The Advising Communities Division provides members an opportunity to join others with similar academic or specific student population interests in advising. Communities are charged with advancing NACADA’s strategic goals, proposing and facilitating activities, and providing resources to advance the professional development of members while focusing on the specific area of the community.
NACADA members can choose membership in a total of four (4) Advising Communities. These official designations identify those Communities with which they will have voting privileges, receive periodic electronic updates, and be eligible to hold an elected or appointed position within, such as serving on a committee or serving as Chair. Please note that you can informally be involved with as many other Communities as you like, such as subscribing to listservs, attending meetings, etc. Members may change affiliations at any time from various Communities. Annual Community meetings are held at Annual Conference, but sometimes overlap, so members may have to choose one or two major Community meetings to attend.
What is the work of the Advising Communities? The following outline some of the activities and resources for members:
- Identify needed membership services focusing on their topic
- Contribute to the development of approved resources for the members
- Offer professional development activities in various ways - in-person and online
- Contribute related content and conversation to members via various electronic outlets
- Develop other professional development resources
- Focus on the membership recruitment and retention efforts within their Community
- Contribute to NACADA publications
- Organize periodic networking and social activities - in-person at events and online
Chairs meet immediately prior to the Annual Conference each year. These Communities encourage members to become involved at a regional and national level, and provide resources to academic advisors who work with the variety of student populations on a variety of campus settings.
Leadership - The Division Representatives provide leadership for the Division, convene meetings, advise Chairs on activities, present Division items to the Council, oversee the financial affairs of the Division by preparing Division budget requests and appoint and orient Chairs of new sub-units. The Representatives also manage recognition processes, gather post-conference and annual reports from sub-units, distribute these reports to the Executive Office and Cluster Representatives, prepare timely written Division reports to the Council and Board of Directors, and review and update the Division Handbook, policies and procedures.
- Communities must maintain the criteria for designation and continuation in the Division
- Each Community elects a Chair for a two-year term and establishes a Community governing structure (Steering Committee).
- Communities elect the Elected AC Division Representative for a two-year term from all past Community Chairs to represent them on the NACADA Council.
- A second AC Division Representative is appointed by the President Elect and serves an alternate two-year term from the Elected Representative.
- Service as an ACD Chair makes one eligible for service on the Board of Directors at the end of that term.
Division Steering Committee & Role of Cluster Reps - The main focus of the steering committee is to facilitate a successful transition/orientation for new chairs, communicate regularly with its assigned chairs, monitor the progress of Communities, and most importantly, steer the direction for the Division. Their role includes general assistance, communication, oversight and vision. The ACD's Steering Committee consists of the two Division Representatives plus 5-10 other members who would be selected by the Division Representatives to serve 2-year staggered terms (e.g., not all appointed in the same year, thus not all leaving the steering committee at the same time) as Cluster Reps. All members must have completed at least one full term as a Community Chair.