karnopp@sdstate.edu, 605-688-6283  Shannon Gilligan Wehr o Assistant Director of New Student & Family Programs at University of Nebraska Omaha, sgilligan@unomaha.edu, 402-554-2677.  Kristi Okerlund o

Coordinator of Student & Parent Experiences at University of North Dakota, kristi.okerlund@email.und.edu, 701-777-6468.

Kristi, Adam, & Shannon 2017 NODA Regional Co-Hosts

NODA Newsletter Updates: Hello NODA Region V, Glad to see some of you at the 2016 NODA Regional Conference in Iowa! I have updated the NODA Region V Newsletter, and I am still interested to receive feedback to find out what you would like to see. If you have any suggestions, please email me or fill out this survey: https://illinois.edu/sb/sec/7911732 If you would like to submit for our next newsletter send me an email at esulli@illinois.edu the end of August & beginning of September. Thanks, Erin Sullivan, Communications Coordinator University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Social Media Region V #stayconnected #NODARegionV

Please submit or post pictures of your staff and summer programs to our NODA Region V Social Media Sites! #NODARegionV

Stay connected with Region V on social media! Region V has a Facebook page where you can share updates and photos with other professionals and students in the Region. Follow us on Twitter @NODARegionV for regional highlights, conference updates and threads and photos. We have a Pinterest account and hope to develop additional boards for followers that include training materials, publications, first year programming, family and guest orientation ideas and so on. Users within the region are encouraged to like our social media pages and share updates, photos, ideas or pose questions to others through these platforms.

SAVE THE DATE

-Cara DeHekker Wiebel, Social Media Coordinator University of Iowa

NEWSLETTER POLL Question:

Student Staff Theater performances (skits or entertainment) & Third Party Vendors or In House After popular request after NODA Regional 2016, we will be having a poll question from a member on each newsletter. The answer will be revealed during the next newsletter. Have a questions for the region, fill out the poll below:

https://illinois.edu/sb/sec/9780688

NODAC 2016 ---------------------Nov. 5-8, 2016 NODA Regional 2017-------March 31-April 2 Newsletter Editions: Summer------------------------September 2016 Fall/Winter--------------------December 2016 Spring---------------------------May 2017 More Dates to Come in the Future!

REGIONAL LEADERSHIP: Regional Coordinator Communications Coordinator Social Media Coordinator 2017 Regional Conference Host(s)

Lisa Gruszka, University of Minnesota Erin Sullivan, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Cara DeHekker Wiebel, University of Iowa Adam Karnopp, South Dakota State University Shannon Gilligan Wehr, University of Nebraska Omaha Kristi Okerlund, University of North Dakota

Thank-you to all who serve in a NODA Leadership Role!

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