Learning Support Center Management

For those who are new to the field of learning assistance and learning support centers in higher education, we have assembled some key links to get you started building or improving your learning center. Then we invite you to browse through areas of interest on the Learning Support Center Management page or in the other resource pages of LSCHE.

Start here:

Starting a Learning Assistance Center: Conversations with CRLA members who have been there and done that
Though this is an older work, we think that many of the conversations are still useful for today’s new learning assistance center administrators. Each conversation (chapter) is short and easy to read. Enjoy!

Next, walk through the suggestions and recommendations on the Professional Development page

Two resources to generate ideas for creating tactical and strategic plans:

Best Practices for Learning Support Centers in Higher Education
This is a handout from a post-conference workshop conducted by Frank Christ at the NCLCA conference in 2009. Best practices are listed in 9 areas: 1) general, 2) clientele, 3) programs & services, 4) technology, 5) partnering, 6) program evaluation, 7) publicity & public relations, 8) staff training and 9) certification & recognition.

Learning Centers of Excellence Description and Checklist
This NCLCA checklist can be used to conduct an informal review of a learning support center to identify areas for improvement and can be especially useful to new learning center administrators.

Areas to examine for input to tactical and strategic plans:

The classic book on learning assistance:

Maxwell, M. (1997). Improving student learning skills: A new edition. H&H.
Although published in 1997, this book remains relevant decades later. This is a seminal work that should be in every professional's personal library.

Three recent books on learning centers:

A recent book on peer tutoring:

Management:

For learning center staff who are new to management, the following book provides a plethora of managerial resources (helpful regardless of whether the learning center is in student affairs or elsewhere).

Subscribe, join, visit:

Subscribe to LRNASST
LRNASST is the primary message list for learning assistance, learning centers, and developmental education. We strongly urge you to join if you have not already done so.

Join a Professional Association
The most important for learning assistance/learning support are the members of the Council of Learning Assistance and Developmental Education Associations. These are listed at the top of the linked page.

Visit Learning Support Centers on the Web
Learning Support Centers are developing campus websites as a way both to publicize their programs and services to students, faculty, and administrators and to offer online diagnostic and tutoring services. This resource includes links to current learning center web sites.

For more on any of the following topics (plus many more), see the appropriate tab on the Learning Support Management page here on LSCHE:

• Names of Learning Support Centers: There are at least 260 different names that institutions are using to designate their learning support centers.
• Bibliography: This lists a few key books, monographs, and articles that may be useful for learning support center administrators and staff.
• Titles for Tutors: This list of 20 titles is based on posts to LRNASST-L to answer the question, “What else can one call a tutor?”
• Sample Position Descriptions: These are generic position descriptions that you can adapt to your particular institution.
• Annual Reports and Assessment: Documenting and reporting how a learning assistance program positively impacts student learning and success can be critical. See sample annual reports and a CRLA white paper on assessment.
• Model Learning Support Centers: These learning center descriptions can serve as models for administrators seeking to develop a new center or to modify an existing one.
• Learning Support Center Mission Statements: In this section are links to Mission Statements of Learning Support Centers. Missions may be expressed in single sentences or in multi-paragraph statements. Some centers also have developed, in addition to their mission statements, both goals and vision statements.
• Learning Support Center Surveys: You will find here a collection of surveys of learning assistance and learning support centers.