Congratulations to Rita Baker and Nancy Kester for winning the 2016 Special Boilermaker Award! The Special Boilermaker Award was established in 1981 to recognize members of the Purdue faculty or staff who have contributed significantly to the quality of life and/or the betterment of the educational experience for a substantial number of Purdue students.

Rita earned her undergraduate and master’s degree from Purdue University, and has been an academic advisor at Purdue since 1985.

“The best part about being an academic advisor at Purdue University is that the position requires talking with and getting to know great people. Can anyone ask for a better job description?”

See a story written about Rita in the Brazil Times, Rita’s hometown newspaper.

Nancy also earned her undergraduate and master’s degree from Purdue University. After serving as Purdue’s Assistant Volleyball coach for seventeen years, she became an advisor for Health and Kinesiology in 1995.

“I love meeting with students one on one, hearing about the exciting things they are doing on campus, in the classroom, and in the community or on study abroad trips, helping them navigate college and resources, and guiding them in developing a plan of study that will help them fulfill their personal and career goals.”

Take a look at historical winners to find more PACADA members.

Also pictured above: Chemistry professor and Special Boilermaker recipient Marcy Towns.

Written by Danielle Gilbert

The Purdue Academic Advising Association (PACADA) recently honored two academic advisors for their hard work and dedication to their students.

Outstanding Academic Advisor: Erin Schultz, College of Education

Professionalism, confidentiality, trustworthiness and accountability are the foundations for Schultz’s attitude toward all students that are fortunate enough to meet and work with her, said nominator Jane Dimitt, director of the Office of Advising and Recruiting for the College of Education.

Students often express how supportive and informative Schultz is as an advisor.

Schultz started her career as a school counselor at Wea Ridge Middle School. She later realized that she could use her skills to benefit a different set of students.

“As a Boilermaker and previously a school counselor, academic advising at Purdue was a natural fit for me,” she says.

Co-workers lauded her work mentality and commitment in letters of support.

“It is made clear through her actions that Erin sees her advising role as going beyond suggesting courses for a plan of study to include the work of mentoring, listening, supporting and encouraging her students,” says Jill Newton, associate professor of Mathematics Education.

Schultz has been a member of PACADA since her first year on campus and co-chair of the Communications Committee since 2014.

“I love being a difference-maker. I hope that I have made some sort of impact in the lives of my students, and that, as future teachers, they will be paying it forward,” she says.

Outstanding New Professional: Christine Hofmeyer, Department of Forestry and Natural Resources

Hard work, willingness to learn and a strong desire to help students have marked Hofmeyer’s time as an advisor in the Office of Student Services in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, where she took on two roles: academic advisor and graduate program coordinator.

“Christine is very friendly and engaging with her students and they are comfortable talking with her and discussing their concerns,” says John B. Dunning Jr., professor and director of the Office of Student Services.

Hofmeyer has worked as an academic advisor for a little more than a year, but already knows the job was the perfect fit for her.

“I love to learn, so being employed at an educational institution is a natural fit for me. I love being part of the students’ academic, emotional, social and professional development plan as they progress through their college years,” she says. “I met my freshman and transfer students when they visited the university as prospective students, and I have assisted them with various issues during their first year at Purdue and have enjoyed watching their transformations.  I have learned from the ongoing experiences of my sophomore, junior, senior and graduate students.”

Hofmeyer says she became an academic advisor because she wanted to be more directly involved with Purdue students.

“I’m a people person and am driven by opportunities to serve others,” she says.

Writer: Megan Huckaby, 765-496-1325, mhuckaby@purdue.edu

Communications committee member Sheila Hurt interviewed Brooke Linn, winner of PACADA’s 2013 Outstanding New Professional Award

This year’s winner of PACADA’s Outstanding New Professional Award, Brooke Linn, has something of a split personality (career-wise, at least). While she loves her job as an advisor in the College of Pharmacy, she also puts in time every day pursuing her dream of being a published author. When we talked about her career path so far, it became clear that she is on two paths simultaneously that occasionally intersect in interesting ways.

I asked Brooke about her childhood dreams, and what she thought she wanted to be when she grew up. She said that when she was in kindergarten, she wanted to be a cheerleader. Throughout elementary and middle school, her dreams turned more towards writing and teaching. By high school, she planned to be a lawyer. She attended Purdue and started out majoring in Management, thinking that would help her own her own bookstore. But when she realized she would have no time for writing as a small business owner, she decided to switch to Elementary Education. Along with learning to teach, she would learn what children liked to read, and that would help inform her other career as a writer.

After graduation, Brooke taught second grade for several years, first in Florida and then back in Indiana. She became a reading interventionist and literacy coach, helping other teachers improve their teaching. During this whole time, she continued to work on her other career goal as well, and started an MFA in creative writing. Eventually she started thinking about working at Purdue as an advisor. She applied for a few jobs but was never even interviewed, since she had not yet completed her master’s degree. She got some advice from her own undergraduate advisor, Jane Ann Dimitt, and kept applying. Her persistence eventually paid off when someone who interviewed her but turned her down recommended her for an advising job in pharmacy, and she was hired.

Brooke loves her current job, saying the students are wonderful and the people she works with are both motivating and supportive. They make her want to be a better advisor and continue to learn more. The biggest change from her previous career as a teacher is the schedule, but in a way it’s easier for her now because she doesn’t take work home and for the first time ever, she has a lunch hour available to spend time writing. She has completed her first young adult novel and is working on the sequel; she also wants to write picture books for children.

Brooke has found an interesting way to combine her varied career interests by creating and teaching a writing course for PharmD students whose skills could use some polishing. Even though it was not technically required, her students had almost perfect attendance last semester and suggested she offer a longer version of the course for next year. She also works with students who decide they do not want pharmacy, and is looking forward to learning more about career advising by taking the online course sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Advising that starts in a few weeks.

Though she certainly appreciates winning the Outstanding New Professional Award, Brooke wanted to emphasize that she doesn’t think she does anything out of the ordinary as an academic advisor. If that’s the case, then Pharmacy students are clearly in good hands!

Communications committee member Paul Birkhimer interviewed Cara Wetzel, winner of PACADA’s 2013 Outstanding Advisor Award

“Outstanding In Her Field”

Or, as the pun-loving Cara Wetzel would say, “Out standing in her field”.  But being awarded PACADA’s Outstanding Academic Advisor Award is no joke to Wetzel.  Since beginning her employment on the Purdue campus in 1997, Cara has always wanted to make an impact on students.  As Assistant Director in the Undergraduate Studies Program, she is able to make this impact not only when she meets with students one-to-one, but also inside her EDPS 105 classroom, where bad jokes help her to make good connections.

This year’s Outstanding Academic Advisor didn’t have a career in academic advising as her goal.  When she shares this information with her exploratory students in USP, it provides another opportunity to make a connection and impact students.  “I want to make a difference in students’ lives by helping them make organized decisions,” says Cara.  She says she had a great advisor while pursuing her undergraduate degree at Purdue, now she strives to be the same type of influence for her students.

Wetzel truly didn’t realize academic advising was the place for her until she started advising in the Undergraduate Studies Program.  Looking back at the path which led her to Academic Advising has allowed Cara the opportunity to reflect and uncover the influences which have impacted her decisions.  Or as this Purdue math alum would say, “Looking for a sine.”  (The puns never end.)

The most fulfilling advising moments for her are the ones where she can see the light bulb go off in the student’s eye.  That’s when she knows the connection has been established and an impact has been made.

“I’m a learner,” says Wetzel, so being an instructor in EDPS 105, Academic and Career Planning, is a great place to be.  Beyond the classroom, she continues to increase her understanding of academic advising by attending regional and national conferences where new ideas and practices can be learned and shared.   For this academic advisor, the learning never stops.

Along with her dedication to academic advising, Cara has a strong commitment to family.  Her husband, daughter and son provide joy and stability to her life, but their busy schedules can make it challenging to maintain balance at times.  The challenges she experiences allow her to be more empathetic with her students.  She understands that they must also balance multiple elements in their lives as they explore their options at Purdue.

Receiving this recognition as Outstanding Academic Advisor made Cara smile.  How appropriate, since her students share a similar reaction when she delivers one of her many bad jokes or puns.