5 Questions with... Adrianne Jones

Today we head back to Maryland and Maryland State Liaison, Dana Baker:
She is here and she is awesome. Adrienne and a colleague have insights into the adult population and they are coming to Lancaster to help us better help them. See the handout for more Maryland presentations.

Tell us a little about yourself

I work for Laureate Higher Education Group and Walden University specifically; the Laureate network is composed of some 75 accredited campus-based and online universities. In my current position of Academic Advisor/Assistant to Student Affairs and Academic Integrity, I advise undergraduates online at Walden in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. In my Student Affairs role, I touch undergraduate, masters and PhD programs with my research into student affairs issues.

What is your experience in academic advising, higher education, and NACADA?

I bring many years of combined experience from teaching, admissions, including secondary, undergraduate and graduate; college counseling, student affairs and academic advising. I have a passion for retention and adult learners and organizing learners for success. NACADA has been a welcome professional organization to align my appreciation for the academic nature of my role. I have enjoyed participating in the local drive in conferences hosted by Region 2 and this will be my first NACADA regional conference.

Tell us about your session. What can attendees look forward to?

I will be presenting a concurrent session with my colleague and fellow advisor, Michael Tyler.

Our session is entitled, “Adult Swim—staying afloat in the deep end of the pool—advising Adult Students.”

Adult Swim will introduce and affirm the need for an adult style of learning by examining Knowles’ adult learning theory. We will outline some of the characteristics that identify our adult swimmers. To keep afloat, we will also explore the implications and the impact of adult learning theory on policies and procedures with the intent to transform our thinking, perspectives and approaches. We will use group discussion in an active roundtable format. Finally, we will share ideas for best practices. As advisors, we must influence, support and facilitate academia‘s understanding of this growing student population. Come on in, the water’s fine! 

Attendees can look for a provocative, upbeat, fun and participatory session. SPOILER ALERT! (Bring your dancing shoes and your best moves). What happens in our session stays in our session.


What do you hope attendees gain from going to your presentation? 

Michael and I believe attendees will walk away with a better understanding of the “New Normal” when we discuss Adult students. We believe they will leave armed with knowledge to apply at their home institutions or in their own practical skills in advising adult learners. Michael and I hope to learn from our attendees as well. So we are eager to hear from our audience.

I will also be presenting two Poster Sessions where I will share results of innovation and collaboration with Walden faculty/administration: 

Lessons from the Undergraduate Petition Process: Crafting Life Contingency Plans for Adult Learners:

The Life Contingency Plan is a response to attrition and to the number of impediments undergraduate students encounter in attempting to complete a degree. The Life Contingency Plan provides students with help with organizing their responsibility in a crisis, next steps organizing skills, a backup plan, resources and tools and something other than EXIT from the university. The LCP is a template for any college or university.

Collaborative Academic Outreach for At Risk Adult Learners: Constructing a Skill-Activation Micro Course.
Grappling with remediation for college readiness, Walden created a MOOC called PASR (Professional and Academic Skills Refresher) using Coursesites which houses the free unbranded Blackboard platform.

This offering aligns with Walden’s mission of positive social change by providing underprepared adults with a second shot at entering into a fully accredited institution. This is a template that any college or university could adapt. 

What do you hope to personally gain from presenting in Lancaster?

I look forward to learning more about NACADA and to gain more contact with my Region 2 peers. As well, I love attending sessions, so I look forward to learning and the professional development opportunities.

Thanks Adrianne! We look forward to see your posters and presentation in Lancaster!