UA Cossatot’s Student Services Department Attends Russellville Conference
On Friday, April 12, 2019, UA Cossatot’s Student Services department attended the Every Student Counts Conference in Russellville, Arkansas. The conference was hosted by Arkansas Tech, with support from NASPA (National Association of Student Personnel Administrators) to provide a one day conference for employees who work in higher education. This conference gave Student Services the chance to brainstorm and think of creative ways to reach every current and potential student at UA Cossatot.
The conference focused on promising practices in the areas of student success, persistence, retention, and first-generation student excellence. The department split into different sessions giving them the chance to absorb as much as possible at the conference and then discuss everything as a group when it ended.
Presentations that were presented at the conference included Why Making Emotional Connections in Student Affairs Matters, Developing A New Model for Student Mental Health, and Understanding College Websites for Generation Z to name a few. Other topics at the conference dealt with understanding students in today’s world, and realizing the high number of factors and obstacles that students face when trying to attend college.
The Student Services department at UA Cossatot provides many helpful services to students at the college. The department staff members work in admissions and recruiting, they collect and enter student data, they help assist with campus events, and they advise students on academics. They also work with the Center for Student Success and other departments at UA Cossatot to help students achieve their educational goals. The Student Services department includes Director of Student Services, Suzanne Ward; Student Services Administrative Specialist, Gina Goss; Nashville Advisors, Rachel Barfield and Addison Hill; Ashdown Advisors, Sheila McCandless and Holly Norman; and De Queen Advisors, Jocelin Galvez and Lizz Garza.
Holly Norman started working in Student Services in April. Holly Norman said, “I’m so proud and thrilled to be a part of UA Cossatot’s Student Services department! I started working in my new role here at UA Cossatot just two days before the conference, and I had acquired only a glimpse of my new role. Jumping in and attending the conference with others from the department on day three really helped speed up the process of creating those work relationships, learning from others’ experiences, and grasping more of Student Services’ role and duties here at UA Cossatot.”
Student Services is a department at UA Cossatot where current and future students can seek help. To ask questions or learn about how you can get started at UA Cossatot, please e-mail studentservices@cccua.edu or call 800-844-4471.
Photo: (from left to right) first row: Rachel Barfield, Lizz Garza, and Addison Hill; second row: Jocelin Galvez, Gina Goss, Suzanne Ward, and Holly Norman; not pictured: Sheila McCandless