The CLAS Academic Advising Center saw unprecedented changes this year. What was once primarily an in-person
service shifted to remote operation in March 2020 and will continue remotely through Summer 2021.
In Spring/Summer 2020, the CLAS professional academic advisors completed over 2,100 one-on-one advising and
registration sessions for incoming CLAS and Exploratory Study first-year students. These remote services continued as
advisors mastered Zoom and Skype, and conducted over 9,200 virtual advising appointments by the end of the Winter
2021 semester.

In Fall 2020, our Exploratory Study Advising Team hosted the first Virtual Majors Fair, providing information about all
GVSU majors and minors. The Preprofessional Team created a virtual version of the annual Health Professional and
Graduate School Fair drawing representatives from over 50 graduate and professional schools. Virtual advising and
student success workshops were offered throughout the year, with many sessions reaching maximum capacity.
The CLAS Academic Advising Center was integral in the development and implementation of a new Early Admission
Program with Ferris State University’s College of Pharmacy. The Center also offered fully online test preparation
courses for the MCAT and GRE.

For going above and beyond, even during a pandemic, Alexis Schewe, a Senior Academic Advisor in the Center,
received Grand Valley’s Outstanding Academic Advising and Student Services Award.

All of the Tutoring Centers offered online tutoring and pivoted many services to virtual sessions. Socially-distanced
computer labs were organized to ensure access to technology. While this year has been particularly challenging for
tutoring, students who utilized tutoring services reported helpful interactions with their tutors.

Much was learned; services once considered effective only in-person proved to be just as successful when provided
virtually. The Center is reviewing these modalities to identify an appropriate balance of in-person and virtual offerings to
serve students effectively and efficiently in the future.