Susan Madsen (Keynote #1)– She discussed her research findings regarding women in Utah and completion of higher education. I found her research findings interesting. One in particular that caught my attention was that if a young woman indicated she had no leadership roles from grades 9-12 then likelihood of graduating from college was very low. Also, if she worked while in high school it also lowered the likelihood of graduating from college. A few things weren’t a surprise like the younger a girl was when college discussions began happening, the more likely she would go. Also, the earlier a girl started saving money as a child for college, the more likely she attended. There was a distinction made between attendance and finishing college in her research. Many of the female students said they planned to attend college, but less said they actually planned to finish. We need to start having the discussions with young ladies about not only attending but completing a college education. She talked about transformational moments (that could be very small), but could change a student’s trajectory.
The presentation which I felt was most important was “The Shots Fired.” This presentation discussed how to handle things in an emergency situation and how to be more likely to survive. One common element for those who survive is they have prepared a plan prior to an emergency. The presenter suggested each office have a code word (that does not include Red) which indicates that the individual in the office is concerning to us. They also mentioned when such an encounter occurs that we report it to the entity on campus who gathers this information. I think our office should discuss strategies in various situations, come up with a code word, and review where/how we report concerning behavior.
I also attended a controversial session called, “Did My Advisor Just Call Me a Loser?” The presenter was very blunt and said some things that were disturbing to those attending. However, the aspect of this presentation that I felt helped me was that I need to be more direct with my students. I disagree with how offensively/bluntly he said things, but I determined that I do need to be more direct with students when it comes to helping them take accountability for their choices.
I also enjoyed attending a session by John Mortensen from USU about different ways to look at Retention numbers. His ideas took into account things like transferring to other institutions and finishing degrees there. There was a lot of data and it would be very interesting to have this discussion in more detail and really explore how these ideas could be used statewide.
Lastly, our Technology presentation went very well. We received great feedback from those in attendance and there was a lot of interest and discussion regarding calendaring systems. We also got some ideas to make it even better for NACADA Nationals in October.
Overall, I think this was one of the best UAOA conferences I have attended. It was a great opportunity to reconnect with colleagues across the state, as well as from the U.
