The freshman engineering program office invites all faculty and staff advisors of first-year students to attend a webinar 1-2 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 6, in Room 121 Butler-Carlton Civil Engineering Hall. Light refreshments will be provided. RSVP to Amanda Kossuth at kossutha@mst.edu.

The name of the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) webinar is “Academic Advising and First-Year Students: The Power of Purpose and Movement toward Self-Efficacy.”

Presenters will discuss ways to support students as they transition into college during their first year, discover new identities and set goals for their personal and academic futures. While navigating new academic systems, traditionally aged students also move through the initial stages of Chickering’s 7 Vectors of psychosocial development. As new college students develop competence, learn to manage their emotions and move through autonomy to interdependence, they can lay a strong foundation for academic success.

Presenters will also discuss ways to facilitate the learning and reflection process, based on Baxter Magolda’s Theory of Self-Authorship (2004) and Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory (1984), in a variety of student meeting settings. They will share strategies to promote the transformative power of guided reflection and value exploration through activities that can influence student confidence in decision-making, comprehension of intrinsic and extrinsic motivational factors, and achievement of both personal and academic goals. Presenters will discuss coaching skills that empower students to take ownership of all aspects of life and articulate their own vision for success.