Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards: A Texas Professor Focused on Artificial Intelligence, Health, and Education: Higher Education

Showing posts with label Higher Education. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Consensus: A Game Changing App for Faculty Researchers!

Consensus - A Game Changing App for Faculty Researchers

Today, I started to utilize a new AI app for my research. This app, Consensus, is a game changer for faculty researchers. I wish that I had this app in graduate school - it would have definitely made life easier!

Step 1 - Here are some screen shots of the software. You can type a question in the box (yes, a question) and the system does the work. Yes, the work that you would usually have to do!

Step 2 - Then, AI does the rest. You receive AI-powered answers for your results. Consensus analyzes your results (before you even view them) and then summarizes the studies collectively.

Step 3 - You can view the AI-powered answers which review each article for you.

*I would also encourage you to review the article independently as well.

Step 4 - View the study snapshots! Yes, a snapshot of the population, sample size, methods, outcomes measured, and more! Absolutely amazing!

Step 5 - Click the "AI Synthesis" button to synthesize your results. Even better!

Step 6 - Use the "powerful filters" button. You can view the "best" research results by: a) population, b) sample size, c) study design, d) journal quality, and other variables.

I plan to make a video soon, but please take a look at this video to discover exactly how Consensus can help you in your research!

What do you think about Consensus?

***

Check out my book - Retaining College Students Using Technology: A Guidebook for Student Affairs and Academic Affairs Professionals.

Remember to order copies for your team as well!

Interested in a specific student success topic or do you need a speaker for an upcoming conference? Contact me via direct message on Twitter or join our Student Success and Retention Institute - Learning Community on Facebook!

Thanks for visiting!

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Professor of Communication

Executive Director of the Texas Social Media Research Institute & Rural Communication Institute

My Social Media Channels!
Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards
I Always Post Higher Education Videos on YouTube
Find Me on Instagram
Engage with Me on Facebook!
Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Preparing Our Higher Education Institutions for the Future - 5 Recommendations

As we prepare for an upcoming year, I have to stop and think about the future of higher education. The pandemic changed our students, faculty, staff, and our campus as a whole. The Education Advisory Board (EAB) provides colleges and universities across the country with resources and ideas to help the students of the future.

I confess, I have been a complete fan of EAB and their resources for the past ten years. Their resources are at the forefront of higher education innovation.

One of their resources, "Campus 2030: Envisioning Tomorrow’s Multi-Modal Campus" projects the future of several services available at colleges and universities across the nation. These services include:

🏛 - Dining Halls and Food Spaces

🏛 - Modern Student Housing

🏛 - Hybrid and Flexible Office Spaces

🏛 - Tech-Enabled Classrooms

🏛 - Libraries and Learning Commons

🏛 - Interdisciplinary Research Facilities

Higher education institutions should also focus on the faculty and staff as well. When I ask most of my peers if they are comfortable with the numerous changes happening across their institution, most of them are uncomfortable. We need to prepare our teams for the future of higher education.

Here's the Millennial Professor's Call the Action Statements for the Higher Education Industry

🌎 - Higher Education Conferences and Summits Need to Provide Trainings Focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Their Attendees

🌎 - Higher Education Institutions Need to Include Faculty and Staff as Part of Their Planning Process (an Important Part)

🌎 - Higher Education Institutions Provide Wellness and Holistic Support for Faculty and Staff Who are Having Problems With Change (You Need Us and We Need Help)

🌎 - Higher Education Institutions Need to Be Comfortable with Uncommon Spaces (Flexible Office Spaces)

🌎 - Faculty Need to Embrace Collaboration Opportunities with Faculty at Their Institutions and Other Institutions

Here are some additional articles about the future of higher education:

The Future of Higher Education: 5 Trends to Watch

EDUCAUSE 2023: How AI Could Impact Student Success in Higher Ed

Anti-DEI and the Future of Higher Education

How Will Artificial Intelligence Change Higher Ed?

The Future of College Policing and Security - Campus Safet

Higher education will continue to transition in an effort to meet the needs of our current and incoming students.

Here's the link to the entire infographic - https://attachment.eab.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/PDF-FF-Campus-of-the-Future-2030-Infographic.pdf

For our particular university, we are striving to modify all of these items simultaneously. It is a challenge, but the changes are well worth the journey.

Here's the challenge for this post: "In your opinion, which one of the items on the list is MOST important for your institution?"

***.

Check out my book - Retaining College Students Using Technology: A Guidebook for Student Affairs and Academic Affairs Professionals.

Remember to order copies for your team as well!

Thanks for visiting!

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Professor of Communication

Executive Director of the Texas Social Media Research Institute & Rural Communication Institute

My Social Media Channels!
Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards
I Always Post Higher Education Videos on YouTube
Find Me on Instagram
Engage with Me on Facebook!
Watch My Videos on Twitter Live - http://www.periscope.com/drjtedwards/
Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Monday, October 14, 2019

The Importance of Creating Reusable Videos for Online Classes

Sometimes, you have to make your assignments plain for students. Who am I kidding, I need things to be stated plainly as well. So, I am very excited to integrate YouTube into my classes. I use YouTube for explaining assignments in online classes and also for navigating the syllabus.

Here's an example of how I make ONE video to answer MULTIPLE questions from MULTIPLE semesters. These videos save time and also help me archive the approaches that I use each semester. I am an older professor now, right?

Here's are some examples from my Student Affairs and Higher Education course!

The question was: "How Can I Submit My Assignments from the Student Affairs in Texas Newsletter"?

Here's my answer:

The question was: "How Can I Complete the Becoming an Expert Activity?"

Here's my answer:

Student Affairs and Student Services is constantly evolving to reflect industry trends. Especially business industry trends. Check out the Student Affairs in Texas newsletter published by the Graduate Students in the Educational Leadership program at Tarleton State University.

I hope you enjoy! Please let me know if you have any questions about recording, sound, or uploading. I will be happy to help!

***

Try this campaign! Also, there are more campaigns available in my book - Retaining College Students Using Technology: A Guidebook for Student Affairs and Academic Affairs Professionals.

Remember to order copies for your team as well!

Thanks for visiting!

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Higher Education Speaker and Researcher

My Social Media Channels!
Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards
I Always Post Higher Education Videos on YouTube
Find Me on Instagram
Engage with Me on Facebook!
Watch My Videos on Twitter Live - http://www.periscope.com/drjtedwards/
Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Monday, August 5, 2019

Course Navigation Guide - Higher Education Student Services

Welcome to the Higher Education Student Services course at Tarleton State University. In this course, we focus on everything student services including student activities, student success, and retention!

This course at Tarleton State University is located in the Educational Leadership Department.

Interested in a specific student success topic or do you need a speaker for an upcoming conference? Contact me via direct message on Twitter or join our Student Success Communication and Technology Institute on Facebook!

Monday, March 4, 2019

Academic Affairs and Student Affairs - Innovative Ways to Work Together to Embrace Student Success

This is part two! In July 2018, I had a wonderful opportunity to present the Academic Affairs and Student Affairs - Innovative Ways to Work Together to Embrace Student Success. This session focused on student engagement strategies, answers "What is Student Engagement?", and ultimately increasing student engagement in academic and student affairs. This session was presented at the American Association of Colleges and University's Summer Conference, "Public Universities in Challenging Times". This was an incredible opportunity, because it was the last AASCU conference that I would attend.

You ask why? Well, it was because I transitioned from an administrative role back to a faculty role after the death of my mother (but more on this later).

So, I traveled to San Antonio from the Fort Worth area with my prepared presentation in hand. It was an incredible conference and I learned so much! Also, I had a chance to network with my administrator colleagues. YES!

I was very fortunate to present on this topic because it is definitely a passion of mine. I've served in student affairs and academic affairs for almost 20 years. Sometimes, it is difficult to realize how long I've served in higher education, but believe me - every year has been worth it. I've learned a lot through this process and I've had the pleasure of meeting outstanding faculty, staff, and students through the process.

During my time in administration, I had the pleasure to spearhead the American Association of State Colleges and Universities's National Reimagining the First-Year experience initiative. Forty-three additional institutions from states across the nation were included in this initiative and three of them are Texas institutions. I have had personal experience with three of the four institutions. I graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University and Sam Houston State University and then I've been a faculty member at Tarleton State University for the past 11 years. So, this conference has special place in my higher education heart.

Here are some sample tweets from the conference:

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley definitely had a presence at the conference!

UT RGV sends messages to students via the Student Success Collaborative at 11pm at night for campaigns. The Netflix Strategy! #highered #highereducation #retention #edu #stuaff #retention #StudentSuccessTech #college #AASCUAAM pic.twitter.com/aJeM7KnhL0
— Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards (Millennial Professor) (@drjtedwards) February 9, 2018

Then, of course I had to contribute on Twitter! I wrote a tweet about my session.

The #AASCUAAM app description for my session is not correct. Here’s the correct one:#highered #HigherEducation #retention #edu #StudentSuccessTech pic.twitter.com/nycZKLL8iB
— Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards (Millennial Professor) (@drjtedwards) February 9, 2018

Then, I always contribute additional information (and resources) for other attendees. Conferences are great opportunities to share resources and to network with others!

Providing Incentives for Academic Advisors During Key Advising Times https://t.co/mxxS63XGvf #AASCUAAM #AASCU #StudentSuccessTech #highered #acaadv #FYE18 pic.twitter.com/KkkmGXEoo0

— Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards (Millennial Professor) (@drjtedwards) February 21, 2018

Here's some additional information about my session:

Academic Affairs and Student Affairs - Innovative Ways to Work Together to Embrace Student Success
Evergreen C
Student Affairs and Academic Affairs can work together to positively affect the success of first-year students at institutions of higher education. However, the continued disconnection between academic affairs and student affairs may negatively affect first-year students. This session provides participants with "25 Ways to Connect Academic Affairs and Student Affairs", research-based strategies to promote student success for first-year students, and participants will have an opportunity to share strategies from their respective campuses. Presenter: Jennifer Edwards, Associate Professor of Communication, Assistant Vice-President for Student Success and Multicultural Initiatives, Tarleton State University

Presenter(s): Jennifer Edwards, Tarleton State University

Here are a few slides from my presentation:

During the presentation, we had a lot of engagement and then attendees had a chance to ask questions. I enjoy presenting about academic affairs and student affairs because I believe that both of these topics are very important for higher education.

Monday, February 18, 2019

6 Ways for Higher Education Faculty and Staff to Handle Conflict in Their Department

I know that you get along with everyone right? Wrong! I will almost promise you that you will not get along with everyone all of the time. As a millennial, I am in a workplace (higher education) in which I do not have many peers. I am in my mid-30s and most of my peers are in their 50s and 60s. As a black professor, I do not see many people who look like me who do what I do on campus each day (teaching).

When differences are evident, this means that disagreements can happen. We have to be prepared for these disagreements ahead of time and to mentally be alert to HOW we are reacting to situations and people.

Recently, I read an article in Entrepreneur that can be applied to the higher education environment as well. "How to Handle Office Conflict" focused on six ways that employers can address office conflict amongst their employees. These strategies can also be applied to student affairs and the tenure track process.

1 - Confront It - Sometimes when we disagree with someone and we do not address the conflict when it arises, it can become worse. For instance, if you have to work on a group project with someone and you are taking more of the responsibility, this means that you need to address this responsibility inequity with your research or student affairs partner!

2 - Know When to Cut Ties - When you are working on a research project with someone and they do not hold up their end of the research bargain, you can cut your ties with your research partner. Sometimes, it is VERY difficult to do so, but in the long run it can save you months of anguish!

3 - Take It Outside - When you address the issue, you need to have in face-to-face and in an open, private place. This means, maybe a table on the patio of the building or perhaps in the library coffee shop, but address the conflict in neutral space.

4 - Embrace It - Know the the conflict exists, acknowledge it and converse about the conflict!

5 - Keep It Constructive - When you converse about the conflict, you need to stay focused on the topic at hand. Sometimes, when a conflict occurs it is easy to think about other items that are affected BY the conflict. AVOID this!

6 - Designate a Mediator - Think about involving someone who is not in your department and perhaps not in your academic college. Faculty conflict and conflict amongst student affairs professionals is very common, but address the conflict before it becomes a larger issue.

Okay guys, resolve the conflict and get stuff done!

Oh and by the way, here's another resource for you:

6 Strategies to Resolve Conflict at Work

6 Strategies to Defuse Office Conflicts Before They Get Out of Hand

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Monday, February 4, 2019

Teaching Organizational Communication Online - Course Navigation Video

This semester, I am teaching Organizational Communication (COMM 4304) for the Communication Studies department! I am VERY excited about teaching this course!

Here's the course description and learning outcomes:

Course Description: (3 Credits) - Course Description: (3 Credits) - An advanced study of communication as it takes place in business and industrial settings. Special attention will be given to managerial communication, communicator style, channels and networks, and organizational communication consulting.

At the conclusion of the course, the student will be able to...

A. Knowledge Outcomes

- understand the importance of networks with organizations. (Wk 11)

- understand how organizational culture is developed. (Wk 4)

- how small groups work within an organization. (Wk 12)

- understand how communication problems are diagnosed and solved within organizations. (Wk 10)

- know how communication styles impact organizational communication. (Wk 8)

B. Skill Outcomes

- a communication audit of an organization. (Wk 10)

- trace communication through a network. (Wk 8)

- construct work teams within an organization. (Wk 12)

Each week has a different learning outcome and a different reading for the week (Open Education Resources and Library Article links of course!

Each semester, I also make a course navigation video. here it is!

Monday, January 28, 2019

Teaching Intercultural Communication Online - Course Navigation Video

This semester, I am teaching Intercultural Communication (COMM 3332) for the Communication Studies department! I am VERY excited about teaching this course!

Here's the course description and learning outcomes:

Course Description: (3 Credits) - A study of intercultural communication theories and how they shape interpersonal, small group, and public interactions. Students will observe, participate, and analyze intercultural interactions on campus and in the community.

At the conclusion of the course, the student will be able to...

A. Knowledge Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

Students will understand the similarities and differences of cultural and societal groups living in the United States.

Students will recognize cultural similarities and differences in verbal and nonverbal communication.

Students will understand the similarities and differences between their culture and other cultures.

Students will understand how culture shapes and is reflected in communication between males and females.

B. Skill Outcomes

Students will demonstrate knowledge of intercultural communication competence through participating in intercultural research and observation.

Students will demonstrate knowledge of intercultural communication competence through participating in an intercultural interview.

Students will recognize and understand the role of communication in intercultural adaptation and acculturation.

Students will recognize the differences between race, ethnicity, and nationality.

Each week has a different learning outcome and a different reading for the week (Open Education Resources and Library Article links of course!

Each semester, I also make a course navigation video. here it is!

How to Link to a Specific Tweet - Great for Classes!

Sometimes, it is very difficult for students and others to link to a specific tweet. This video highlights a VERY SIMPLE way to link to a tweet and to integrate it into a Google Document (or potentially in an email).

Check it out!

How could you integrate this social media skill into your classes?

Monday, December 3, 2018

Data Analysis: California and Texas Public Health Initiatives

I am a health communication researcher, primarily in the areas of social media and awareness for veterans and underrepresented populations. During a graduate class this semester, the students decided to research how two states provided outreach for their citizens through Twitter.

We also examined the engagement for India, England, and the United States for public health outreach. We hope to present the information at a conference soon. Take a look at our strategy and data analysis for public health:

This is definitely a high impact practice for students. I like to integrate research in each course that I teach - online and offline!

Monday, October 22, 2018

Enhanced Faculty Features on the EAB Navigate System

The Student Success Collaborative (Navigate) is an innovative student success technology platform that can enable campuses to provide outreach to students and faculty, measure this outreach, and to make evidence-based decisions about the emerging data. For campuses who want to connect with their students and benchmark the results, the Education Advisory Board's Navigate platform is one of the best technologies for your campus.

If your campus is considering how they can integrate a new student success technology for their students, faculty, and staff, please contact me and I will be happy to help. Student success has been why research field for the past 15 years and I am excited about the new technology innovations that are occurring in the higher education field.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards

Higher Education Speaker and Researcher

My Social Media Channels!

Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards

Remember to Subscribe to Me on YOUTUBE

My Research Interests: Customer Service and Social Media, Higher Education Retention, and Millennials at Work

Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/drjtedwards/

Facebook - Facebook!

If You Love Periscope as Much as I Do...Follow Me There! - http://www.periscope.com/drjtedwards/

Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Monday, September 17, 2018

Using the Education Advisory Board's Navigate Platform to Impact Student Success and Retention

If your campus utilizes the Education Advisory Board's Navigate platform (formerly the Student Success Collaborative), you are extremely lucky. This platform enables faculty, staff, and students to engage electronically with one another. From a Communication Professor's perspective, it is important for me to emphasize that the Student Success Collaborative (Navigate) is one of the most easy student success technology platforms to navigate (no pun intended) for faculty and staff.

The Student Success Collaborative (Navigate) is an innovative student success technology platform that can enable campuses to provide outreach to students and faculty, measure this outreach, and to make evidence-based decisions about the emerging data. For campuses who want to connect with their students and benchmark the results, the Education Advisory Board's Navigate platform is one of the best technologies for your campus.

Retention, Student Success, Student Success Collaborative, Education Advisory Board, Navigate, How to Use EAB, Retention, 60X30TX, Higher Education, Student Affairs, Student Services

Here's a comparison between the features of Navigate and the Starfish platform:

Starfish	EAB (Navigate)
	We Can Form Appointment Campaigns
We Can Send Email to Students	We Can Send Email to Students
	We Can See a Realistic Preview for Each Student
	We Can See the Public Notes for Each Student
	We Can Perform Advanced Searches and Analytics
Faculty Log-In to Refer Their Students to Early Alert	Faculty Never Have to Log-On to Refer Their Students
Create Your Own Cohort	Create Your Own Cohort
Student’s Picture is Displayed	Student’s Picture is Displayed
	We Can View Midterm Grades and Final Grades

I am eager to discover the newly updated features of the Starfish platform again and I welcome the opportunity to discover this with another campus who wants to invite me as a student success technology consultant.

If your campus is considering how they can integrate a new student success technology for their students, faculty, and staff, please contact me and I will be happy to help. Student success has been why research field for the past 15 years and I am excited about the new technology innovations that are occurring in the higher education field.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Higher Education Speaker and Researcher

My Social Media Channels!
Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards
Remember to Subscribe to Me on YOUTUBE
My Research Interests: Customer Service and Social Media, Higher Education Retention, and Millennials at Work
Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/drjtedwards/
Facebook - Facebook!
If You Love Periscope as Much as I Do...Follow Me There! - http://www.periscope.com/drjtedwards/
Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Monday, September 10, 2018

Free Report - Institutions' Use of Data and Analytics for Student Success

https://www.naspa.org/images/uploads/main/DATA2018_DOWNLOAD.pdf

If you love higher education technology and data analytics as much as I do, you will love this report from NASPA (The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators), Educause, and the Association for Institutional Research. This report was written by Amelia Parnell, Darlena Jones, Alexis Wesaw, and D. Christopher Brooks.

The report contains the following:

Executive Summary

Discussion of Findings

Part I: Types of Student Success Data Projects

Part II: Structures in Place

Part III: Level of Coordination

Part IV: Programs, Interventions, and Outcomes

Implications and Recommendations

References

The report also includes a methodology, additional resources, and acknowledgements.

Here are the recommendations from the study:

Recommendation 1: Identify and expand institutionally appropriate roles for IR, IT, and student affairs.

Recommendation 2: Transcend or remove certain organizational silos to improve communication across all position levels.

Recommendation 3: Prioritize measuring student outcomes.

Recommendation 4: Increase the use of qualitative data, especially from students.

My reflection: This report was great and included many institutions. However, as a higher education researcher and former higher education administrator, I think the report would benefit greatly from numerous reflections from higher education adminstrators.

For example, the first recommendation highlights the expansion of institutionally appropriate roles, but most institutions have very limited budgets that cannot accommodate the expansion of positions or add additional responsibilities to roles.

Also, I recommend that institutions provide a set of guidelines for effective communication with students (for student retention efforts), but I am not a proponent of large communication committees or councils. The formation of these groups can slow down progress for retention. Sometimes these councils that usually consist of individuals from institutional research, institutional technology, student affairs, enrollment management, and academic affairs and exist to control the distribution of messages to students.

Also, I wanted to share this infographic that I created about Student Success Technology.

Read the report, view the infographic and digest the information. Feel free to write about the report during the comment box! I would love to read it!

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Higher Education Speaker and Researcher

My Social Media Channels!
Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards
Remember to Subscribe to Me on YOUTUBE
My Research Interests: Customer Service and Social Media, Higher Education Retention, and Millennials at Work
Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/drjtedwards/
Facebook - Facebook!
If You Love Periscope as Much as I Do...Follow Me There! - http://www.periscope.com/drjtedwards/
Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Friday, September 7, 2018

Three Student Success Action Items for Student Success Collaborative and Navigate Professionals!

If your campus utilizes the Student Success Collaborative (Navigate) platform, consider yourself to be extremely lucky! We had a few awesome training sessions at my university and I was incredibly lucky to facilitate these sessions for the faculty, staff, and students at my university and also Texas A&M University's advising team.

We had several sessions that focused on the features of the Navigate platform. Yes, I know that the Education Advisory Board company will continue to update the platform, but the basic components of the platform will remain the same (I hope). The components are easy for the faculty, staff, and students to navigate, but these important individuals at the university also need special reminders about the key clicks they need to make to "make things happen" on the platform.

So, here are three things that faculty, staff, and students at higher education institutions (colleges and universities) need to know in order to effectively navigate the platforms.

Action Item 1 - How to Boost Your Student Success Collaborative Campaign (2-3 Days After Sending the Invitation)

Action Item 2 - How to Schedule an Advising Appointment on EAB Navigate (formerly the Student Success Collaborative)

Action Item 3 - How to Create Tutoring Appointments on EAB Navigate (formerly the Student Success Collaborative)

Enjoy these three action items and please let me know if you have any questions. I will be happy to help! My contact information is listed below.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Higher Education Speaker and Researcher

My Social Media Channels!
Remember to Follow Me on Twitter! @drjtedwards
Remember to Subscribe to Me on YOUTUBE
My Research Interests: Customer Service and Social Media, Higher Education Retention, and Millennials at Work
Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/drjtedwards/
Facebook - Facebook!
If You Love Periscope as Much as I Do...Follow Me There! - http://www.periscope.com/drjtedwards/
Email Me! I am PR Friendly! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Pages

Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Monday, October 14, 2019

Monday, August 5, 2019

Monday, March 4, 2019

Monday, February 18, 2019

Monday, February 4, 2019

Monday, January 28, 2019

Monday, December 3, 2018

Monday, October 22, 2018

Monday, September 17, 2018

Monday, September 10, 2018

Friday, September 7, 2018