ERIC EJ1069273: Reframing Academic Advising for Student Success: From Advisor to Cultural Navigator

2015·0.09 MB·English

by  ERIC

Reframing Academic Advising for Student Success: From Advisor to
Cultural Navigator
Terrell L. Strayhorn, The Ohio State University
Adapted for print from the NACADA Annual Conference Keynote presented in Minneapolis,
Minnesota, on October 9, 2014
[doi:10.12930/NACADA-14-199]
societythandoesmerecollegeattendanceor‘‘early
Good morning! I want to thank you, NACADA, arrival with premature departure’’ (i.e., before
for giving me the opportunity to talk with you degree completion), as I’ve said on occasion.
today about a subject that I think is critically Fortheseandotherimportantreasons,Ithinkof
important and central to all constituents in higher college student success as a critical goal in higher
education: college student success. Everyone is education, a near-boundless research topic in our
talking about student success nowadays. The field, and a major policy issue with significant
Association of American Colleges and Universities implicationsforstudentsandfamilies,collegesand
(AAC&U) released the report titled, ‘‘America’s universities,aswellasthelargersociety.Currently,
Unmet Need: The Imperative of Equity in Higher I serve as professor of Higher Education at The
Education,’’ which among other things is funda- Ohio State University where I also direct the
mentally about college student success (Witham, Center for Higher Education Enterprise, affection-
Malcom-Piqueux, Dowd, & Bensimon, 2015). ately known as ‘‘CHEE,’’ which is a new research
Several years ago, the National Association of and policy center that aims to increase and ensure
Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) part- student success for all. CHEE’s work on student
nered with several other agencies, such as the successfallswithinfourkeypriorityareas:college
American College Personnel Association (ACPA), access, affordability, engagement, and excellence.
and released Learning Reconsidered and Learning In terms of access, college must be accessible
Reconsidered 2 (Keeling, 2004, 2006), both of
for all: period. To be accessible, college must
which identified major learning outcomes of higher
remain affordable; for too many reasons and too
education and argued for integrated learning as a
many years, the rising costs of college have fallen
measure of student success. Indeed, there’s much
on the shoulders of students and families. CHEE
ado about college student success.
advocatesthatthecostsofhighereducationshould
The new or renewed focus on college student
be shared by all those who benefit from it,
success is justified. The weight of empirical
including students and families, but also state and
evidence to date suggests that the educational
localgovernments,industry,andthelargersociety.
benefits of college attendance flow most fully to
In terms of engagement, research (some undertak-
individuals who find success in higher education.
enbyCHEE)showsthatstudentswhoareengaged
For instance, the economic or monetary benefits of
in their educational experience perform better,
college are best realized by those who graduate
exhibit greater learning gains, and achieve higher
from college not those who attend a few weeks,
levelsofsuccess.Solikeothersininitiativesacross
several months, or one year and then drop out.
thenation,CHEEusesthatinformationtopromote
Recall that the College Board for a number of years
student engagement in high-impact practices in
has published data indicating that the average
bachelor’s degree recipient can expect to earn 66% college.
more than the average high school graduate over a Asaresearchcenter,CHEEworkstoengageits
40-year work life—that is estimated to be $1 partners both on and off campus in efforts around
million more earned by degree recipients (Baum, studentsuccess.Finally,CHEE’sultimategoalisto
Ma, & Payea, 2013). Graduation pays. That’s why I ensure excellence in the higher education enter-
like to remind provosts, deans, enrollment services prise, and those dedicated to CHEE pay close
staff, and retention specialists that retention can attention to #WhatWorks—the name of the Cen-
never be the primary aim. If student retention is the ter’s most recent report series—not what does not
primary goal, then there is never a motivation to work.CHEEisdriventochangelivesbychanging
graduate them. Graduation or degree completion education and ensuring student success. After all,
carries many more benefits to the individual and what’s the point of attending college and even
56 NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015
Cultural Navigators
graduatingfromit,ifyoulearnnothingandcando My research reveals that all want to succeed, but
nothing with it in the end? too many do not, and the causes are not all their
own. Factors contributing to success in college and
Student Success
those associated with dropout are also not the
Student success—two simple words that, when same. Some students leave for the very same
taken together, become a critical goal in higher reasons why others stay. For example, some
education, a very large topic, and a serious students find it rewarding to establish meaningful
assignment for any single keynote. Student success supportive relationships with university faculty and
hasbeenthe focus of my scholarly researchsince I staff (Strayhorn, 2008a), while others find frequent
startedmycareerasanewassistantprofessoratmy and personal interactions with faculty and staff
former institution, the University of Tennessee– intrusive, stifling, and even overwhelming. College
Knoxville (UTK) (Go Vols!), where I met and student success is a function of many factors, and
workedcloselywithaformerPresidentofNACADA, academic preparation prior to college is just a
Dr.RuthDarling,whoishereintheaudience.Ruth relatively small part of the explanatory models
andIaccomplishedmuchtogetheratUTKintermsof used in research (Strayhorn, 2013a).
increasing first-year student retention rates, estab-
lishinganew5-weeksummerbridgeprogram—UT Diversity
LEAD—for historically underrepresented students College student success begins with access.
andredesigningfreshmanorientationandotherpre- College, in my opinion, should be accessible to all
enrollmentactivitiesthatwereofferedtoensurenew who want it. And I believe that several efforts to
students’success on campus. Ruth and I were not expand access to postsecondary education in the
alone in our endeavors; we were supported by the United States have generally worked. Today, there
then-Provost, Dr. Bob Holub, and joined by our are approximately 21 million college students
colleaguesinstudentaffairs,academicaffairs,faculty enrolled in North American higher education, and
inthecolleges,and,yes,evenstudentswhoactedas those students are enrolled across more than 4,300
peer advisors and mentors to their fellow entering colleges and universities (U.S. Department
classmates. A major take-away from our work at of Education, 2013). Just over one half of
UTKwasthis:Increasingstudentsuccessratestakes those institutions are 2-year community colleges
hard work, but hard work is no excuse for retreat; and the rest of the enterprise consists of 4-year
workingtogetherwecandoit. public and private research universities,
I’ve conducted a number ofstudies on thework comprehensive insti-tutions, liberal arts
wedidatUTK(e.g.,Strayhorn,2009,2011)andeven colleges, minority-serving institutions, and
morestudiesonprogramsatotherinstitutions,large technical and trade centers.
national survey samples, and qualitative interview- Women now outnumber men on most college
basedinvestigationsintovulnerablestudentpopula- campuses. Approximately one third of all college
tions,includingformerfosteryouth,somewhowere students are first generation; that is, they are the first
wards of the court or formerly incarcerated males, in their immediate family to attend college.(By a
andgay,lesbian,bisexual,orqueer(GLBQ)youth,to show of hands, how many in the audience today
nameafew.Ifoundthatthereisnotasinglestudentin consider themselves first-generation college
all of higher education who does not want to be students—first in your family to attend and
successful. I am not just talkingabout large, public complete college?)
land-grant institutions like UTK or my current Racial and ethnic minorities now make up a
institution,TheOhioStateUniversity.Iamreferring significant proportion of the undergraduate student
to the entire higher education enterprise: large population, a much larger share than was ever
publics,smallprivates,minority-serving,community possible in bygone eras marked by laws that
colleges, technical and trade, even online and for- prohibited education of Blacks in the U.S., de jure
profitinstitutions.I’venevermetastudentwhosaid segregation, and even anti-affirmative action or
to me: ‘‘Doc, I’m striving each day to fail, to learn immigration decisions. Despite all of that history,
howtoquit,tobeunsuccessful.’’Everystudentwants access has expanded for first-generation students,
to succeed, but unfortunately far too many enroll low-income students, women, students of color,
withouttheacademicpreparationrequiredtosucceed veterans, GLBQ students, and the list goes on.
or they enroll and struggle to access the resources, Those of us in higher education have built
information,andadvicethatenablestheirsuccessat bridges for many to access higher education
ourinstitutions. (Strayhorn, 2011), and that’s a good thing. We’ve
done a good job. We must continue these efforts
and maintain all
NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015 57
Terrell L. Strayhorn
gains.Yetthere’smuchmoretodo.Bringingstudents outcomes, democratic education, service learning,
to higher education means nothing if they’re not sustainability, and the like (Checkoway, 2002;
successful. Access without success is useless, but Einfeld & Collins, 2008). Without connection to
accesswithsuccessiseverything. resources, information, and people who can help
If the maximum benefits of college flow to supply strategies for negotiating these different
those who successfully complete their degrees, cultures, these students are at risk for failure, for
thenwemuststriveto ensurestudentsuccess. Our dropping out, and may be unsuccessful in college,
efforts are incomplete until we connect students not due to academic underpreparedness, but rather
with the resources they need to be successful in due to cultural incongruity or their unreadiness to
higher education, and that’s where I think we can negotiateorstraddlemultiplecultures,toacclimate
do a better job. Our access bridges make college to a new cultural orientation, or to develop the
accessible,possible,apotentialrealityforsomany skills necessary for cultural navigation. Before
students who never thought college was within diving too deeply into my thoughts about cultural
theirreach:studentswhoarefirstintheirfamilyto navigation, let’s talk about culture and higher
attend college, students who have never been education as a cultural site.
encouraged to think of themselves as college
material,quitehonestly,studentswhowe,inhigher Culture of Higher Education
education, never thought of as college bound, Cultureisdefinedassharedattitudesorpatterns
collegeready,orcollegeable.Ourbridgesconnect of behaviors characteristic of a particular social
new and different students to our campuses— group or collective that distinguishes it from
students whose cultural backgrounds are qualita- another. Culture refers to aspects of a particular
tively different from the majority or from the group as well—its beliefs, arts, music, cuisine,
dominantcodesandvaluesthatoperateoncampus. institutions, and customs to name a few. Culture
These codes, values, and beliefs shape the can be transmitted, and this is often done through
character of our campuses, whether we are aware language, arts, rituals, and other acts of socializa-
of it or not. tion such as rites of passage, orientation, and
For instance, some students come to higher purposeful ceremonies.
educationwhowere bornincommunitiesandlived Higher education is a culture. It has clear
inneighborhoodsamongstfamiliesandfriendswho markers of its cultural character. For example,
value cooperation, community, and collaboration, higher education has its own codified language,
which is part of NACADA’s theme this year: chock-full of acronyms like NASPA, ACPA,
Collaboration is key. These students were raised in ASHE, NACA, and yes, NACADA. In higher
environmentswherecollaborationistheorderofthe education, it is not a dorm but rather a what?
day, where they strive to get along with or support Residence hall. That shared understanding is
one another. The collective is always far more germane only to higher education. Try asking a
important than the individual in such contexts. It’s medical professional to define the term, and he or
‘‘us’’ or ‘‘we’’ and never ‘‘I’’ since ‘‘I’’ wouldn’t be she will explain that a dormitory is a room for
without ‘‘us’’ and ‘‘I’’ and ‘‘she’’ is always looking people in a hospital or institution. And in higher
out for ‘‘we.’’ This tongue-twister, in all actuality, education, terms like exploratory or undeclared
best represents the cultural context in which I was refertostudents’decisionsregardingtheiracadem-
born, and many students share this mind-set. icmajornotdeepseadivingoratypeofwarfare.A
The cultural system of higher education often common attribute of cultures is that words and
operates on a very different set of cultural beliefs phrases take on endogenous meaning—that is, the
and values than those to which some students are meaning and essence of the word or phrase
accustomed. By and large, higher education is set originates from within the group. This is true of
up to reward the individual over the collective or many terms and phrases in higher education.
group—think about how rewards such as grades, There are commonly held beliefs that also
scholarships, even merit pay are structured and define higher education as a culture. For instance,
distributed in college. Higher education courses, as advisors and educators, we have a strong
majors, clubs, and organizations are designed to collective ethos around ‘‘students first’’ and an
push students to make decisions based on individ- abiding belief in the important role that faculty–
ual values or preferences without consideration of student interactions play in students’ success
the collective, although there are some attempts at (Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005; Strayhorn, 2008a).
changing this with the renewed focus on civic Ourtraditionsaremany:fromfreshmanorientation
58 NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015
Cultural Navigators
to convocation, from tenure and promotion to need to be able to move to and through higher
graduation. Some of us have celebrated campus education to succeed. This is particularly true for
traditions like ‘‘streaking the lawn’’ at the Univer- those for whom the distance between their culture
sity of Virginia, my alma mater, or jumping in of origin and higher education is greatest.
Mirror Lake atThe Ohio State University. Andno We, then, must see our roles as cultural
matterhowcrazyorobscenesuchactsmayappear navigators who help students negotiate higher
tothoseoutside,thesetraditionsareprecious,time- education successfully. We must see students as
honoredculturalartifacts bestunderstoodbythose actors, agents of their own destiny in this cultural
who consider themselves insiders or members of space. Students bring cultural wealth—not defi-
the campus. Indeed, higher education is a culture. cits—with them. Our job as cultural navigators is
to see them as glasses or vessels partly full, not
Cultural Navigators
empty. We must help them with a cultural
To apprehend this culture, one must be part of excavation of sorts by working together with them
it,socializedtoit,or(aidedbyamemberwhoacts to dig deep into their cultural repertoires and
as a cultural navigator) learn the implicit and identify the wealth they bring to campus and the
explicitaspectsof it.Individualswhostrivetohelp ways to deploy it in this setting that may be
students move successfully through education and decidedly new to them. That is what cultural
life, I refer to as cultural navigators. These might navigators do.
be parents, educators, mentors (both formal and
informal),pastors,experiencedpeers,coaches,and Belonging and Mattering
most important for today’s conversation, academic Cultural navigators help students belong and
advisors. Cultural navigators are those who know recognize that all students matter. For instance, I
something about the new culture. They know the met a student who spent most of her life helping
codes of conduct, customs, dominant values, hermomraiseyoungersiblingsinthefamily.Once
language,requirements,rules,andtraditions.Their in college, she really struggled with the academic
knowledgeisbornofexperience,mostlyfirsthand, demands of college course work and balancing
whichgivesthemtheacumenandunderstandingto such demands with other commitments such as
help others. Like a high-tech global positioning work, church, friends, clubs, and, as she said, four
systemor‘‘GPS,’’culturalnavigatorsdomorethan to five hours she ‘‘wastes’’ each night sleeping.
merely tell someone where to go; they show them Through several conversations, we talked about
via demonstration, illustration, or simulation of how she managed time prior to college, how she
possible paths. Cultural navigators in higher prioritized school and family life, and how she
education help guide students until they arrive at organized her day to accomplish so much. After
theiracademicdestinationoratleastuntiltheyare identifying what worked before (e.g., keeping a
comfortablesteeringwhiletheirculturalnavigators schedule, task lists, accountability partner), we
act as guides on the side and keep them on their devised ways for her to use similar strategies to
path (Strayhorn, 2015). succeed in college. I also helped her convert a
Howdoesthisrelatetocollegestudentsuccess? professor’s syllabus into a set of tasks for her
As I mentioned earlier, students need more than master to-do list, several entries for her calendar,
basic academic skills to be college ready or and a self-assessment of what she learned by
successful in higher education (Strayhorn, 2014). reframing the course objectives as questions.
Remember, the weight of research evidence, to You see, cultural navigators also act as transla-
date, suggests that only 25% of the variance in tors,coaches,andguides.Culturalnavigatorsknow
traditional college outcome measures is attributed somethingabouttheculture—howitoperates,how
to academic factors such as high school grade- to get things done, how to be part of it and feel a
pointaverage(GPA), collegeentranceexamscore, sense of belonging. They share that information
and pre-college assessments of students’ academic withstudents,helpthemadjusttocollegelife,and
aptitude (Strayhorn, 2013a). That leaves almost make themselves available as trusted go-to re-
three fourths of the variance in college student sources whenever possible.
successoutcomesunexplainedbysuchfactorsand In2012,Ipublishedabookoncollegestudents’
likely attributable to those over which we, in the sense of belonging (Strayhorn, 2012). That book
educationcommunity,havesomecontrol:finances, features findings from several studies, one of
engagement, major, belonging, campus climate, which focused on Latino student sense of belong-
and yes, advising, to name a few. Students also ing (Strayhorn, 2008b). Sense of belonging is
NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015 59
Terrell L. Strayhorn
fundamentallyfeltbyindividualswhobelievethey cultural navigators to belong. And, students who
are cared about, respected, and part of a campus belong succeed.
community. It is about social relations, connec-
Navigating a New Generation
tions, and supportive interactions. Everyonewants
to belong—it is a fundamental need of all people In the belonging book, I highlight results from
and offers a compelling motive sufficient to drive severalstudiesincludingafewonLatinostudents.
human behavior. I met a young woman named Alejandra (a
Sense of belonging takes on heightened impor- pseudonym) who was a first-generation Latina in
tance in certain contexts, for certain people, and herfirstyearofcollegewhenImether.Herstoryis
interesting because she reveals how she applied to
during certain moments. Sense of belonging is
college despite her parents’ wishes.
critically important the moment someone feels
Not all students apply to college with their
aloneandisolated.Inunfamiliarorforeignplaces,
parents support, endorsement, or knowledge. In
individuals are prone to feel isolated, alone, and
fact, in a paper where I write about ‘‘Alejandra’s
unsupported, but sights of familiar faces, hints of
story,’’Isharedhowshetalkedatlengthabouther
familiarscents,orsupportfromculturalnavigators
father ‘‘enabling [her] to quit’’ college easily.
can reduce, if not remove, feelings of loneliness.
Consider the following paraphrased excerpt from
Decades of social psychological research has
her interview:
shown that it is virtually impossible for people to
excelorstriveinplaceswheretheyfeelthreatened,
It was difficult to talk to him [her father].
vulnerable, or lonely.
Every time we talked he would ask me how
Senseofbelongingisrelatedtomattering(Stray-
I’m doing in college. If I said that I had a
horn,2012).Ihavewrittenthatsocialidentitiesplaya
long day or a hard test, then he would say
role in one’s belonging because social identities
things like ‘‘Don’t beat yourself up. ... You
matterandtheyintersectandaffectbelonging.Who
don’t have to stay there, you can come
studentsarerelatestowhatittakesforthemtobelong.
home.’’ But I didn’t want to come home. I
First-generation college students, often assumed to
wantedtodobetterandsucceed.Ireallyfelt
knowrelativelylittleaboutcollege,theinformalrules
likeIshouldbeincollege....Itmadesense
ofcampuslife,orhowtonavigatehighereducation,
tome.SoeventuallyIhadtojuststoptalking
mayneedconsiderablesupportfromotherstofeela
to my dad for awhile, which made me feel
sense of belonging in college. First-generation
bad as his daughter.
college students of color may need even more
support because their sense of belonging is likely
Is Alejandra’s dad a bad guy? No. Is it that he
influenced by issues of race and racism on campus
doesn’tlovehisdaughter?No.Infact,helovesher
(Strayhorn,2013b).
so much that he’s driven to protect her from
Sense of belonging engenders achievement and
difficulty, challenge, and failure, like most parents
student success. My research has shown that
regardless of race, gender, or social class.
students who feel a positive sense of belonging
I learned from the interview that Alejandra’s
earnbettergrades,areretainedathigher rates,and
parents also depended on her greatly in the home:
adjust to college more easily than their peers who
to answer the phone as the only fluent English
donotfeelasiftheybelong.However,theneedto
speaker in their immediate family, to translate
belongmustbesatisfiedcontinuallyasthecontext conversations with neighbors, to pick up and sort
or culture changes, time changes, and people mail and call attention to any communication
change. related to bills or family emergencies. All of this
Remember, one part of our job as cultural shapeshowherdadrespondedandwhyhetriedto
navigators is to help students build supportive keepherfromapplyingtocollegeinthefirstplace.
connections with others on campus so they can One day Alejandra met a college recruiter who
find that sense of belonging that means so much. came to her school and said: ‘‘Alejandra, I see
We know that students who feel a sense of something in you. You have potential. You can be
belonging feel stuck to campus and, thus, find it successful in college. Apply.’’ With initial interest
verydifficulttoleaveordropoutbecausedoingso but many reservations, Alejandra replied: ‘‘I
would require completely undoing or severing wouldn’t even know where to get started.’’ The
social bonds with so many others on campus. recruiter, acting as a cultural navigator, said: ‘‘No
Newcomerstothecultureofhighereducationneed problem. I’ll help you. I can tell you where to get
60 NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015
Cultural Navigators
started and how to get the application done’’ nowadays; it is not the 4-year trek of yesteryear.
(because cultural navigators know something about Thereareotherthingsthatweknowaboutcollege.
thejourney).Interestedbutafraid,Alejandraagrees. For example, we know that most students will
The college recruiter helps her through the change their major at least once during their
applicationprocessandhelpsherapplyforfinancial undergraduatecareers,andmanywillchangeittwo
aid. Although new to Alejandra, these aspects of or three more times. We also know that there are
college life are known, familiar, secondhand to the consequences associated with changing one’s
recruiter. Alejandra gets admitted. major excessively. For instance, we know from
After reading her acceptance letter, she’s research that, on average, changing one’s major
overcome with fear, anxiety, and shame—not the onceaddsapproximately0.50yearstothetime-to-
usual response of students to such good news as degree. Change it twice? The major-changer will
gaining admission to their first choice of college. need nearly 1.75 times longer than a student who
She feared what her parents would say about her stays with his or her initial major.
decision to apply behind their backs. She feared So is the moral of my story to keep students
whathercommunitymightthinkoncetheylearned from changing their major? No, not at all. There
that she had applied and gained admission to are good reasons for changing majors sometimes.
college against her father’s wishes. She worried As students learn more about themselves, their
thatwhatwouldbegoodnewsinhighereducation interests, and the world around them, their
would become a point of shame in her family and academic interests shift, change, or converge on a
community.Thissortofculturalclash(i.e.,cultural new focus. But without careful advising, access to
incongruence) occurs daily in this country on all accurate and timely information about sequencing
campuses for many students who are new to or of courses, class offerings, degree requirements,
unfamiliar with the culture of higher education. and so forth, students may unknowingly extend
I see lots of heads nodding indicating that this their time-to-degree, pick up additional years or
story resonates with many of you in the audience. semesters of college that they must pay for, and
Anditshould.Itreflectsanexperience,amoment, switch to a major that actually does not align with
indeed, a cross-cultural exchange that many of us their interests or vocational path after all.
who work in academic advising have shared with There are other things that we know about this
students.Academicadvisingisarguablyoneofthe culturethatmakeuseffectiveculturalnavigatorsin
most critical functional areas in all of higher our academic advising roles. For instance, a meta-
education. It is the primary touch point where analysis of existing knowledge yields important
studentsaccessinformation,resources,andtoolsto conclusions about what we know. I’ll name just a
navigate successfully through college. It is where few more:
students learn the rules of this culture—what a
credit hour is, how many credits each course 1. College takes time and how students use
carries,thenumberofcreditsrequiredforamajor, their time influences their success. Data
minor, or (ultimately) graduation. Academic ad- from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
vising is where students go for advice about their (2013) indicate that college students
futures, their paths to purposeful lives, and their spend 8.0 to 10.0 hours a day on their
progressthroughcollege.Alejandra’sstoryisfilled cell phone (i.e., texting, talking, using
with many, many lessons about culture, cultural social media) but only 3.3 hours per day
navigation, and our role as cultural navigators in engaged in educational activities. It is
higher education. recommended that college students de-
vote at least 2.0 hours of study time for
Cultural Navigating: Sharing the Knowledge every hour spent in class. Cultural
Being a cultural navigator begins with a few navigators know (or now know) these
admissions.Wemustadmitthathighereducationis general rules and share them with
a culture and we know something about this students as a way of enabling their
culture. There are things we know about the success in college.
journey that we’re asking students to take, things 2. Speakingoftimespentstudying,yearsof
that we know from experience, from others’ researchhaveshownthatcrammingisan
experiences, from our training, from research. ineffective strategy for true learning to
Forinstance,weknowthatmoststudentstake5 occur. While cramming the night before
to 6 years to complete their bachelor’s degree might permit immediate recall of facts
NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015 61
Terrell L. Strayhorn
andfiguresonatestorquiztheverynext References
day, it is unlikely to lead to long-term Baum, S., Ma, J., & Payea,K.(2013). Education
memory of information or higher order pays 2013: The benefits of higher education
cognitive processes such as analysis, for individuals and society. New York, NY:
synthesis, or evaluation. Cultural naviga- The College Board.
tors know (or now know) this informa- Checkoway, B. (2002). Renewing the civic
tion and encourage students to devote mission of the American research university.
adequate time to studying, effective note JournalofHigherEducation,72(2),125–147.
taking, and proven techniques for mas- Einfeld, A., & Collins, D. (2008). The relation-
ships between service-learning, social justice,
tery in learning.
multicultural competence, and civic engage-
3. What students bring to college is far less
ment. Journal of College Student Develop-
important than what they do in college.
ment, 49(2), 95–109.
Higher education affords students many
Keeling, R. P. (Ed.). (2004). Learning reconsid-
opportunities for involvement, deep en-
ered: A campus-wide focus on the student
gagement,andpurposefulactivity:Clubs
experience.Washington,DC:NASPA:Student
and organizations, courses and seminars,
Affairs Administrators in Higher Education
workshops and trainings, sports and
and American College Personnel Association.
leisure, faculty research and music
Keeling, R. P. (Ed.). (2006). Learning reconsid-
groups—the opportunities are endless. ered2:Implementingacampus-wide focuson
Academic advisors, acting as cultural the student experience. Washington, DC:
navigators, play a critical role in student American College Personnel Association;
success by helping students choose Association of College and University Hous-
which activities or experiences will help ing Officers–International; Association of
them arriveattheirdesired destination— College Unions International; National Asso-
that is, the right major, the right minor, ciationforCampusActivities;NACADA:The
the right GPA, the right class, the right Global Community for Academic Advising;
internship, and ultimately graduation. National Association of Student Personnel
Administrators; NIRSA:Leaders inCollegiate
In closing, let’s remember that effective aca- Recreation.
demic advisors, as cultural navigators, recognize Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How
higher education as a culture and know something college affects students: A third decade of
about this journey called college. They hold high, research (Vol. 2). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-
but attainable, expectations for all students, who Bass.
oftenrisetotheexpectationssetforthem.Effective Strayhorn, T. L. (2008a). Fittin’ in: Do diverse
academic advisors, as cultural navigators, care interactions with peers affect sense of belong-
about their students and they signal in meaningful ing for Black men at predominantly White
ways that students matter. They know their institutions? The NASPA Journal, 45(4), 501–
527.
students—their names, where they are from, what
Strayhorn, T. L. (2008b). Sentido de pertenencia:
they bring with them, their strengths and weak-
A hierarchical analysis predicting sense of
nesses.Theydonotseethisascoddlingbutrather
belonging among Latino college students.
advising in its truest form. They help make the
Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 7(4),
implicit explicit, the hidden known, and the
301–320.
unfamiliar commonplace. They help students
Strayhorn, T. L. (2009). An examination of the
navigate college by making clear what students
impact of first-year seminars on correlates of
need to know and do to be successful. They help
college student retention. The Journal of The
students find a sense of belonging on campus.
First-Year Experience and Students in Transi-
As I said before, this is hard work and it tion, 21(1), 9–27.
requiresagooddealoftime,energy,andattention. Strayhorn, T. L. (2011). Bridging the pipeline:
But hard work is no excuse for retreat. Indeed, Increasing underrepresented students’ prepa-
collaborationiskey.NACADA,myfellowcultural ration for college through a summer bridge
navigators, we have the key to student success. program. American Behavioral Scientist,
Let’s use it. 55(2), 142–159.
62 NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015
Cultural Navigators
Strayhorn,T.L.(2012).Collegestudents’senseof Witham, K., Malcom-Piqueux, L. E., Dowd, A.
belonging: A key to educational success. New C., & Bensimon, E. M. (2015). Americas
York, NY: Routledge. unmet promise: The imperative of equity in
Strayhorn,T.L.(2013a).Academicachievement: higher education. Washington, DC: Associa-
A higher education perspective. In J. Hattie & tion of American Colleges & Universities.
E. Anderman (Eds.), International guide to
student achievement (pp. 16–18). New York,
NY: Routledge. Author’s Note
Strayhorn, T. L. (Ed.). (2013b). Living at the
Terrell L. Strayhorn, PhD, is a professor of
intersections: Social identities and Black
Higher Education and Director of the Center
collegians. Charlotte, NC: Information Age.
for Higher Education Enterprise at The Ohio
Strayhorn, T. L. (2014). Modeling the determi-
State University, where he also serves as a
nants of college readiness for historically
faculty affiliate in the Kirwan Institute for the
underrepresented students at 4-year colleges
Study of Race & Ethnicity, Todd Bell National
and universities: A national investigation.
ResourceCenterforBlackMales,andCriminal
AmericanBehavioralScientist,58(8),972–993.
Justice Research Center. An internationally
Strayhorn, T. L. (2015). Cultural navigation and
recognized student success and diversity schol-
college student success: What works for
ar, Strayhorn is author of several books
ensuring academic excellence (CHEE #What
including College Students’ Sense of Belong-
Works Report Series 2015-001). Columbus,
OH: Center for Higher Education Enterprise, ing,over60chapters,aswellasmorethan150
The Ohio State University. journal articles, scientific reports, and reviews.
U.S.BureauofLaborStatistics.(2013).American He is Editor of Spectrum: A Journal on Black
time use survey: Students. Retrieved from Males, Associate Editor of the NASAP Journal
http://www.bls.gov/tus/charts/chart6.txt andservesontheeditorialboardoftheJournal
U.S. Department of Education, National Center of College Student Development, Review of
for Education Statistics. (2013).Thecondition Higher Education, College Student Affairs
of education 2013. Washington, DC: U.S. Journal, and others. He can be reached at
Government Printing Office. [email protected].
NACADA Journal Volume 35(1) 2015 63