STUDENT AFFAIRS 16 ANNUAL REPORT Student Accessibility Services will provide updates as the launch of ACCESS Northern nears. There will be trainings and resources offered in the near future. The implementation and launch of ACCESS Northern is Key Result 35 of the Student Affairs Strategic Plan (2021-2025). The goal is to improve staff efficiency and customer service around scheduling, accommodations, testing services, and case management. Of particular importance was the ease with which students can register for orientation, whether the orientation program was engaging and easy to understand, and what improvements could be made to the orientation process. EAB provided a series of key observations and findings, as well as recommendations for improving Northern’s virtual orientation program. The Virtual HOWL Working Group oversaw the implementation of many of EAB’s recommendations for both Virtual HOWL and Pre-HOWL. The Virtual HOWL Working Group consists of representatives from Technology Services, Marketing and Communications, Admissions, and Student Affairs. The group updated communications on the website and in Slate to clarify the virtual components of HOWL. Additionally, all content in D2L was updated based on EAB’s recommendations. • A new D2L Content view (Lessons) was enabled for this year, which improves the organization and allows students to easily access files and links from the left-hand menu. • All the HOWL videos were newly recorded this year by Media Services and the respective departments, featuring staff, students, and Thunder on camera. • All the sub-modules in Virtual HOWL are now visible upon entering the module, which makes navigation easier. • Most of the HOWL videos begin with an introduction and end with “Go Wolves!” • The amount of text in both Pre-HOWL and Virtual HOWL was heavily reduced. Important documents were converted into infographics by Communications and Marketing. “The research on orientation clearly indicates that successful orientation programs have a powerful influence on first-year social and academic integration and, furthermore, that social and academic integration have a significant effect on student persistence and educational attainment.” The New Student Transitions Steering Committee and Working Groups will continue to assess all new student programming and implement best practices in alignment with the Strategic Enrollment Management Plan goal to “provide every student with an appropriate, targeted and scaled onboarding experience.” Access Northern coming to campus On Feb. 13, Student Accessibility Services announced the launch of a new, fully ADA-compliant platform called ACCESS Northern. Virtual Howl receives updates As part of the EAB strategic enrollment consultation, the Virtual HOWL programming for incoming students was assessed and updated. Students: ACCESS Northern will allow students to seamlessly submit electronic accommodation documents and requests; connect with note-takers, schedule exams, and more. Faculty: ACCESS Northern will provide faculty a more efficient tool to assist in providing students their ADA-mandated accommodations. Faculty will be able to receive (and look up) approved accommodations for their enrolled students and have a secure space to upload and receive exam information. This secure platform will manage reasonable academic and non-academic accommodations for students and aims to improve the experience and access for both students and faculty. The platform is scheduled for full implementation this June and was partially funded through CARES (COVID-19) funding. Rode, D. (2000). The role of orientation in institutional retention. In M.J. Fabich (Ed.) Orientation planning manual 2000. Pullman, WA: NODA. (p. 3).
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