For 20 years, Academic Advisor Joanna Muller has helped students reach their educational goals. On Sept. 29, that hard work will be officially recognized on the statewide stage when the Wisconsin Academic Advising Association (WACADA) awards Muller the Advising Excellence Award.
Muller advises undergraduate distance students across various academic areas for the Office of Professional Program Support. The Advising Excellence Award is granted to advisors with strong interpersonal skills, mastery of institutional regulations and procedures, and the ability to build strong relationships with their advisees. Muller said she is honored to receive this recognition and play a role in helping thousands of students navigate their educational journey.
“I believe every student deserves an ‘expert’ to guide them through college. No student should have to flounder, and I strive to be that expert,” said Muller. “In working exclusively with distance students, it is fun to get acquainted with them, learning about their unique backgrounds. The desire for education brings them to the university, but each has a different path guiding them. I like to be an encouragement and am here to support my advisees.”
Muller earned a master’s degree in academic advising from Kansas State University and has worked in the University of Wisconsin System for nearly two decades. She advises roughly 175 students each semester.
“Joanna has worked with a diverse group of students in the UW System and specifically here at Platteville, always prioritizing student development as her focus,” said Becca Bartusewich, advising manager in the Office of Professional Program Support. “She is a strong exemplar of National Academic Advising Association core competencies at work."
The Wisconsin Academic Advising Awards recognize employees from a higher education institution in Wisconsin who demonstrate outstanding dedication to the profession of academic advising. Muller will be formally honored at the 2022 WACADA conference, hosted virtually by UW-Green Bay on Sept. 29.