Christ Church
Erskine Dean Of Students Takes A Seat At The
"Oxford Round Table"
Erskine College Dean of Students Dr. Robyn Agnew was one of about 45 delegates invited to a conference this summer at St. Antony's College, University of Oxford, and she has come away from the weeklong "Oxford Round Table" with renewed enthusiasm for her work at Erskine.
"My love for this profession was rejuvenated," said Agnew, a 1984 Erskine College graduate. "I hope to pass along some of this excitement and knowledge to the students this fall."
The Oxford Round Table, which meets each year to examine various aspects of university life, focused on "Student Affairs in Colleges and Universities" at its conference July 11-16.
Round Table Routine
Conference participants, nominated by former delegates and Round Table board members, enjoyed what conference co-director Don Robertson describes as "a unique forum providing an opportunity for educational leaders to meet and consider policy issues in a collegial think tank atmosphere."
Robertson's description of the Round Table proved an apt one for Agnew, who has worked in the Office of Student Services at Erskine since 1996. "Without a doubt this was the best professional experience I've ever had," she said.
"The presentations were interesting and applicable to what I do at Erskine, and informal conversations with other delegates proved most helpful."
Agnew enjoyed meeting colleagues who face some of the same challenges she encounters in her work. "I met some of the most amazing people and established incredible connections I hope to maintain for years to come," she said.
Agnew said the conference format kept her interest and allowed her and other delegates, including deans, vice presidents, vice chancellors, residential college heads and others, time to consider the ideas presented by the speakers.
"Each day we would start off in the debating chamber and there would be a series of 20- minute presentations," she said. "There would be a time for commentary by some of the other participants, and then a question and answer period."
The presentations were kept fairly brief, she noted, and there was "a lot of time for dialogue and discussion." Agnew said she benefited from such interaction with colleagues.
"Part of the magic of it was the people," she said. "The group just kind of jelled, and that helped tremendously."
Creating"Mini Erskines"
Agnew said conference themes included linking academic affairs and student affairs; developing residential colleges and effective learning communities; retaining students and increasing graduation rates; and enhancing the learning experience of first-year students.
"The Oxford Round Table was affirming, in that I discovered we're doing many of the right things in student affairs at Erskine," Agnew observed.
"It was interesting to see that many large universities are attempting to create mini Erskines," she said. "Through design, they are hoping to produce what often naturally occurs on our small campus."
Agnew said that in keeping with Oxford tradition — the Oxford University system has 39 colleges, including St. Antony's, where the Oxford Round Table met this year — schools like Murray State in Kentucky have developed residential colleges housing between 350 and 650 students, with each college having its own dining facility, library, faculty and staff.
"The faculty spend time outside the classroom with their students and there is a real emphasis on reducing the divide between what occurs in the classroom and what occurs in the residence halls," she said.
Agnew believes Erskine can build on its strengths as a residential college and learning community. "We have about the right number of students," she said. "So a lot of the residential college development occurs naturally, but sometimes we take it for granted — we need to be more intentional about working collaboratively with the faculty."
Improving Retention
The Oxford conference also showed Agnew ways in which Erskine can move forward. "It was challenging, in that I found areas needing improvement, and valuable, in that I gained insight into how to make needed changes," she said.
A number of discussions at the Round Table centered on bridging the gap between academic affairs and student affairs, and the positive impact this can have on retention of students. Agnew noted that even before she attended the conference, Erskine was making plans to foster closer ties between academics and student services, and she hopes the plans will succeed.
"Dr. (Brad) Christie and I had already planned to have advising sessions in the dorms Tuesday evening of orientation week," Agnew said. "This decision was affirmed as several presentations focused on living and learning communities and the need to better integrate traditional academic experiences and life beyond the classroom."
Agnew said some research suggests that students who spend more time with professors outside the traditional classroom and in informal settings tend to be more satisfied than those who don't have such opportunities.
"The satisfaction of professors also tends to increase when these opportunities are provided," she said. "This combination usually leads to improved student retention and low faculty turnover," she said.
Putting Knowledge Into Practice
Agnew and the Student Services staff at Erskine are excited about changes in freshmen orientation planned for this fall. "Robyn is a member of the Retention Committee, and based on that group's recommendation, freshmen orientation has been extended to a nine-day experience," said Student Activities Director Brooke Clinton, a 1998 Erskine graduate.
"Freshmen will attend in-depth sessions on topics from using technology to health issues facing young adults," she said. "The committee believes relationships forged during this extended orientation period will better prepare our new students for their four years of college."
In addition to conducting a revamped freshmen orientation for students, Agnew said the Student Affairs office hopes to offer information to faculty members that might help them contribute even more to student success.
"I hope to have the opportunity to work more closely with the faculty, to educate them about what we do in student affairs and to enlist their help in retaining a higher percentage of students," she said.
"One example might be to spend some time at a fall faculty meeting discussing warning signs of risk behavior and the protocol to follow if a professor notices something troubling in a student," she said. "On a campus our size, sometimes we take for granted this type of information is common knowledge."
With its 14:1 faculty-student ratio, Erskine takes pride in having a close-knit campus community, but Agnew said care must be taken to maintain good communication. "I was reminded during several presentations at Oxford that it is in the best interest of the students when we are intentional about sharing these points with our colleagues."
For Agnew, along with Vice President for Student Services and Athletics Monty Wooley and the rest of the Student Services team, the welfare of Erskine students, freshmen as well as upperclassmen, is central.
"We are so fortunate to have someone like Dean Agnew on the Erskine campus," Clinton said. "She is incredibly dedicated to Erskine College and her students, and I have no doubt that she represented Erskine well."
While in Oxford, Agnew absorbed the atmosphere of a centuries-old center of learning. "I can't think of a better place to participate in a higher education 'think tank,'" she said. "Our sessions were held in a 13th-century debating chamber, and we dined at the Somerville College Hall, home to graduates Indira Gandhi and Margaret Thatcher."
Agnew also enjoyed a taste of home when she ran into two members of the Erskine community, Erskine English professor Dr. Bill Crenshaw and his wife, Dixie High School English teacher Diane Crenshaw. The three had lunch together.
As she recalled her experience of the Oxford Round Table, Agnew expressed gratitude for a fund that helped defray some of her conference expenses. The fund was initiated by Erskine Board of Trustees Chairman John Moore of Columbia after this year's April board meeting, and a number of trustees contributed to the fund.
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