September 5, 2012

To the Faculty

I am writing to make sure you are aware of a new web-based tool to enhance communication between faculty, students, advisors, and support services. Our goal is to improve student support by having more integrated and efficient ways to track academic progress, flag concerns, and connect students with services they may need.

The new tool is called the Student Success Network (also known by its brand name, Starfish). It is used by more than 130 colleges and universities. Here are some things you can do with it:

• Post your office hours, including preferences regarding appointment lengths, drop-in hours, etc. This will make it easier for your students to consult with you.
• See profiles and academic records for students you advise.
• Record attendance and you, the student, and the student's advisor will receive an automatic alert if a student’s absences exceed divsional policy.
• Efficiently refer individual students for advising, tutoring, health or counseling services, etc., and track their follow-up.
• Record meeting notes, milestones, and progress reports for individual students.
• Connect and coordinate with academic advisors and university support services.
• Flag individual students for issues other than attendance that may require attention.
  Note: This option will be phased in. Currently, it is available only to NSPE undergraduate faculty advisors and Parsons instructors of first year courses.

The Student Success Network is up-and-running now. I encourage you to log on, set up your profile, and get started. The usefulness of this tool is dependent, to a large extent, on the faculty members, advisors, and students who use it. You can log-on from My New School
(look for the Student Success Network button under the faculty tab), or at www.newschool.edu/student-success. Getting up to speed requires a minimal investment of time, and there are various support resources including

• Instructor and Advisor Start Guide (Adobe PDF)
• Tutorial on YouTube for setting up office hours
• Starfish Faculty Resource Page
• Your divisional advising office
• Email helpline: studentsuccess@newschool.edu

Bringing the Student Success Network to The New School has required a major effort on the part of many individuals, including advisors, IT staff, Student Services, and faculty members who reviewed and provided feedback along the way. Among them, I would call out Liz Ross and Jennifer Francone in the Provost’s Office and the core implementation team: Antoinette Curl, Parsons; Chrissy Roden, NSPE; Jonathan White, Lang; Jason Luchs, Student Services; Marcus Longmuir, IT; and Alla Finkelbeg, IT. They all are invested in the success of Starfish, so don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions and concerns.

Sincerely,