Staff Development
In an effort to constantly improve the quality of services to ASAP students, a number of ongoing professional development opportunities are made available to staff throughout the year. Here are a few examples:
Seminar Working Group
Mission Statement
To create a community among ASAP students and staff wherein students are empowered to make informed decisions and develop academic and life skills to become confident, proactive, and accountable participants in their educational and professional lives.
History and Development
In July 2009 and 2010, ASAP held a full-staff training programs on the use of Dr. Skip Downing's advisement curriculum On Course: Strategies for Creating Success in College and in Life. ASAP directors, advisors, career and employment specialists and counselors from the College Discovery program met for two days of interactive workshops with senior On Course staff developers. ASAP adopted components of the curriculum and textbook for a new program-wide weekly ASAP Seminar, delivered at all colleges beginning in 2009-2010. In the summer of 2010, ASAP advisors and career employment specialists volunteered to participate in a working group to create a resource guide of best practices and tools to support the Seminar. The group pooled resource materials that had been successfully implemented at their respective colleges.
In the spring of 2011, the working group reconvened with an eye towards redesigning the Seminar. A common mission statement was created in consultation with curriculum consultant Amy Prince, who spent the summer designing a common curriculum and a facilitator training session for its implementation. Directors and staff from all ASAP programs contributed to the foundation of the common curriculum, which rolled out in the fall of 2011. After looking at results from field testing and student surveys, the Seminar was revised in the fall of 2012.
CUNY Partnerships
ASAP maintains partnerships across CUNY to take part in staff development opportunities:
- CUNY's Creative Arts Team (CAT) lead a two-part workshop for staff on strategies to increase student interactions and facilitate discussions during the ASAP Seminar.
- Hunter School of Social Work faculty member Kathryne Leak (EdD, LCSW) facilitated a series of advisement workshops for ASAP advisors and career specialists on building rapport, goal setting, and making referrals.
- ASAP also works closely with Office of Admissions Services (OAS) to ensure ASAP staff are informed of current financial aid regulations and the transfer process to better serve students. In March 2011, ASAP staff participated in workshops led by senior OAS staff in both areas.
Staff Retreats
The 2012 all-staff retreat was held at Macaulay Honors College and included presentations about advisement learning outcomes and peer mentor programming strategies.
The 2011 retreat was held at the Macaulay Honors College and included opportunities for ASAP sties to share successful academic support service models, as well as an interactive workshop with Narativ focused on enhancing communication and listening.