Joanne K. Damminger, NACADA President
If I missed you at the 2013 Annual Conference in October, please let me introduce myself. I am Joanne Damminger, and I am honored to be the new President of NACADA. In my professional life, I serve as the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs at Delaware Technical Community College, overseeing Student Affairs at four campus locations that span the cozy and beautiful State of Delaware.
I was pleased to meet many of you at the extremely successful Annual Conference at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah in October where we experienced the wonderful opportunity to interact with over 2800 advisors and administrators of advising, representing 14 countries and 699 institutions. In addition, the conference afforded attendees the chance to participate in Regional, Committee, Commission, and Interest Group meetings, while engaging in over almost 400 academic and scholarly presentations highlighting advising practices around the globe. The conference afforded NACADA’s international community the chance to network and discuss current trends and challenges facing advising today while enjoying the culture, shopping, dining, and touring possibilities in beautiful Salt Lake City.
One of my initial responsibilities as President is to share with you the first of four AAT articles that I will write during my term. Throughout the next year, I will venture through the four seasons with my quarterly articles beginning with this winter edition. Winter is often a time for reflection and self-review. I am reminded of the words of Peter F. Drucker when he advised, “Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action (n.d.).” Winter allows us a time to review our intentions and efforts during the past year and create aspirations and goals for the coming year. I hope you will take time to consider your many accomplishments and the improvements you have made to your advising practice or leadership of advising, and chart your resolutions for leading your advising praxis to the next level in the approaching year. It is my hope that your thoughts include advising research and scholarly publications to expand the body of advising literature, as advisors worldwide consider how to meritoriously contribute to advising as a profession.
My own recent reflections focused on my vision for NACADA that I shared at the Annual Conference, along with the wonderful initial strides that were made at the Board of Directors meeting in Utah. Once again referring, as I did at the Annual, to John Maxwell's leadership strategy to "chart one's course" (1998, 2007) for vision and accomplishment, I restate my commitment as President to strategically “chart the course” for NACADA and assist members in “charting their course” within the Association and their professional lives. One such course is related to NACADA’s commitment to professional development for the mutual well-being of the Association, its members, and the institutions they serve. In keeping with the newly written vision, revised mission, and strategic goals for the Association, the Board approved my recommendation to create a standing committee, the Committee for Sustainable NACADA Leadership, to assure that all members recognize, and have access to pathways to, leadership roles within the Association. Strategic and timely Board of Directors’ decisions such as these assure the development of leaders to guide the work of the Association for the future while providing for the development discussed at previous Town Hall meetings. I look forward to updating you on future initiatives and achievements stemming from this committee.
Equally exciting is the Board’s approval to create a standing Committee for Global Initiatives, designed to help NACADA effectively plan for members’ needs across the globe, embedding NACADA’s intention to be the premier advising association into the tapestry of our Association. In addition to meeting the diverse needs of our membership, this committee will work with the Executive Office to plan and implement a biannual international conference. Our international partners can look to this committee for assistance in contributing to the profession of advising through research design and publishing.
Additionally, in keeping with our newly emphasized focus on outcomes assessment, the Board will comprehensively assess two outcomes this year - one related to the responsibility we all have to inform and engage our advising administrators about the integral role that advising plays in student retention and success, and the second related to our strategic intention to create an inclusive environment within the Association that promotes diversity. A big thank you to Janet Spence and Nathan Vickers for leading working groups to write these outcomes and plans to assess them! The Board’s, Council’s, and Divisions’ existing dedication to outcomes assessment will be instrumental in guiding the future work of NACADA’s leaders and the Association.
This is an exciting time for NACADA and its membership. The Association counts on you to let us know how we can assist in enhancing your advising practice and meeting your goals. Look for future article updates to assist you in designing your course within NACADA and your professional life. As an Association, we are navigating our charted course to maintain our focus on advising as a profession, the professional development of our membership, and effectively serving the needs of our diverse and worldwide members.
Joanne K. Damminger, President, 2013-2014 NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Delaware Technical Community College
References
Drucker, P. F. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/bright9977/22-quotes-on-management-by-peter-f-drucker
Maxwell, J. C. (1998, 2007). The 21 irrefutable laws of leadership. (10th ed.). Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson.
Cite this article using APA style as: Damminger, J. (2013, December). From the president: Charting the course, NACADA and you. Academic Advising Today, 36(4). Retrieved from [insert url here]
