ALLIES for Advising: Advisors Learning, Leading, Integrating & Educating Students
KAAN 2015 Annual State Conference
September 11, 2015
See photos from the 2015 KAAN Conference on our Facebook page
Conference Program
8:30 a.m. Opening and Welcome
Patti Griffin, KAAN Past President
Dr. Joey Linn, Vice President for Student Affairs, Fort Hays State University
8:45 a.m. Keynote
Karen Meyers, Ph.D.
Associate professor, Saint Louis University
9:45 a.m. Concurrent Sessions I
- Higher Education Scholarship: How it can help
- Career Advising for Distance Education Students
- College-level Reading Skills and Reading Strategies and their Impact on Student Motivation and Success
- Leadership Coaching for Honors Students [ Resources ]
- Overhauling Academic Probation: A Guide Back to Good Standing
- Meet Your Military-Connected Students
10:45 a.m. Concurrent Sessions II
- Headline: Survey Says! Students Getting Tired of Surveys
- Astin Would be Proud: The Benefits of Integrating Student Development Theory in Peer-advising Programs
- University First-Year Experience: Tailored to a Nursing Program
- Communicating and Collaborating for First-Year Student Success Through Living and Learning Communities
- Collaborating: Why Everyone’s Doing it. Are you?
- Same, Same but Different
11:45 a.m. Luncheon
12:15 p.m. Keynote
Dr. Christie Brungardt, Fort Hays State University
1:15 p.m. Concurrent Sessions III
- Creating a “First-year” Experience for the Online Adult Student
- Improving Access and Retention through Financial Literacy
- The Evolution of Academic Advising on an Urban Community College Campus
- Let’s Hit the Reset Button and Go Old School
- How Guiding a Student to Switch their Mindset can Help Them Reach Their Goals and Raise Their Grades [ Handouts ]
- Engaging Parents as Partners for Student Academic Success
2:15 p.m. KAAN Business Meeting
3:00 p.m. Closing Remarks
The Keynote Speakers
Karen A. Myers, Ph.D., is associate professor and director of the Higher Education Administration graduate program at Saint Louis University and co-founder and director of the award-winning international disability education project Allies for Inclusion: The Ability Exhibit. This unique traveling exhibit is designed to promote the inslusion of people with disabilities by demonstrating respect for others, comfort during interactions, and awareness of disability issues. Using a multi-media approach, the exhibit offers suggestions for becoming disability allies and educators.
Myers has been a collegiate teacher and administrator since 1979, is a national disability consultant and trainer, has authored numerous publications, and continues to teach her self-designed graduate course, Disability in Higher Education and Society.
Dr. Curt Brungardt and Dr. Christie Brungardt are best known as social entrepreneurs who have worked tirelessly to address issues of injustice and inequality. Dr. Curt Brungardt is the Omer G. Voss Distinguished Professor of Leadership Studies and the Executive Director of the Center for Civic Leadership at Fort Hays State University. He specializes in political leadership, social justice, and community organizing. Dr. Christie Brungardt is an Assistant Professor of Leadership Studies and the Director of the Women’s Leadership Project at Fort Hays State University. She specializes in civic leadership and women’s studies.
On July 3, 2008, Curt and Christie’s lives changed forever, when their 25-year old daughter Jana, a student as the University of Kansas Law School, was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in Lawrence, KS. Since Jana’s death, Curt and Christie have been active nationally in the effort to reduce gender-based violence. Their non-profit organization, Jana’s Campaign, Inc. operates under the single purpose of reducing domestic and dating violence. They work extensively on college campuses around the country. The highlight of their campus work thus far was the opportunity to speak at Dartmouth Summit on Sexual Assualt in July 2014.
Ability Ally’s Training
The Ability Ally Initiative is a 90-minute specialized training designed to educate faculty, staff, and students on how they can be allies for disability inclusion. Participants will learn how to create environments inclusive for students with disabilities. The training includes a range of interactive activities to engage participants as well as discussions about disability-related topics including person-first language, universal design and the disability of movement. Upon completion of the training, participants can choose to display an Ability Ally placard at their workspace or wear a wristband identifying as an Ability Ally.
Steering Committee Openings
All current members of KAAN are eligible to run for office. Officers will be elected at the annual meeting by a majority vote of members present. Note: each steering committee member may serve no more than two elected consecutive terms in any capacity. No member may hold more than one seat on the steering committee at one time.
At this year’s annual conference the following positions were up for election:
- Vice Chair
- Region VII Liaison Coordinator
- Membership Coordinator
- Secretary