Sharon Aiken-Wisniewski, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT

Past Involvement in NACADA:

Years in NACADA: 17 years

National Offices Held and Accomplishments Achieved While in Office:

• Region Ten Chair, 2002-2004
  • Increased participation and revenue for regional conferences
  • Developed Region Ten Advisory Board that represented all states in region  

Regional Activities/Offices Held, including accomplishments achieved while in office:

• Regional Conference Committee Member: 1990, 2003, 2004, 2005
• Region Ten Advisory Board: 2001-2005
• Over 10 presentations at regional conferences (Best in Region Awarded in 2001 and 2003)

Committee/Task Force/Advisory Board Activities and Accomplishments:

• Faculty/facilitator, NACADA Assessment Institute, 2007, 2006 
• Member, NACADA Research Committee, 2004 to present
  • Co-facilitator, Research Committee pre-conference workshop at regional and national conferences, 2004 to present
  • Reviewer for NACADA Research Grants, 2005 to present
• Member, NACADA Consultants Bureau Advisory Board, 2006
• Member, 2002 NACADA National Conference Committee
• Hospitality Chair, 2002 NACADA National Conference Committee

Commission/Interest Group Activities and Accomplishments:

• Current member — Advising Administration Commission, Assessment of Advising Commission, Undecided/Exploratory Students Commission, Health Professions Advising Interest Group

Other:

• QEP Evaluator for Southern Association of Colleges and Schools/Commission on Colleges, September 2006
• Member — Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE), American Educational Research Association (AERA), American College Personnel Association (ACPA), and National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA)
• Participated as facilitator and presenter at 2006 Utah Retention Conference and 2005 Educated Person's Conference sponsored by Utah Commissioner's Office
• Academic Advising Assessment Consultations at three higher education institutions, 2004, 2005, 2006
• Presenter at Pathways Conference sponsored by AAUW and State Girl Scout Council to facilitate female participation in higher education, 2005, 2006
• Co-authored article for NACADA Clearinghouse, 2005

• University of Utah activities:

• Co-chair, University of Utah Academic Advising Committee, 2006-current, 2002-2003
• Membership on numerous institutional committees, including Undergraduate Council, Student Commission, Student Success Committee, Enrollment Services Committee, and LEAP Advisory Board

• Over 25 presentations and scholarly papers facilitated at state, regional, and national conferences  
• Vice-President and President, 2001 & 2002, Utah Advising and Orientation Association
• Member, 1999-2002, Utah Advising and Orientation Association

Platform Statement:

• Highlight the goals you accomplished and the work you did while serving as a Unit Chair or Division Representative. In addition, highlight your involvement in all areas of the Association, demonstrating your experiences that make you qualified to serve in this position on the NACADA Board of Directors.

As Region Ten Chair, my goal was to increase participation on multiple levels. First, members became more involved in providing leadership for the annual regional conference experimenting with new venues and activities. The result was to continue previous momentum of increased participation in our conferences and a closer bond among members from different states. Regional conferences exceeding 200 participants from all states in our region provided greater diversity and creativity for the entire experience. Quality was achieved in our professional development but not at an increased cost to our membership.

Second, I continued the work of my predecessor in growing the regional leadership. The Region Ten Advisory Board grew in size and included membership from all states in our region. Board members were active in decisions that impacted regional activities and offered guidance on national NACADA issues. I am a very organized individual that understands the value of communication. These two strengths contributed to achieving these goals.

As far as my participation in the NACADA organization, I see myself as someone who is willing to assist in multiple ways for the reward of watching our membership benefit from organizational innovations. Every time NACADA can offer its membership cutting edge activities on current and future developments in higher education, it has a positive impact on advisors and our students. I have attempted to contribute in modest ways to the creativity of our organization through being an active member on committees and facilitating presentations at regional and national conferences. My consistent involvement in regional and national conference committees has honed my organizational and budget skills, while increasing my acceptance for creativity. My participation within NACADA assessment and research activities prepares me to consider improvement and innovation on short-term and long-term levels.

My interest in joining the NACADA Board is to continue the NACADA tradition of serving membership through professional development activities that serve advisors and students. It is important to know who our members are, what they need, and how this information should be delivered to impact multiple members. My previous experiences with conference planning, assessment facilitation, and research agenda development have prepared me to participate in these activities of the NACADA Board to impact our membership.

• What do you believe are the most important goals and initiatives for the Association in meeting its strategic plan and what do you feel you can contribute to this position in meeting these goals and initiatives?

NACADA is fortunate to have a large membership who wants to be involved in the organization. This membership will persist and grow if they are engaged in advising initiatives that are valued and produce results for advisors, students and institutions. NACADA must offer activities that not only impact frontline advising but also impact the status of academic advising on our campuses in positive ways. Some future issues that must be vigorous pursued are how to serve the diverse student populations that enroll on our campuses, modes of delivering academic advising that address student learning,advisor compensation, and preparing the next generation of advising professionals. Dialoguing with membership, performing evaluation of NACADA activities, and encouraging research and inquiry within the broad context of academic advising will offer guidance as our organization advances the value of academic advising within the context of higher education.

• Why are you interested in serving in this leadership position or what influenced you to run for this leadership position? 

One of my greatest pleasures in my academic advising career, besides watching my students graduate, has been to interact with my colleagues on issues within our profession. My practitioner knowledge has been tremendously impacted through these dialogues that often occur at NACADA sponsored events. These events started in 1989 for me and there were many advising pioneers who facilitated my early development. These experiences are why I continued NACADA membership while living abroad for an extended period of time and immediately returned to an advising position when I returned to the US.

It is now my turn to offer my service at the national level to insure that members are served by NACADA. The highlight of my previous NACADA involvement has been to watch colleagues enjoy these professional development opportunities that encourage members to share, connect, and learn. It would be an honor to participate on the NACADA Board to offer my contribution to the continuation of our organization that is focused and facilitated by its membership.

• Provide any additional comments or information (either personal or leadership-related) that you want potential voters to know about you that is not covered elsewhere in your platform information. 

As someone who has participated in academic advising as a student, advisor, and administrator, I know the value of our profession. It is vital that NACADA maintain a forward thinking leadership that addresses the higher education opportunities of the future and advocates for academic advising to be a key institutional player on issues that contribute to student success. My experiences within NACADA and my institution have prepared me to actively contribute to activities that positively impact our profession and organization.

Thanks for reading the platforms and voting in the NACADA Leadership Election. You are the organization!