Professional News

3 UK advisors recognized by NACADA, Global Community for Academic Advising

Photo of Kayla Johnson, Shawn Stewart and Jordan Hoehler.
(From left to right:) Kayla Johnson, Shawn Stewart, Jordan Hoehler.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 13, 2023) — Three University of Kentucky advisors have been named recipients of awards from NACADA, the Global Community for Academic Advising, an organization that promotes and supports quality academic advising in institutions of higher education to enhance the educational development of students. 

Shawn Stewart, academic advisor in the UK Gatton College of Business and Economics, won a NACADA Region 3 Certificate of Merit for Excellence in Advising: New Advisor; Jordan Hoehler, senior academic advisor in the UK College of Communication and Information, won a NACADA Region 3 Certificate of Merit for Excellence in Advising: Primary Role Advisor; and Kayla Johnson, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation and director of Graduate Global Learning Initiatives in the College of Education, won NACADA Region 3 Excellence in Advising: Faculty Advisor. 

NACADA's Outstanding Advising Awards annually recognize individuals who have demonstrated qualities associated with outstanding academic advising of students or outstanding academic advising administration. Recipients were recently honored at the NACADA Region 3 Conference. Here, winners received complimentary basic registration for the annual conference, a recognition plaque and a one-year membership in NACADA. 

“University of Kentucky advisors being acknowledged in a global association like NACADA really emphasizes the extraordinary impact advisors are having on students at our university and fellow advising professionals around the world,” said Casey Owen Shadix, director of the Office of Student Affairs in the College of Health Sciences and NACADA Region 3 Chair. “Not only are we doing remarkable work to ensure students cultivate lives of meaning and purpose, but we are also implementing best practices on a global scale as we drive the standard for the powerful potential advising can have on the student experience.”

The UK Advising Community empowers students through individualized support, guidance and connection to resources to realize and achieve academic, career and personal goals.

Academic advising at UK is an ongoing educational process that connects students to their undergraduate education, their career pathway and to resources.  As students progress through their academic programs, their advising needs change. Faculty advisors support students in a variety of ways by providing mentorship and specialized information related to an academic program. Program advisors provide an additional layer of support and guidance for students. University academic and career advising is the responsibility of the student and academic support office and those colleges offering degree programs. Working together, each area seeks to provide assistance in navigating the degree process, career pathways and university policies and procedures.

The UK Advising Network is an allied member of NACADA, the Global Community for Academic Advising. For more advising information and resources visit www.nacada.ksu.edu.

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.