2015 White Paper Report

University of Virginia . Student COuncil

ACADEMIC aFFAIRS committee

Tableof

contents

who we are

about the committee

major past initiatives

2015-16 initiatives

“The Academic Affairs committee shall be responsible for address-ing the academic and educational concerns of students, & advising the administration regarging the university’s academic policies.”

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Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

committee description

The Academic Affairs Committee is a committee of the University of Virginia’s Student Council. The Committee serves the student body by working with administrators, offer-ing resources to students, addressing issues voiced by students, and hosting enrich-ing programs for the University community to attend. The Committee is maintained by two Co-Chairs and consists of about 15 students from across the University. We meet weekly to plan and discuss ways to improve academic life at the University of Virginia.

The Co-Chairs

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Harlin Oh is a Fourth Year from Houston, TX majoring in Government. She has been an active member of Student Council since her first year. She is committed to serving her community by recognizing the needs of the student body and improving their academic experience through meaningful initiatives such as the Academic Resource Center (ARC) and Look Hoos Talking. She looks forward to working with organizations like the University Peer Advising Link (ULink), facilitating greater dialogue be-tween students and the University administration, and exploring creative ways to extend the goals of the Academic Affairs Committee. Aside from Student Council, she is the Senior Resident of Bice House and a mentor for the Bridging the Gap program. She loves soccer, enjoys playing the flute and ukulele, and lives by the Texas state motto of “Friendship.”

Harlin oh

Shelbey Keegan is a Fourth Year from Reston, Virginia, double majoring in Foreign Affairs and East Asian Studies. She has been a member of the

Academic Affairs Committee since her third year at the University. Shelbey is looking forward to working with the committee to tackle community

academic concerns, and enhance the academic experience for students, faculty, and alumni through exciting initiatives like Look Hoos Talking, the

Cavalier Education program, and the redevelopment of the Academic Re-source Center (ARC). Outside of the Committee, Shelbey is also involved

in Student Council’s University Peer Advising Link (ULink), the University Salsa Club, the Office of Orientation and New Student Programs, and she

also serves as the student liaison to the University’s Total Advising Committee.

Shelbey keegan

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Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

Members

Committee members represent a diverse set of disciplines, demographics, and back-grounds at UVa. These varying perspectives are important for the initiatives of the committee in order to generate innovative and creative ideas and provide representation of the wants and needs of the Student Body.New committee members will be added during Fall Recruitment.

Klaus DollhopfGagan GuptaAlex HeyerElaine Koo

Jasmine LeeConnor McLeanJoanna MorganReilly Sheehy

Murali Varadaraj

Contact Information

Harlin Oh: harlin.oh@virginia.edu

Shelbey Keegan: sak5ee@virginia.edu

If you have any questions or want to make a request, use the following contact information.

Website: http:///www.uvastudentcouncil.com/academicaffairs

Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

General Purpose

The Academic Affairs Committee is responsible for addressing the academic and educa-tional concerns of students, and advising the administration regarding the University’s academic policies.

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Academic Resources and events

The Committee is responsible for connecting students with academic resources and of-fering various stimulating and engaging events related to academics. Committee mem-bers work to assemble resources from across the University and make them available to students through the Academic Resource Center and the Student Council Academic Affairs website. Through programs like Cavalier Education and Look Hoos Talking the committee connects students to opportunities to deepen their intellectual pursuits. The Committee also works to offer Academic Advising, research opportunities, and more.

scope: faculty, student, and administration

The Committee addresses students academic concerns by working closely with those within the University’s academic system, including faculty and administration. This ef-fort includes regular meetings with the Vice-Provost of Academic Affairs, the Dean of Advising in the College, other Deans, Faculty, and the SIS administration. Committee members and chairs share concerns with administrators. For example, the Committee meets with the University staff that works on the Student Information System (SIS) to offer advice on the system, provide student feedback, and help improve the student’s experience. The Committee hopes to continue featuring Dean Chat for the Academic Resource Center this year as it did last year. The Committee will work to support the efforts of University Peer Advising Link. These are examples of the Committee’s work. Ultimately, the Committee works within these relationships to improve the Academic System in whatever ways possible.

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Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

Past Initiatives

Cavalier educationThe Cavalier Education Program is a Student Council initiative that allows UVa students to create and teach their own Credit/No Credit courses to their peers. The goal of the CavEd program is to give students the opportunity to take charge of their academic experience - to allow them to share their passion for and knowledge of subjects outside the traditional curriculum. Student applicants must pass a rigorous application process in order to be eligible to teach a course. A graduate student teaches a pedagogy semi-nar for the student teachers in order to enhance their teaching experience. For more information, please visit the Cavalier Education website.

Academic resource centerThe Academic Resource Center was created last year to serve as a resource to help students find pertinent academic information, explore academic opportunities at the University and answer academic concerns. ARC features a search function, an email contact for questions, and chat appointments with either a committee representative or with a Dean. You can find the basics on the Know the Basics page, search academic opportunities and experiences through the Explore Academics page, and solve prob-lems along the way with the Figure It Out page. Please visit the ARC website for more information. This year the website is under major redevelopment.

Look Hoos TalkingLook Hoos Talking is an evening of celebrating academic inquiry by showcasing six or seven of the University’s most requested professors, chosen by the students, sharing their most provocative ideas. Usually held in March, Look Hoos Talking attracts over 500 students to Old Cabell hall to hear university Professors speak on their biggest ideas. Every year, students have the opportunity to nominate their favorite professors for this speaking event. This year Look Hoos Talking will be held in October. Check out the website for more information.

Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

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Total advisingWithin the Board of Visitor’s mission for a Total Advising system, Academic Affairs began several initiatives in 2014 to improve the University’s advising system, partnering with the Office of the Vice Provost of Academic Affairs and various advising entities across the university.The Committee managed and publicized ARC, the Academic Resource Center, a website that centralizes important academic information for students to use for their academic experience. The committee has also been trained by administration to use a chat function on the website to provide assistance to students’ questions. The Committee also planned a student to student advising system, called University Peer Advising Link (ULink). Finally, alongside the Vice-Provost of Academic Affairs, the Com-mittee organized five focus groups to offer students a place to provide feedback on the total advising system. With the founding of ULink, the committee has effected positive change in Advising.

look hoos returningLook Hoos Returning was a networking event that features a panel of notable alumni speakers. Look Hoos Returning was analogous to the Look Hoos Talking event but featured alumni speakers instead of notable professors. Following the event, alumni, students, teachers, and attending community members were invited to attend a catered reception to continue the conversation. The event took place during Homecomings weekend in an attempt to create greater alumni involvement and support.

Teaching awardsIn the past, our Committee has sponsored two teaching awards. The first award was to honor a professor nominated by his or her students as an exemplar of professorship at UVa. The second award went to a member of the University faculty nominated by stu-dents for making a positive, lasting impact on the University through fostering partner-ships with student organizations. The chosen professor and faculty member were hon-ored during the Student Council Transition in the spring or at an equivalent event. This initiative encourages professors and faculty members across UVa to think about how they might better engage students and create positive learning environments. The Com-mittee also generally aims to develop a positive relationship with Faculty and express the student body’s appreciation of their work.

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Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

Cuurent initiatives

urn partnership In past years, the Committee participated in the URN’s Research Symposium as a Spe-cial Awards Organization. Throughout the day, representatives from Student Council judge the presenters on a standard scale. After the judging, awards and gift certificates are presented to the winning presenters. The Committee is partnering with the URN on their Research and Scholarship Week during the first week of October, which features networking with faculty, panels on research and scholarships, and workshops. The Committee will be working with the URN throughout the year to promote awareness about research and scholarships at the University, helping to further the network at the University. Given that research is an important aspect of the Academic experience, the Committee considers this partnership valuable and critical to the needs of students.

Cavalier educationThe Cavalier Education Program is a Student Council initiative that allows UVa students to create and teach their own Credit/No Credit courses to their peers. The goal of the CavEd program is to give students the opportunity to take charge of their academic experience - to allow them to share their passion for and knowledge of subjects outside the traditional curriculum. Student applicants must pass a rigorous application process in order to be eligible to teach a course. A graduate student teaches a pedagogy semi-nar for the student teachers in order to enhance their teaching experience. For more information, please visit the Cavalier Education website.

College requirements focus groupsOur committee will conduct focus groups, consisting of random samples of college undergraduates, to ask them what they expect from a liberal arts education. The Col-lege’s Curriculum Planning Committee (CPC) has been responsible for reviewing the general education (area and competency requirements) requirements of undergraduate students. The CPC is researching ways to improve the curriculum and will recommend their findings to the school. The Academic Affairs Committee will offer a report, repre-senting the student voice and opinions. The study will pull on the past experiences that students have had in fulfilling their general education requirements, as well as student recommendations for possible future adjustments to the college curriculum.

Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

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Academic resource centerThe Academic Resource Center was created last year to serve as a resource to help students find pertinent academic information, explore academic opportunities at the University and answer academic concerns. ARC features a search function, an email contact for questions, and chat appointments with either a committee representative or with a Dean. You can find the basics on the Know the Basics page, search academic opportunities and experiences through the Explore Academics page, and solve prob-lems along the way with the Figure It Out page. Please visit the ARC website for more information. This year the website is under major redevelopment.

Look Hoos TalkingLook Hoos Talking is an evening of celebrating academic inquiry by showcasing six or seven of the University’s most requested professors, chosen by the students, sharing their most provocative ideas. Usually held in March, Look Hoos Talking attracts over 500 students to Old Cabell hall to hear university Professors speak on their biggest ideas. Every year, students have the opportunity to nominate their favorite professors for this speaking event. This year Look Hoos Talking will be held in October. Check out the website for more information.

Teaching awardsIn the past, our Committee has sponsored two teaching awards. The first award was to honor a professor nominated by his or her students as an exemplar of professorship at UVa. The second award went to a member of the University faculty nominated by stu-dents for making a positive, lasting impact on the University through fostering partner-ships with student organizations. The chosen professor and faculty member were hon-ored during the Student Council Transition in the spring or at an equivalent event. This initiative encourages professors and faculty members across UVa to think about how they might better engage students and create positive learning environments. The Com-mittee also generally aims to develop a positive relationship with Faculty and express the student body’s appreciation of their work.

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Unviersity of Virginia Student Council

urn partnership In past years, the Committee participated in the URN’s Research Symposium as a Spe-cial Awards Organization. Throughout the day, representatives from Student Council judge the presenters on a standard scale. After the judging, awards and gift certificates are presented to the winning presenters. The Committee is partnering with the URN on their Research and Scholarship Week during the first week of October, which features networking with faculty, panels on research and scholarships, and workshops. The Committee will be working with the URN throughout the year to promote awareness about research and scholarships at the University, helping to further the network at the University. Given that research is an important aspect of the Academic experience, the Committee considers this partnership valuable and critical to the needs of students.