Student Affairs Leadership: How to Successfully Manage Your First Team
Higher Ed, Student Affairs

Student Affairs Leadership: How to Successfully Manage Your First Team

As a new student affairs professional, managing a team all on your own might be uncharted territory. It can be a nerve-wracking experience to suddenly be responsible for so many employees looking to you for feedback and guidance. But you’re ready for the challenge!  Thanks to your training and education in student affairs, you are more than equipped to be an effective team leader. It’s all about honing in your strategy and following through with the application. Follow these eight leadership best practices to help successfully manage your first student affairs team.  1. Set expectations Early with Your Student Affairs…
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5 Tips on How to Balance Your New Career in Higher Ed and Graduate School
Higher Ed, Student Affairs

5 Tips on How to Balance Your New Career in Higher Ed and Graduate School

To put it simply, you are on cloud nine. You just got hired for your dream job in higher education and were accepted into your dream graduate program. Congratulations! So, what happens now? While balancing a career in higher education and graduate school is no simple task, it certainly isn’t impossible.  There are definitive upsides to working while in graduate school, such as acquiring less debt down the road. Not to mention, you will have the advantage over a person with similar education but lacks your firsthand work experience in higher education. With extra self-discipline and advanced planning, you’ll ace…
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10 Podcasts to Help Higher Ed Professionals Stay Up-To-Date
Higher Ed, Student Affairs

10 Podcasts to Help Higher Ed Professionals Stay Up-To-Date

While we hope everyone in Student Affairs and Higher Ed is getting some well-deserved rest and relaxation this summer you might also be looking for ways to stay informed on trends, tips, and advice, as well as stay connected to your Higher Ed community.  With a little help from our Higher Ed Co-op, we’ve compiled a list of Higher Ed related podcasts that you can stream at your leisure to help get back into the work mindset and prepare for the new school year: SA: Voices from the Field As a Student Affairs professional, your experience significantly differs from your fellow…
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Stress Less: Step by Step Strategies to Productively Host a University Staff Meeting
Higher Ed, Student Affairs

Stress Less: Step by Step Strategies to Productively Host a University Staff Meeting

Are you focusing too much on minutiae and housekeeping items? Missing the mark on meaningful engagement? It doesn’t have to be that way! Make your next student affairs staff meeting productive by following these simple steps. 1. Know your audience Have you ever heard the complaint, “That could have been an email?” Well, sometimes it’s true. As you start planning for your meeting, be mindful of who you send an invitation to. Identify who absolutely needs to be there and indicate to everyone else that their presence is appreciated but not necessary. Improve productivity from the start by selecting individuals…
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Virtual Conferences Higher Ed Professionals Can’t Miss in 2021
Campus Engagement, Higher Ed, Student Affairs

Virtual Conferences Higher Ed Professionals Can’t Miss in 2021

In 2020, the world changed in ways no one in higher education anticipated. On-campus events, including class attendance, came to a halt. University staff, including faculty and advisors, displayed true grit as they worked tirelessly to serve students. It's 2021, and higher education is still feeling the impact of a global health crisis. Most staff and students would agree—we're all figuring out how to live in a new normal. Last year many annual events were canceled, including the array of conferences higher education professionals look forward to attending. Not this year! The conference calendar is complete, and many organizations have…
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Break the Ice: 10 Ice Breaker Ideas For Your New Student Orientation
Orientation, Peer Leadership, Student Affairs, Student Engagement Platform

Break the Ice: 10 Ice Breaker Ideas For Your New Student Orientation

For most students, college orientation is one of their first tastes of life outside of the protective high school bubble. The pressure is on! Not only do students feel a little lost in a sea of faces, but they’re also trying to look like they’re ready to conquer the world. After all, image is vital to survival. As part of the student success team, you can help relieve the pressure. Bring a fun, relaxed vibe to your next new student orientation. Here is how you do it with ice breakers: Reception Line Relay In the spirit of “speed dating,” divide…
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Invest in Yourself: Announcing Amma Marfo and Paul Osincup
General, Student Affairs

Invest in Yourself: Announcing Amma Marfo and Paul Osincup

It's that time: We're ready to begin revealing some of the exciting details and speakers behind the Invest in Yourself Virtual Experience, coming June 16. This one-day digital experience for higher education professionals is unraveling the traditional “digital conference” format into a new type of “unconference” designed around personal wellness, stress-relief, and, finally, YOU! When staff are better grounded, less frazzled, and better equipped to manage stress, colleges & universities (and their students) all win! Raftr is delighted to announce that the Invest in Yourself Virtual Experience will be hosted by Amma Marfo, a higher education professional, writer and editor…
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10 Event Ideas College Students Will Actually Attend
Campus Engagement, Student Affairs, Student Engagement Platform

10 Event Ideas College Students Will Actually Attend

Planning and hosting campus events for college students can be difficult to implement, and even more challenging to track and measure success. There are a number of factors to consider, like student engagement, budgets, novelty, and the "cool" factor, just to name a few. But when you successfully put together a program that has a good turn-out and gets students excited, there’s no more gratifying feeling. So to help you achieve that success on campus, here are 10 college event planning ideas that will get so much interest, you’ll need a waiting list. Puppy Play Parties What has become a…
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Beyond the Dashboard: How to Communicate COVID-19 Updates on Your Campus
Campus Engagement, Contact Tracing, Higher Ed, Student Affairs

Beyond the Dashboard: How to Communicate COVID-19 Updates on Your Campus

While campus contact tracing and COVID-19 dashboards have become the norm at many colleges and universities worldwide during the second half of 2020, there are still some innovative ways to communicating with students in an interactive and informational format. Many institutions have established blogs, updated case counts, and other timely COVID-19 updates on web-based dashboards, there are a few ways beyond the dashboard to reach students, maintain order, and calm nerves. Make 2-Way Communication Possible It's not a great leap to suggest that most people - students included - are completely overwhelmed by the amount of information related to the…
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