HI! Welcome to my blog, The Faculty Student Connection.  First off, let me tell you who I am as I know credibility is something that faculty, and myself, look for when deciding to read something by a colleague. Also, so you can connect with me a bit. My name is Dr. Vicki Pitstick. I have a Master’s degree and PhD in Higher Education and Student Affairs from Ohio State University. I have been working in higher education for over 25 years. 

I have three daughters who, until a month ago, were all in college at the same time but all at different colleges.  Thank goodness at least one of them has graduated!  They were all at different types of institutions.  My oldest is at a community college. My middle daughter who just graduated went to a private Christian college.  My youngest was at a smaller public institution but is transferring to a large institution for Fall 2023.  Regarding my own education beyond what I have already shared, I received my Bachelor’s degree from a small, private college.  Throughout my career I have had some exposure and/or experience with different types of institutions.

My strengths (if you are familiar with Strengthsfinder):

Connectedness, Positivity, Learner, Woo, and Communication

Why This Blog?

Now that you know a little about my background, I want to share what inspired me to start this blog.  I completed my PhD in 2020.  My research was a qualitative study on faculty student connection from the faculty perspective.  I chose my topic based on a program I was working with at the time where I witnessed faculty gaining a deeper understanding of students and students benefiting from faculty like I had never seen before.  The way the program was constructed allowed each population to “humanize” the other.  The result was transformational both for the student and the faculty member.  Due to their new understanding of students, faculty told me stories about how they were more empathetic and compassionate towards their students and how they had changed some of their class policies and teaching.  I wanted to find out more about this type of relationship between faculty and students, and there is where my research began.

I utilized a method known as episodic narrative interviewing in my study, which is “a funneled approach that is employed to encourage research participants to convey bounded stories about their experiences of a particular phenomena” (Mueller, 2018, p. 2).  This approach is focused on an experiential aspect of a social concept or issue and uses stories to illuminate multilayered, difficult to see social phenomena. My goal was to find out more about how faculty understood and achieved connections with students. 

Come back tomorrow to learn more about my research and how you can be a part of my blog.  Here is a hint:  think about a student you have or have had a meaningful connection with – how would you tell that story?

Thanks for reading and remember – Connection Matters!

Do you need a workshop for a summer retreat, an addition to your fall faculty orientation, or a professional development session to re-energize your faculty or staff?  Dr. Vicki Pitstick is available for 1.5 – 2 hour workshops, as well as day-long workshops on the following topics: 

• Sense of Belonging
• First Year Student Development
• Second Year Student Development
  • (Combine the two above for a day-long workshop on the First Year to Second Year Transition)
• Effective Mentoring
• Compassionate Pedagogy (day-long only)
• Power, Privilege, and Difference