In this episode of Adventures in Advising, Matt and Ryan sit down with Julie Montgomery, academic advising generalist manager at Sinclair Community College (Mason Campus), who leads with equal parts clarity, compassion, and “let’s-get-this-done” energy. Julie serves up practical wisdom on building a healthy advising office culture (hint: purpose + philosophy + communication make the whole thing rise) and introduces a powerful concept every team needs: compassionate colleague correction, aka how to fix mistakes without torching trust.

You’ll also hear Julie break down Virginia Gordon’s “Three I” career conversation framework so advisors can navigate those “this was supposed to be course planning, but now it’s a life crossroads” appointments with confidence.

Along the way: community college myth-busting, leadership lessons from Les Mis, Wicked, and Hamilton, and the real talk behind the dissertation grind. 🎓✨

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In this episode of Adventures in Advising, we explore a bold redesign of student support with guests Steven Schaffling, Cindy Zazzara, Molly Clock, and Ryan Howlett from Syracuse University! They share how they dismantled silos, rewrote the advising playbook, and built an integrated academic/career student success model! We talk:

✨ Holistic advising that connects the dots between academics and careers
📊 Data, formative assessment, and why holds aren’t the magic answer
🧠 Building “advisor tools” that free up brain space for real conversations
🤖 How AI can offload the transactional so advisors can double down on the relational
🎓 And what it takes to shift culture without losing heart

With over 14,000 one-on-one meetings a year and retention gains to show for it, this team proves that when students don’t have to retell their story five times, everyone wins.

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The Instagram, and Facebook handle for the podcast is @AdvisingPodcast

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Connect with Matt and Ryan on LinkedIn.

In this energizing episode of Adventures in Advising, Imani Hill steps in as guest host to lead a powerhouse panel on advisor well being, retention, and the research that is reshaping the field. Joined by Rebecca Helms, and Chisom “Chi Chi” Anunobi, and Brandon Jones, this dynamic crew from NACADA’s Well Being and Advisor Retention Advising Community dives into the heart of what keeps advisors thriving instead of just surviving. From burnout and boundaries to job satisfaction and institutional responsibility, the conversation gives you the behind the scenes reflections on their latest research brief plus real talk about compensation, caseloads, leadership, AI in advising, and why retention of advisors directly impacts retention of students. The message is clear: when advisors are supported, students succeed.

Check out the Wellbeing & Advisor Retention (WBAR) Advising Community’s most recently published Research Brief: Advisor COVID-19 Pandemic Experiences Research Brief

If you’re interested in following WBAR or joining their steering committee, go here: Ways to follow/join WBAR

Follow the podcast on your favorite podcast platform!

The Instagram, and Facebook handle for the podcast is @AdvisingPodcast

Also, subscribe to our Adventures in Advising YouTube Channel!

Connect with Matt and Ryan on LinkedIn.