2011 MIACADA National Grant Winner
Gregg Heinrichs

Dear MIACADA:

Thank you for your generosity in awarding me an Annual Conference Professional Development Grant. Through your generosity and that of Eastern Michigan University, I had the honor of attending and presenting at this year's NACADA Conference in Denver.

Looking back, it feels like my journey to Denver began at the 2009 MIACADA Conference. I gave my first state-level presentation at that Conference, and Shannon Burton (whose own excellent presentation I attended) encouraged me to consider presenting at the national level. The concurrent session I presented this month at NACADA, entitled “Increasing Cognitive Altitude…,” was based on that MIACADA presentation. Thank you, Shannon, for your encouragement.

In addition to presenting my concurrent session, I had the honor of presenting a poster session originally submitted by two of my EMU colleagues, Dr. Adam Meyer and Sarah Kersey Otto. Their session, “Holistic Advising through Team Approach,” explored our University's recent merger of its academic advising and career services departments into the University Advising & Career Development Center. This merger would not have been possible without Adam's and Sarah's creativity and leadership, and I regret that circumstances did not allow them to present their session, an honor they had certainly earned. Thank you, Adam and Sarah, for entrusting your presentation to me.

Thanks also to the presenters whose sessions I attended, particularly Dominic Sano-Franchini, Dena Ford and Ryan Sexton, and Karen Sullivan-Vance and Sarah Ann Hones. I found Dominic's discussion of entering college as a crisis of faith very stimulating, a perfect segue to Dena's and Ryan's discussion of the three stages of “transfer shock.” As a former liberal arts major, I found Karen's and Sarah's discussion of the utility and marketability of liberal arts majors informative and reassuring. To learn more about these presentations, just visit the Conference website; the titles are “Holy Cow…,” “Understanding Transfer Transitions…,” and “Voices from the Field….”

Finally, thanks to Lorenzo, John, and Lenore from Madonna University for joining me in singing “Happy Birthday” to my mother via cell phone. She told me it made her day.

Thank you again, and take care.

2011 MIACADA National Grant Winner
Helen Wilson

It was an honor to receive the MIACADA grant to attend the National NACADA Conference in Denver, CO. I wish to express my thanks to MIACADA for providing me the grant to attend this conference. The grant enabled me to present a concurrent session on behalf of my institution titled “The First-Year Student on Academic Probation: Lessons Learned from the WayneREACH Intervention Program”. Presenting at a national conference was a valuable learning experience for me. I attended many sessions on various topics such as academic probation, students with disabilities, assessment and technology in advising where I gained knowledge and gathered practical ideas to implement at my institution. Since my current responsibilities involve most of these topics, I was pleased to be able to attend such outstanding sessions.

I was also able to network with my colleagues from the state of Michigan and learned about upcoming webinars and conferences in our state. Again, thank you so much for your support with this grant. Without this grant, I would not have been able to attend this worthwhile national conference.

2011 MIACADA Regional Grant Winner
Christen M. Lesko

It was an honor to receive the 2011 MIACADA Regional Conference Professional Development Grant to attend the NACADA Region V Conference at Illinois State University in Bloomington-Normal, Illinois. As a new academic advisor, the grant gave me a chance to further explore the field of advising, exchange ideas and strategies with fellow advisors, and become more involved in professional development organizations. Also, it gave me the opportunity to attend my first NACADA Region V conference!

The 2011 NACADA Region V Conference title was "Beyond Normal: Expanding Your Advising Potential." As the theme promised, the conference inspired all who attended to go beyond one-on-one advising and implement further strategies to increase student success. There were several insightful sessions presented at the conference, such as advising veterans, incorporating technology into advising, and combining career and academic advising into one department.

In addition, I had the pleasure of attending a meeting with other advisors representing my state, which was excellent for networking, gaining knowledge of effective advising practices, and learning more about my state advising professional organization.

I would like to thank MIACADA for giving me the opportunity to grow professionally as a new academic advisor. I am looking forward to continuing my involvement with MIACADA and NACADA in the future!

Sincerely,
Christen M. Lesko
Former Academic Advisor-TRADE at Jackson Community College

2011 MIACADA Regional Grant Winner
Molly Thornbladh

I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank MIACADA for awarding me the grant to attend the NACADA Region V. conference in Normal Illinois. The grant enabled me to co- present on behalf of my institution, which was a valuable learning experience. I believe opportunities like presenting will help me as I strive to become a leader in professional associations.

Additionally, I had the opportunity to attend relevant sessions that covered topics like integration of technology concepts, freshman programming techniques, working with veterans, and office design. These sessions helped to expand my knowledge base in order to build on them and incorporate them in my own work.

Lastly, the opportunity to network and meet other professionals in advising is not only helpful but reaffirming. To know that there are other like-minded that are striving to help students succeed is motivating, especially during challenging economic times in Higher Education. The information that I learned was helpful and will be beneficial at my home institution. Again, I thank you immensely.

Sincerely,

Molly Thornbladh
Academic Advisor, EMU

2010 MIACADA National Grant Winner
Anita Carter

I wish to express my thanks to MIACADA for providing me the grant to attend the National NACADA Conference in Orlando. Many of the sessions I attended were related to assessment, re-admission, and advisor training and I gained valuable knowledge and "how-to's" related to these topics. My current responsibilities encompass all of these issues and I was grateful to be able to attend such top-notch sessions.

I was also able to meet with my colleagues from the state of Michigan and talk up the upcoming MICADA conference in May and solicit proposals from people I would not have otherwise met. I took part in setting the priorities for NACADA for the upcoming year at a meeting Tuesday evening, and feel I made a valuable contribution to that meeting. Again, thank you so much for your support. In this economic climate, I would not have been able to attend without the grant.

2010 MIACADA National Grant Winner
Matt Zeis

would like to take this moment to thank MIACADA for their support in attending the 2010 NACADA National Conference in Orlando, FL. While I have attended conferences at the state and regional levels this was my first national conference and it did not disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed attending multiple sessions on student retention and have already had talks with my supervisors on ideas that could benefit our students. I had a great time walking around and networking with fellow advisers during lunch through the poster sessions and common interest groups. The NACADA conference has helped reaffirm why I am in this profession and I look forward to applying what I have learned to my everyday practices. Thank you once again for this great opportunity!!!

2010 Regional Grant Winner
H. Michael Zaborowski Jr.

I would like to express my deepest appreciation, for the opportunity to continue my growth and develop as an academic advisor, towards everyone who made my experience at the NACADA Region-V conference possible. This was primarily possible because of a generous graduate student professional development grant provided by MIACADA.

"Crossing Boarders and Sharing Knowledge" was the theme of this year's conference, and it was an appropriate theme given our geographic location (Niagara Falls) and our role as college educators. The concept of borders has been addressed in a number of experiences since I started my path towards becoming an advising professional; the concept has become synonymous with barriers to workplace effectiveness and deep political conflict. Borders can devastate an institution, kill productivity, push good people out the door, and jeopardize the achievement of academic goals. They cause stress, exasperation, and disappointment by forcing personnel to clash with people who should be teammates. So many boarders exist in the field of higher education, and our ability to cross them is essential to achieve better practices.

The Region-V conference helped me develop skills to understand and work with transfer students, student athletes, first generation students, and parenting students; to cross their individual borders. In addition, I gained an interdisciplinary approach to working in an academic discipline that does not relate to my background, where I am a "stranger in a strange land." Listening to these professionals in the field talk about their experiences, and gaining an insight into the theories they rely on to guide their work has also assisted in the development of my personal advising philosophy.

I plan to apply the knowledge gained from this experience to my practice as an advising professional, and continue to relate it as I transition further into the field. Again, I would like to thank everyone who made this experience possible, and I look forward to working with you in the future.

2010 Regional Grant Winner
Terri Beadle

I just wanted to say thank you to MIACADA for Granting my the professional development Money to attend the Region V Conference in Niagara Falls, Canada. It was a pleasure to meet The professionals in the field of academic advising. I was very pleased with the reception I Received from the professionals, as I am going to Be a faculty advisor someday. I really learned A lot from everyone I met, especially the other Faculty advisor that were present, and I Received great advice from everyone.

Again thank you for allowing me the opportunity to Attend this conference, it helped with My anxieties about entering a career in Higher Education.

2009 MIACADA Grant Winner
Erin Busscher

I would like to thank MIACADA for the grant that helped me attend the NACADA Region 5 conference. I enjoyed attending the conference and came back energized and full of new ideas to help support the students that I advise! It was wonderful to meet all of the other conference attendees and network. Meeting other advisors from the region is important and I was glad to make new connections at the conference. The conference presentations were well done and I enjoyed learning new ideas.

Thank you again for the opportunity!

2009 MIACADA Grant Winner
Amy Burns

Thank you so much for the NACADA Region V Conference Scholarship. It was my first time attending a NACADA Conference. Through this experience I gained new insights into the intricacies of advising. I left the conference with many new ideas that I am excited to implement in the future. I am very much looking forward to attending the next Region V Conference.

Thanks again for giving me this opportunity!

2010 NACADA 2010 OUTSTANDING ADVISOR
Shannon Burton & Donna L.M. Malaski

Our congratulations to MIACADA member and Past-President, Shannon Burton, from the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University and Donna LM Malaski from Department of Human Resource Development within the School of Education and Human Services at Oakland University on being selected as Outstanding Advising Award Winners in the Academic Advising-Primary Role category from NACADA.

Advising Award Winners

Carmen Etienne at Oakland - Nominated by Sarah Mullin

Betty Sanford at MSU- Self nomination, also nominated by LaToya Faulk

Thea Brophy at Calvin- Nominated by Janice Heerspink