By Glenn Miller
This year's cohorts learn about DegreeWorks. DegreeWorks will be used to monitor the progress of students as they advance towards their degrees
One major activity of the Title V project is to provide technological support for the advisement process. Technology is used to facilitate communication between the advisor and the advisees and also between the advisors. We will use software called DegreeWorks to monitor the progress of students as they advance towards their degrees. This software is similar to an on-line version of our advisement data sheet. Students will be able to view the degree requirements they have met and those they still need to fulfill from the Web at any time.
The software also has the capability of accepting notes and this is how advisors will document what transpired during an advisement session. This should be helpful since subsequent advisement sessions can begin with a brief review of the notes and discussion of what changes have taken place since the last session instead of starting from a blank slate.
Until DegreeWorks is fully implemented, Title V will use BlackBoard as the means of noting the results of advisement sessions. BlackBoard will also be used to facilitate communication. A group will be set up on the Title V BlackBoard site for each advisor and all of his or her advisees. The advisor can use that group to contact or provide information to all of his or her advisees at once. There is also a group for all of the advisors where they can discuss advisement issues, ask technical questions, and contribute to the creation of an on-line advisement handbook.
