St. John's News

St. John’s administrators work tirelessly to ensure that our students are provided with a quality, affordable education that embodies our Vincentian mission. In an effort to give new and prospective students, their parents and friends, as well as our returning students, a glimpse into the responsibilities, challenges and concerns of St. John’s leadership, we’re presenting a series of interviews with those who make a St. John’s education the stimulating, student-centered and rewarding experience that it is.

In this interview, Vice President Andre McKenzie speaks about the University’s academic student support services. Dr. McKenzie has held a leadership position at St. John’s University since 1999.

Q.: Dr. McKenzie, what are the Academic Support Services at St. John’s?
A.: First and foremost, is the University Freshman Center, which includes services provided to freshmen primarily in the form of academic advising, assistance, and direction throughout their first year. It’s a central area of support for students as they make the all-important transition from high school to college. Another area that comes immediately to mind when you hear “support services” is tutoring, which is provided by University Learning Support Services. They also provide assistance to students in the development of critical thinking skills and sponsor the academic reading program. The Division of Academic Support Services also assists in the coordination of the Math Center as well.

Academic Support Services also includes the Honors Program, the Graduate Admission Assistance Program (GAAP) and the McNair Scholars Program for students interested in pursuing a doctoral degree. We are also involved in Student Development for Athletes, under the direction of Dr. Nancy Kaplan, which is a partnership between the Division and the Athletics Department.

While the primary focus remains on the St. John’s student, as part of our Vincentian mission we have traditionally reached out to the community and have made very strong linkages with them over the years. Special and opportunity programs that are primarily focused on community outreach with middle school and high school students include Gear-Up (Gain Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs), a grant-sponsored program of the US Department of Education and the New York State Higher Education Corporation; College-Bound Liberty Partnerships Program, funded by the New York State Education Department and St. John’s; the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) for St. John’s students; and the Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP) for talented middle- and high-school students.

Q.: What about high school extension?
A.: That’s us as well. In the High School Extension program, we provide courses to students that are taught by their faculty and validated by St. John’s department chairpersons. We made our first link with a high school around 1976, and are in a process right now of expanding and broadening our arena for the program.

Its’ a great way for students to become familiar with St. John's but it’s also a good head start for college for those who choose to enroll here, because obviously those credits would apply towards their St. John's degree and they save dollars too.

Q.: Does the Staten Island campus have a Freshman Center as well?
A.: Yes, there is a comparable Center on the Staten Island campus but they deal with a much smaller number of first-year students.

Q.: One of Fr. Harrington’s challenges to all of us here at St. John’s is to serve our students in an extraordinary way.
A.: I love it!

Q.: How are you doing that in your area?
A.: After reviewing the pre-Presidential Summit material provided by our Provost, Dr. Upton, I thought that this is a perfect opportunity for our division as we go through the process of planning our contribution to the University’s Strategic Plan 2008-2013. After all, service is what we do. I was so excited about Fr. Harrington’s message and the challenge he has given us because we are ready to run with it, from looking again at what we do, how we can plan to be successful and be able to actually assess how well we’re doing.

When service is in your name, as in Academic Support Services, it’s important that we have the highest of expectations in regard to every interaction with our students. But how do you package that in terms of behavior, protocol and procedures, and then make it a deliverable? That’s my job—and the job of my directors—and it means a reexamination, a reassessment. Even though we’ve been pleased with where we were, there’s always room for improvement.

Q.: The “Millennial Student” was introduced to us at the Summit. Your thoughts?
A.: Fr. Harrington pointed out to us that if you’re going to serve a certain clientele well, then it’s best that you get to know who they are. Our focus is the Millennial student, and in getting to know Milllennials better, we have to think about how different they are and how our approaches may have to be a bit different.

Leaving high school for college has to be one of the most exhilarating , exciting, yet challenging and stressful times in a young person’s life. Our job, if we’re doing it effectively—and I mean all of our services whether it’s getting advisement or working with an honors program faculty—is to make this the most rewarding educational experience. At the same time, we can’t have processes that don’t acknowledge the individuality and uniqueness of each student. And we can’t lose that personal touch, it’s what makes St. John’s such a unique experience for students when they come here.

For example, some of the advising staff are Generation-Xers and even Milllennials themselves and on their own, they have introduced Instant Messaging into our advising. Now, I don’t personally use that tool but my staff has made me more aware of—as well as open to—whatever might be the best way to communicate with our students. Naturally, we’re going to continue our face-to-face advisement but are always looking at how to expand our outreach to students.

I joined St. John’s in1986, as Director of New Student Orientation. Twenty-two years later, I’m still involved in that in some form or fashion. We all contribute to it, continually orienting our students to the culture of this institution, of what St, John’s is all about. I’ve seen new traditions develop over the years, e.g., Freshman Convocation, that have made us stronger. We’re building a campus environment that makes people feel proud to be here–it’s something we should continually strive for.

Q.: Wasn’t creating the Freshman Center a momentous step toward being more student-focused, student-centered?
A.: The Center was created in 2000, and I have to say that it wouldn’t have happened without Dr. Pellow and Dr. Upton. They recognized the importance of that first-year transitional period, with the intellectual, personal and social development that occurs, and they determined that it would be best to have a centralized approach where we could bring them all together in one place.

At the Freshman Center, we’re continually thinking about new ways to improve the first- year experience. All the literature on retention tells us that the first six weeks of a college student’s life is so critical to his or her success. During that time they’re getting a sense of whether they have made a choice that meets their educational and social expectations. There are other questions and concerns as well, so as an institution we want to be sure we’ve responded to the concerns discussed in the literature and that we’re providing services and programs to address them.

We’re continuing to work hard on that. Since there’s a very personal relationship between the advisor and advisee, we make sure early-on that freshmen know who their advisor is, and that parents know what we’re going to work on in terms of maintaining communication during this critical year.

Because we aren’t professors in a classroom, where we know students spend the majority of their time, we’re working harder to forge closer relationships with faculty of first-year students to identify students who most need immediate intervention and support.

For example, when we introduce students who are undecided about their majors to the field of psychology, we reach out to the department chair and have his or her faculty come to a dinner or reception for students who are interested in that field. Then they have the opportunity to meet psychology professors up close and personal and forge that link.

We see ourselves, as a sort of central hub with all these linkages, realizing the importance of relationships between students and faculty and trying to facilitate them.  We’re there to help and support.

Q.: Tell me about your freshmen advisors.
A.: They’re a diverse, eclectic group of men and women who embrace the fact that the core of their responsibilities is the role of advisor-teacher-mentor.  What we look for are enthusiastic, energetic, caring individuals who have a desire to work with first-year students. Advisors have to be the “go-to person,” ensuring there’s at least one individual on campus that a first-year student can go to anytime with a concern or question. As I said earlier, students learn who their advisor is before they arrive at St. John’s. I will often walk through Marillac Hall and ask, “any first-years here?” And if the answer is yes, I ask “who is your freshman advisor?” Nine times out of 10 they can tell me the advisor’s name.

But our advisors aren’t hand-holders. They are supporters who walk beside their advisees, not behind propping them up. If a student stumbles, the advisor is there to steady him or her and keep the student moving forward.

We recognize too that parents have concerns about their student’s first year and are in the process of developing mechanisms to allow for better communication with them.

Q.: When will that occur?
A.: We’ll start that this fall. After the Presidential Summit, we began to ask ourselves how can we engage parents in order to help students, being cognizant of FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) and other confidentiality issues. I think engaging parents and other support systems that students may rely on—if used in the appropriate way—can help in student engagement.

Q.: How does technology help? You spoke about Instant Messaging and the Chat Sessions. What else are you doing?
A.:  In general, technology has provided immediate access to the world of information. It also allows us to communicate in a more immediate and oftentimes effective manner. For example, in cooperation with the Career Center, we’re using online resources such as career search tools or inventories, especially for students who may be undecided on a major. The fact that you can sit in the Freshman Center and explore career opportunities by visiting the site of, for example, a professional association for journalism and learning what journalists do and add that to information obtained from faculty is wonderful. In addition, I can sit with students in McNair who are preparing for graduate school and navigate a site with them, looking at the curriculum and discussing whether the student is interested in a program like this. It’s invaluable!

Q.: Student Feedback. Do you get it?
A.: We gain feedback from a variety of sources such as the Student Satisfaction inventory, the University’s Quality Service Initiative and student focus groups. While satisfaction with the Center’s services and advisors is high, feedback is incorporated into planning sessions, staff meetings, and the performance appraisal process for continued improvement.

Q.: What is your vision for the Freshman Center?
A.: To create a place that recognizes the importance and the critical nature of the first year and provides resources and support for students going through that pivotal time. I think the fact that senior administration recognized the need for a Freshman Center at St. John’s and created a model for first-year advisement underscores our commitment to customer service. Through their efforts, Dr. Upton and Dr. Pellow raised the level of importance of first-year students. A key component of the Center’s vision includes the creation and implementation of activities designed to underscore the significance of the first-year experience, and the commitment to continually work toward improving the quality of our student service.  

Q.: What question haven’t I asked you that I should have?
A.: A question about Discover the World (DTW), the University’s innovative, multi-city approach to studying abroad. When we were introduced to the program, I had never seen so much excitement about an initiative from the advising staff. It energized us. We all attended the Office of Global Studies’ training session to get a sense of the program and our role in it. We were pumped. It’s such an exciting opportunity for students.

It turns out that our role was (and is) to make students aware of Discover the World and to discuss with them, not IF you’re going abroad, but WHEN you’re going and how we can assist in that process. It’s so important today for students to gain that global perspective that can only come from living and learning abroad.

I think this is a very exciting time to be a St. John’s student. There’s so much going on. I look forward to serving the next class of first-year students who will be arriving at St. John’s and urge them to take advantage of the support any or all of my areas can provide.