UA’s Navigating the Tide Helps Students Make Transition to College Life

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama is trying to make it a little easier for students to adjust to college life through the Navigating the Tide information program.

The UA Office of the Dean of Students sponsors Navigating the Tide as a collaborative campus effort to help incoming students feel welcome as they adjust to their new home – the UA community.

Corrie Harris, UA assistant dean of students, says, “Our goal is to make the campus and its activities as accessible as possible to incoming students. We hope that by combining a lot of information in one place, we can keep everyone in the loop about what’s happening on campus.”

Through this six-week program students are introduced to campus life through an array of events and programs. Events are listed at the Navigate the Tide Web site http://navigate.ua.edu.

In addition to the information about events, Navigating the Tide allows students to readily identify resources on campus through the following activities:

• Faculty and staff wear Ask Me buttons during the first two weeks of fall semester; they can point out locations, answer questions, and explain policies and services.
• Faculty and staff from the University departments volunteer at the Ferguson Center Information Desk to hand out goodies and greet students during high-traffic hours.
• The Office of UA Undergraduate Admissions will send periodic E-mails to all first-year students to remind them of important deadlines, tips to stay healthy, how to get involved on campus and other transition issues.

For more information on Navigating the Tide and making the adjustment to college life, contact Corrie Harris, assistant dean of students, at 205/348-5036.