Innovative Practice

Applying Appreciative Principles to Improve Systems that Serve Students

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Abstract

Appreciative Inquiry is an organizational change model that seeks to identify and build upon existing strengths to create the best of what might be (Cooperrider & Whitney, 2000). Bloom et al. (2008) applied and expanded Appreciative Inquiry principles to create the Appreciative Advising framework which includes 6 Phases designed to support students in leveraging their experiences and strengths to achieve their goals. This paper presents the addition of Design Thinking as a human-centered process that adds to the appreciative frameworks currently in use for enhancing educational practices. Specifically, Design Thinking can be used to address challenging organizational systems and structures that may hinder students’ ability to fully achieve their goals. An example of utilizing Design Thinking to build a better system of communication with students is presented.

Keywords: Appreciative Advising, Appreciative Inquiry, design thinking, colleges and universities, student-centered