The way GHC handles advising has changed with the COVID-19 pandemic and the switch to online classes.

“Advisors are all working from home and doing Zoom meetings with students as well as phone calls — and we have drop-in advising as well to help with registration,” said Leslie Payne, an advisor on Floyd campus.

“Luckily, Zoom is very easy to use and as the online advisor, I’ve been using it for years so it’s easy for me to help students. I find that students rarely have issues using Zoom, and if they do have a problem, I can usually trouble-shoot it,” said Payne.
“I miss seeing my Floyd students — especially ones that come by all the time.” Payne said. “But in terms of advising, not much has changed other than not seeing them in person. I still have lots of online meetings with students as well as phone calls. I can’t wait to be back on campus though, to see everyone.”

“I think as an institution and certainly as a department, we have done the best we can adapting to all of this change,” Payne said. “And we all know this isn’t forever — that one day we will all return to our campuses and things will carry on like normal. In the meantime, I think we just have to be flexible and understanding — perhaps throw in some humor as well. One thing that definitely has not changed is how much advisors care about students — we want students to know that we are here to help in any way and we’re available.”

“We are no longer in our offices on campus, but we are still here to help,” said Jillian Petro, an advisor on Cartersville campus. “For students who are new to Zoom, we have created some tutorials to help. There is a Zoom tutorial video on what to expect in a virtual Zoom advising session, because it may seem intimidating at first, but it is just like meeting us in-person.”

There are also more resources for the new world of remote learning on the new Student Resources webpage. The librarians have created tutorial videos on how to use D2L and all the functions within it.

“We all miss working closely with our other coworkers and being on the campuses,” Petro said. “Everything is just virtual now, but I am missing the in-person energy and seeing everyone every day…. It is challenging for everyone right now, but we will get through this together! It has been amazing to see everyone working so well together and willing to embrace all the changes in order to help students.”