Welcome Session
https://www.zoom.com/

Kick off the ArSAA Spring Virtual Conference with an opening session that introduces ArSAA’s evolving mission and highlights new and expanded programming designed to strengthen impact and engagement across the community. Attendees will also receive a concise overview of conference operations, including how to navigate the virtual platform, session formats, and key opportunities to connect, ensuring everyone is prepared to make the most of the conference experience.

Speaker(s):
Robert Moore, ArSAA President
NorthWest Arkansas Community College

Mary Margaret Debow, ArSAA President-Elect
University of Arkansas – Pulaski Technical College

Resource(s):
Welcome Session Slidedeck

Engaging the Digital Generation: Analyzing Student Preferences for Handbook Education.
https://www.zoom.com/

This session seeks to inspire and provide practitioners with informed methodologies for handbook education. Students are no longer receiving information that will aid in their success while in enrolled in a post-secondary institution. Due to the decline in student sustained attention spans in recent years, practitioners need to find new and innovative ways of reaching their student populations. Universities have followed the same lecture patterns for generations and have done so due to the quantity of information that needs to be shared with students. Varied attention spans limit what information practitioners can share with students and hold their attention at the same time. There is essential information contained within the student handbook that is often skimmed or overlooked completely by simply because they may lack the attention. Through discussion and reflection, participants can take actionable next steps for handbook education to their campus.

Speaker(s):
Lynnlee Mitchell, Graduate Assistant for the School of PACE
Arkansas Tech University
(lmitchell18@atu.edu)

Where Do We Begin? Connecting & Supporting Faculty Advisors in a Decentralized Professional Advising Ecosystem
https://www.zoom.com/

In decentralized professional advising ecosystems, faculty advisors play a critical yet often underdefined role in supporting student success. This session explores a three-year journey to establish a representative Faculty Advising Team within an urban, public research university in an effort to strengthen collaboration, clarify expectations, and integrate faculty advising into a broader shared advising model. Participants will examine distinctions and intersections among faculty advisors, professional academic advisors, and specialized advisors while discussing how faculty advising meaningfully contributes to retention and holistic student support. Through lessons learned, opportunities uncovered, and challenges navigated, this session highlights the essential purposes of a Faculty Advising Team in fostering communication, partnerships, and consistency among across academic colleges. Attendees will leave with strategies to engage faculty advisors more effectively as integral partners in decentralized advising ecosystems.

Speaker(s):
Dr. Brett Petersen-Bruner, Associate Vice Provost for Student Success & Persistence
Wichita State University
(brett.bruner@wichita.edu)

Proactive Strategies for Freshman Commuter Student Retention and Engagement
https://www.zoom.com/

First-year commuter students often face unique challenges related to engagement, belonging, and access to campus resources. This session highlights a comprehensive outreach model implemented through the Freshman Commuter Student Success (FCSS) initiative at the University of Arkansas, piloted in 2019, which uses peer-led phone outreach, text messaging communication, and individualized staff support to improve student retention and success. During the 2024–2025 academic year, FCSS conducted over 15,000 outreach attempts to more than 2,100 students, achieving meaningful contact with 66% of students. Survey data showed that 73% of students found phone outreach helpful and 86% reported positive experiences with text messaging support. The initiative demonstrates strong outcomes, including a 90.8% fall-to-spring retention rate, steady 79.55% fall-to-fall retention, and a 55.14% six-year graduation rate for the 2019 cohort—the highest reported since 1998. Participants will learn practical strategies for implementing proactive, multi-modal outreach to strengthen commuter student engagement and persistence.

Speaker(s):
Francesca Dagrosa, Assistant Director, Retention Outreach
University of Arkansas
(fdagrosa@uark.edu)

From Data to Decisions: Building a Culture of Assessment in Higher Education
https://www.zoom.com/

Assessment in higher education is often treated as a compliance requirement rather than a strategic tool for improving student success. This session, led by THRIVE Leadership Consulting, reframes assessment as a driver of meaningful change across student affairs and academic support units. Grounded in real-world consulting experiences with colleges and universities, participants will explore practical approaches to developing measurable outcomes, aligning assessment with institutional priorities, and using data to inform decision-making. The session will highlight how institutions can build sustainable assessment practices, identify quick wins to generate momentum, and empower staff to see the value of their work through evidence. Attendees will leave with actionable strategies, adaptable tools, and a clearer understanding of how to move from collecting data to telling a compelling story of impact within their higher education context.

Speaker(s):
Dana J. Tribble, Co-Founder & Executive Partner
Thrive Leadership Consulting
(thriveleadershipconsulting@gmail.com)

It's More Than Just Moving Around Offices: Intentionally Creating Student-Centered Synergy Through Student Success Centers
https://www.zoom.com/

This session explores how intentionally designed, centrally located student success centers can create true student-centered synergy that extends far beyond physical co-location. Using Wichita State University's Shocker Success Center, now completing its second year of operation, this session examines how strategic partnerships, space design, shared philosophy, marketing, and intentional student engagement work together to transform how support is delivered and experienced. Participants will learn how aligning compliance, international student services, basic needs, advising, student accommodations, testing, learning support, first-year programs, success coaching, TRIO services, adult learning, student outreach, student information technology assistance, and military-affiliated/military-connected student support in a single, visible hub creates clarity for students while strengthening collaboration among professionals. The session also situates centralized centers within a broader student success ecosystem, highlighting how they complete and collaborate with college-level success centers rather than compete with them. Shifting from office-centric service delivery to a unified, student-centered mindset focuses on designing and sustaining centers that maximize access, utilization, outcomes, and impact.

Speaker(s):
Dr. Brett Petersen-Bruner, Associate Vice Provost for Student Success & Persistence
Wichita State University
(brett.bruner@wichita.edu)

Navigating Conflict in a Learning Community.
https://www.zoom.com/

In an age of digital isolation and hyper-division, many students and emerging professionals are unprepared for civil discourse and unmet expectations. This session helps participants develop strategies to guide constructive conflict, foster communication, empathy, and critical thinking, and model effective engagement. It equips educators and professionals to support students and colleagues in building resilience, collaboration, and respectful, supportive learning and work environments.

Speaker(s):
Zackery Tucker, Dean of Students
Arkansas State University-Beebe
(zatucker@asub.edu)