Matthew Markin, California State University San Bernardino

Cheri Souza, Stupski Foundation

Burnout and wellness within higher education have been topics discussed over the years, especially more so during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Faculty members from 2019–2020 reported higher levels of stress and fatigue, as well as draining emotions (Tugend, 2020). A CUPA-HR 2022 survey showed approximately 57% of higher ed employees reported they were “very likely,” “likely,” or “somewhat likely” to look for new employment opportunities (Bichsel et al., 2022). A 2022 Gallup poll reported 35% of college or university employees “always” or “very often” felt burned out (Marken & Agrawal, 2022).

Jenny Connolly, then associate director of the office for professional distinction at the University of Northern Iowa said, “The pandemic has taught everyone—life is really fragile” (Ellis, 2021). In fact, post pandemic, some professors and staff members said they no longer trusted university leaders to have their best interests at heart (Hawes & Reynolds, 2022). The pandemic amplified existing barriers that have negatively affected higher education professionals and that, “Traditional responses, stagnant compensation, inequitable flexibility measures, and empty promises will no longer hold educators to their institutions; it is time for radical retention practices” (Hawes & Reynolds, 2022).

These feelings of burnout have extended to academic advisors who play a crucial role in guiding students through their educational journey, offering support, and helping them realize their academic potential. However, the demanding nature of the job, combined with the challenges within higher education institutions, can take a toll on advisor well-being. If Hawes and Reynolds recommend radical retention practices, could private grant funding be the catalyst for increased wellness and advisor retention?

In 2022, the Stupski Foundation, a private philanthropic family foundation, noticed that their partners in higher education were experiencing symptoms of burnout as well as high levels of turnover. The Stupski Foundation held the belief that academic advisors must prioritize their own well-being in order to effectively fulfill their pivotal role in assisting students with navigating academic requirements, exploring career pathways, and addressing personal challenges that may affect their academic success. Thus, the Stupski Academic Advisor Wellness initiative was born.

Committed to engaging in trust-based philanthropy prioritizing community voice, the Stupki Foundation offered an advisor wellness grant initiative to Region 9 (American Samoa, California, Guam, Hawaiʻi, Nevada, and the Northern Mariana Islands) members within NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising. The primary aim of the Stupski Academic Advisor Wellness initiative was to devise strategies for addressing academic advisor burnout and to provide avenues for those directly involved in this work to craft their own solutions. The grant initiative centered on the idea of “money as medicine” and that providing supportive, flexible funds would be a part of the advisor burnout and retention solution. One grantee suggested that having advisors be part of the grant process could create a grassroots effort for advisor wellness and retention (CSUSB receives $30,000, 2022).

This initiative was open to teams of up to five individuals, the majority of whom had to be academic advisors, from institutions located in NACADA Region 9. Each team was required to consider what factors, attitudes, beliefs, and support would create a more sustainable and balanced work environment at their institution. An administrative advocate was also required who would not actively participate on the team, but instead would be committed to championing the project at their institution.

Over 2 years, 51 proposals were submitted with 26 funded representing 21 institutions, totaling $600,000. Examples of innovative initiatives and interventions that advising teams developed included:

• Reducing burnout: In an effort to alleviate and prevent advisor burnout within their campus community, Chico State identified advisors who were either experiencing burnout or at risk of it, offering resources aimed at addressing the underlying causes. Findings revealed that advisors were predominantly grappling with issues related to fairness perceptions in their careers. In response, Chico State introduced a comprehensive five-tiered training and development initiative for all academic advisors. The initial tier comprised foundational training that all primary-role academic advisors were required to undergo, followed by successive tiers offering self-paced professional growth opportunities encompassing advising methodologies, program coordination, and personal well-being. Academic advisors were offered additional professional development funding upon completion of each subsequent tier they opted to undertake.
• Cultivating a culture of wellness and sustainable advising: The team at San Jose State University initiated the revival of an advisor community with the aim of redefining and advancing advising practices through a "Sustainable, Strategic, Integrated, Proactive, and Personalized" framework. They facilitated discussions within the advising community to establish a shared understanding of the advisor's role in promoting student success and retention and provided training in high-impact practices to enhance effectiveness and mitigate burnout resulting from responsibilities extending beyond traditional academic advising realms. Additionally, efforts were made to foster collaboration among advisors across ten advising units, promoting efficiency and cohesion. SJSU also intends to introduce the Spartan Advisor Professional Development Academy, a mandatory training program, one track for new advisors and another for those with a minimum of two years of service, to ensure advisors have access to relevant professional development.
• Retention: Recognizing that the retention of advisors is a key factor of retaining and graduating students, California State University East Bay aimed to combat the crisis of advisor burnout by improving processes and communication, empowering and giving more power to advisors, and providing advisors the roles and opportunities for improved well-being. To achieve this, they plan to convene an advisor summit that provides time for connection and “fix it” time, host an on-campus advisor wellness retreat, develop advisor professional and personal enrichment activities, and redesign their advising council.
• Professional development: Aimed at academic advisor wellness and retention, University of Nevada, Las Vegas designed professional development through micro-externships. The purpose is to give advisors and other campus staff opportunities to improve student success by working more closely together. One micro-externship participant said, “Our common interest is making sure students get the most out of their college experience” (Johnson, 2023).

• Recognition initiative: At California State University San Bernardino, an outstanding faculty advisor award has been established since 1996. The grant team developed an outstanding professional academic advisor award to support the exceptional work that academic advisors do daily through their guidance and mentoring of students. Advisors are nominated solely by student submissions and recognizes an academic advisor (non-faculty) who has demonstrated the qualities associated with outstanding academic advising of students through NACADA’s Core Values of Academic Advising (Outstanding Professional Advisor, n.d.).

While financial incentives may help spark innovative advisor wellness initiatives, the following themes that emerged through the grant initiatives demonstrate that a culture of wellness does not need to be costly:

• Uplift advisor voice: Wellness initiatives should be crafted by the individuals they aim to benefit. Involve advisors in the planning and implementation of wellness programs to ensure they are relevant and effective.
• Understand indicators of success: Advising teams should understand the metrics they are being evaluated upon and assess whether their programming/offerings/initiatives are in alignment. To preserve advisor capacity, consider removing initiatives not aligned with assessment. 
• Establish a supportive community: Create an environment that allows advisors to engage in informal interactions with each other, enabling them to discover shared interests, common ground, and foster personal relationships. Create a supportive work environment where advisors feel valued, supported, and respected by colleagues and administration.
• Promote work-life balance: Implement policies that support flexible work arrangements, when possible.  
• Provide resources for wellness: Offer resources and workshops in a variety of self-care/wellness modalities, recognizing wellness is not a one-size-fits-all offering.
• Recognize and address burnout: Educate supervisors and advisors about the signs of burnout and provide resources for managing and preventing it. Encourage advisors to regularly take breaks and set boundaries; supervisors should mirror that behavior.
• Offer professional development: Seek advisor input into the type of professional development offerings that would help them enhance their skills, knowledge, and career advancement and offer a selection of activities.
• Encourage peer support: Support mentorship or peer support opportunities where advisors can connect with colleagues, share experiences, and provide mutual support.

A culture of wellness will not develop overnight, rather it must spread throughout a campus championed by administrators, staff, and faculty alike. Whether implementing new and innovative ideas or using time-tested practices, the wellness of academic advisors is a community issue, involving not only administrators, but the collaboration with academic advisors, especially those who find themselves considering leaving the advising profession. Involving academic advisors in decision making provides greater avenues for engagement and opens up a receptiveness to new ideas crucial to enhancing the well-being of academic advisors within higher education.

References

Bichsel, J., Fuesting, M., Schneider, J., & Tubbs, D. (2022). The CUPA-HR 2022 higher education employee retention survey: Initial results. College and University Professional Association for Human Resources. https://www.cupahr.org/surveys/research-briefs/higher-ed-employee-retention-survey-findings-july-2022/

CSUSB receives $30,000 grant to promote the wellness of academic advisors. (2022, October 31). Inside CSUSB. https://www.csusb.edu/inside/article/562338/csusb-receives-30000-grant-promote-wellness-academic-advisors

Ellis, L. (2021, August 25). The Great Disillusionment: College workers are burning out just when they’ll be needed most. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-great-disillusionment

Hawes, C., & Reynolds, S. (2022, August 1). Radical retention: How higher education can rise to the challenges of the great resignation and beyond. NACE Journal. https://www.naceweb.org/career-development/best-practices/62c97f5a-aa1f-49c8-b3d2-958e3d109329

Johnson, N. (2023, June 22). OIT participates in UNLV micro-externship designed to improve advisor retention. UNLV News. https://www.unlv.edu/news/article/oit-participates-unlv-micro-externship-designed-improve-advisor-retention

Marken, S., & Agrawal, S. (2022, June 13). K-12 workers have highest burnout rate in U.S. Gallup. https://news.gallup.com/poll/393500/workers-highest-burnout-rate.aspx

Outstanding professional advisor. (n.d.). CSUSB. Retrieved February 1, 2024, from https://www.csusb.edu/advising/outstanding-professional-advisor

Tugend, A. (2020). On the verge of burnout: Covid19’s impact on faculty well-being and career plans. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://connect.chronicle.com/rs/931-EKA-218/images/Covid%26FacultyCareerPaths_Fidelity_ResearchBrief_v3%20%281%29.pdf