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By Phil Williams
In Plato’s Academy, students may have sometimes slept where they studied. In late 20th-century America, higher education is not that simple. But this year, in a new effort to tie the residence halls to academic life, the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences is providing advisers for students in Brumby Hall, the venerable 1,000 student residence hall for women on Baxter Street.
Although the program is just beginning, the results so far have been very encouraging.
“We think this is an excellent service for the students, and it’s very visible for them, in the residence hall’s rotunda,” says Anna Eidsvik, acting coordinator of academic advising for the Franklin College. “We have always wanted to find a way for advisers to spend more time with students aside from the actual appointment time. This is certainly a step in that direction.”
Brumby Hall houses 954 students, most of them freshman women, and this year 578 are students in the Franklin College. The new advising office is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. until 8 p.m. and on Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Four advisers work there--one works only in Brumby, although the other three still keep hours in New College, where advising for arts-and-sciences students has been done for many years.
Several people in offices around campus were involved in the discussions that led to the new arrangement, including Thomas Dyer, acting vice president for instruction; Jim Day, director of housing; and Wyatt Anderson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
“Originally, I talked to some students and asked what they would really like to have in the residence halls that they don’t have now, and the strong response was advising,” says Dyer. “I talked to Jim Day to see if we could make this happen. And Wyatt Anderson was very interested and involved from the beginning.”
The funding for the new advisers came through the provost’s office, and Day was able to create space for an advising office in Brumby. When spring semester begins in January, a second Arts and Sciences advising office will open in Creswell Hall.
“I think this signals a new spirit of cooperation here on campus, reaching across boundaries to make good things happen for students,” says Day. “We found that a lot of us had converging interests. Tom Dyer was really instrumental in bringing people together and providing financial support for the advisers, as well as for renovations in Brumby and for furnishings.
“Students have been telling us for five or six years that they wanted more involvement with academics in the residence halls,” Day adds. “The time was just right for all of us.”
Franklin College students in Brumby schedule their own advising appointments, either in person or online, according to Leigh Holland, senior academic adviser in the Brumby office.
“Having advisers in the residence halls will allow us to find ways to integrate academic and cultural activities into students’ lives,” says Holland. “There will be a great many opportunities for advisers to organize and accompany student groups to concerts, drama productions and lectures.”
Although advisers from some schools and programs have worked in UGA residence halls before, this is the first full-time, on-site program for advising in the dorms.
In general, students in Arts and Sciences are advised by professional advisers as freshmen and sophomores. When students become juniors, advising takes place in their major department or school. There are a few exceptions. Students in the Lamar Dodd School of Art are advised in the art school from the beginning, and music majors receive advising in the music school beginning with their sophomore year. Freshman and sophomore pre-pharmacy majors are in the College of Arts and Sciences but are advised through the College of Pharmacy.
“We hope to expand further into all residence halls where freshmen live,” says Eidsvik. “The opening of the office in Creswell Hall in January will be a major step in that direction.”
Advisers, of course, have a crucial position in student education. The scope of courses and majors at UGA has never been richer or more varied--every semester, students must choose among dozens of attractive courses.
Along with the advising center in Brumby, the Division of Academic Assistance has opened an outreach office in the residence hall, where students can find help with study skills or subject tutoring.
Anderson says that the initiative offers a wide range of benefits to students in the college.
“We are delighted that we can have advising for students in Brumby Hall now and in Creswell in January,” he says. “This is a superb way to save students time and help enrich their experience at UGA. We want to give them every opportunity to achieve excellence.”
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