As we wrap up spring semester and prepare for Commencement on Sunday, let’s recognize the wonderful things that have happened over the past several months. While we only had one submission for the April Advisor of the Month below, thank you to EVERYONE for all of your hard work and dedication to the students in your areas and OSU!

• Matt Waitkus
  • “Matt is my go-to for help with students who want to return to Fisher (I’m in ASC) but maybe have unusual circumstances that make it unclear whether the students should reapply or not. He responds quickly and thoroughly and is always welcoming of a warm hand-off so that the student is supported right from the get-go.”

Have a great day!

Check out some of the wonderful things our advising colleagues have done with everything March has thrown at them! Thank you to each of you for all of your hard work and dedication to the students in your areas and OSU!

• Louis Hominga
  • “Louis is a Senior Advisor at The Ohio State University at Marion campus. He advises majors for multiple colleges, Social Work, Fisher College of Business, Knowlton School of Architecture, John Glenn College of Public Affairs, College of Engineering. He is also our College Credit Plus advisor. Multiple colleges and program advising is the norm for regional advisors, but Louis strives to be the best advisor he can be for each of those colleges-equally.

    Louis is that advisor in your office who will help anyone, take on anything asked of him, and do it with a positive attitude. His experience at Ohio State has also included work with financial aid and admissions offices. He has generously pitched in for those areas when needed for our campus. His knowledge helps all advisors on our campus see a situation holistically, particularly those unique and rare situations.

    Louis will always take the extra time to help students see the choices they have in planning their academic schedule and making choices about campus change, applying for scholarships, getting involved on campus and the community. He advocates for his students through work he does as part of our campus course scheduling committee. He is never afraid to ask for a course, day, or time, which may be best for the student. The answer is not always yes to his request, but he still advocated for his students and that takes courage when you know you are going against the norm.

    Because Louis is always a good sport when asked to help, he doesn’t always get recognized for the extra mile he goes every week. When the call for nominations came out for March, I knew Louis had definitely earned this nomination!”

• Brian Oilar
  • “Brian is an exceptional advisor with Fisher and does an excellent job working with our large population of honors students. From the moment he joined the Undergraduate Programs Office, he has been eager to pitch in and help out wherever he can, whether it’s helping a student get what they need from an appointment or supporting a college event after-hours and on his own time. And while we try very hard to not take advantage of his height, he is an incredibly helpful colleague around the office who is always willing to help rearrange our limited storage space or get things off of high shelves for others. Brian’s sense of humor, easygoing attitude, and deep care for students’ experiences have made him fit right in at Fisher. He is one of the kindest and most genuine people I’ve ever met and he manages to put everyone at ease immediately. We’re so lucky to have him on our advising team.”
  • “Not only is Brian is a great advisor, but he is always going above and beyond to be a good colleague. For instance, with both of the time changes this academic year, Brian has voluntarily gone around to change all of the wall clocks in our office (even when they have required tools to achieve this goal).”

The winners of March’s ACADAOS raffle is…
Louis Hominga
Congratulations!

Check out some of the wonderful things our advising colleagues have done over the halfway point of spring semester! Thank you to each of you for all of your hard work and dedication to the students in your areas and OSU!

• Erin Holcomb & Julianne Hensel
  • “On Valentine’s Day, Erin and Julianne led the Fisher advising staff through a series of case studies related to students with academic concerns. They did a great job in preparing and leading this session, and the entire team benefited from having an opportunity to discuss ways to best support our students.”

• JOJO Beyene
  • “JOJO has continuously gone above and beyond for our undergraduate student population, whether or not it is students that she advises or not. Her ability to gain the trust of our students and lead them while either their advisor or co-advising the handful of student orgs she interacts with has been done at a high level. As most in her position would be content with just keeping the student orgs functional, JOJO challenges the groups to be creative and find ways to create engagement opportunities either amongst themselves or the community. This month has been no different as JOJO has worked with University programs to help her orgs strive to meet her expectations.”

• Kendall Coffman
  • “Kendall has done an amazing job updating the business major change course. He is the new course coordinator and has worked hard to create a more engaging and meaningful career exploration element that requires the coordination of dozens of guest speakers across 4 sections and multiple class meetings. Kendall also continues to make significant contributions to the Fisher Peer Advisor program. This semester, he has led all of the mid-year reviews and weekly meetings with the current Peer Advisors. His amazing excel and organization skills have led to a smooth and streamlined Peer Advisor applicant review and interview process. Kendall has gladly taken on so many responsibilities and continues to support students and his colleagues with unwavering care and expertise. We are so lucky to have Kendall as part of our team.”

• Susan Lee
  • “Susan brings great wisdom and experience to our team, and encourages us all to think outside of the box to give students the best possible experience. She explores creative and effective solutions to problems and her insight is highly valued by peers and students alike.”

• Lisa Long
  • “Lisa and I have a student doing a double major. Lisa has sent the student very clear detailed emails and copied me. It’s very helpful to have this information and see exactly what is shared with the student. I appreciate her consideration to keep me in the loop.”

• Peggy Strow
  • “Thanks Peggy for setting up the admissions overview from OSU College of Dentistry for pre-health advisors!”

The winners of February’s ACADAOS raffle are…
JOJO Beyene, Erin Holcomb, & Julianne Hensel
Congratulations!

Check out some of the wonderful things our advising colleagues have done over winter break and the start of spring semester! Thank you to each of you for all of your hard work and dedication to the students in your areas and OSU!

• Troy Brooks
  • “Troy has gone above and beyond expectations for the past year, but he truly was a superstar advisor in January 2025. Troy has stepped up to manage not only advising our non-degree students, but also working with our new non-credit learners. He has created workflows and stepped in to supervise our student employees, as we are short two staff roles currently. Troy took over management of our campus partnerships with special populations – like TOPS – and is already improving those services in just one month.”

• Jaimi Knisley
  • “We use a senior advisor on-call schedule at Fisher and Jaimi was covering a half-day during winter break, probably expecting that it would be a quiet one. She spent hours that day working closely with a student who was deeply troubled by an academic status decision and subsequently had a mental health crisis while on a call with Jaimi. In the moment, Jaimi was calm, steady, and affirming, and she subtly gathered resources and support while keeping the student talkative and on the line with her. She handled the student’s needs and the aftermath of documentation and reporting with professionalism and care. While it is always our hope that students can access the care they need and that advising staff will not be called upon in a crisis, these situations do happen and it’s a lot to ask of an advisor in the moment. I’m grateful to Jaimi for jumping in and helping the student without hesitation.
    Additionally, I am proud of her for taking a pause after that incident to care for her own needs as well. She sets a phenomenal example for others and we’re so lucky to have her as a senior advisor on the Fisher undergraduate team!”

• Laura Whitaker
  • “For her patience and communication with me and students that we share on our caseloads. Her support and concern for the student’s success has been wonderful.”

• Lilli Williams
  • “Lilli is an academic advisor in Fisher’s undergraduate programs and works tirelessly to support her students each semester. In particular, she works primarily with our referral students who are transferring to OSU. Lilli is able to make the huge OSU community feel smaller and more intentional for those students through her compassionate advising style.”

The winner of January’s ACADAOS raffle is…
Jaimi Knisley
Congratulations!

As we gear up for the start of spring semester, let’s recognize the wonderful things that have happened over the past several months. While we only had one submission for the December Advisor of the Month below, thank you to EVERYONE for all of your hard work and dedication to the students in your areas and OSU!

• Lauren Williamson
  • “Lauren is a relatively new advisor in Fisher, but you’d never know it. She has worked incredibly hard to learn our curriculum, prepare to teach multiple Survey sections, and support a challenging student caseload over the past several months. She has also been willing to take on new projects, including being part of our campus change advising and support team and our office wellness team. Her positive energy and can-do attitude make a big difference around the office, and we’re lucky to have her in Undergraduate Programs. Thank you, Lauren!”

Have a great day & stay safe with the upcoming snow system!