Advisors Workshop – Bandwidth Recovery: Helping Students Reclaim Cognitive Resources Lost to Poverty, Racism, and other “Differentisms”

Event Date & Time

Event Description

Cia Verschelden is the keynote speaker for Celebrate Learning Week 2021. If you would like to participate in this workshop, please ensure you have also registered for Cia Verschelden’s keynote presentation taking place from 10:00am – 12:00pm on May 18. Can’t attend the CLW keynote session between 10-12pm?  Register to receive a temporary link to the unedited video recording of the Keynote Presentation early in the afternoon of May 18.  This recording will be made available May 18-21, 2021.

Bandwidth concept – scarcity steals mental bandwidth 

The cognitive resources for learning of many of our students have been and are being diminished by the negative effects of persistent economic insecurity and discrimination and hostility against non-majority groups based on race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation or gender identity, and other aspects of difference. Recognizing that these students are no different than their peers in terms of cognitive capacity, we can implement strategies and interventions – in and outside the classroom – that show promise in helping students regain the cognitive resources to be successful in college.

Advisors are critical in creating environments both in-person and remotely, where students can recover the bandwidth they need to engage in their ongoing learning and development. In this workshop, we will talk about the things that are robbing students of bandwidth, think about the extent to which our spaces are “identity-safe” for all of our students, discuss the importance of check-ins, and think about how to leverage students’ “funds of knowledge” (the knowledge, skills, and abilities they bring to the table). How do you help yourself and each other maintain your own bandwidth while helping students regain theirs?

This session will be co-facilitated by Carol Naylor, Associate Director, Strategic Initiatives and Special Projects, UBC VP Students Office.

Bio: Cia Verschelden

Cia Verschelden is Special Projects Advisor for the Integration of Academic and Student Affairs at the Association of American Colleges and Universities. She recently retired as Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs at Malcolm X College – City Colleges of Chicago. She taught for over 25 years at two- and four-year institutions in social work, sociology, women’s studies, nonviolence studies, and first-year seminar. Her administrative posts have included department chair, institutional assessment lead, and vice president of academic and student affairs. Cia has a B.S. in psychology from Kansas State University, an M.S.W. from the University of Connecticut, and an Ed.D. from Harvard University. Her book, Bandwidth Recovery: Helping Students Reclaim Cognitive Resources Lost to Poverty, Racism, and Social Marginalization, was published in 2017 and her new book, Bandwidth Recovery for Schools: Helping Pre-K-12 Students Regain Cognitive Resources Lost to Poverty, Trauma, Racism and Social Marginalization, in 2020.

This event will be hosted on Zoom.