Support Counselor Sierra Connect User Guide

IMPORTANT NOTE: This guide was developed as a basis for Support Counselors using Sierra Connect. Please work with your department or supervisor for specifics that apply to your position and how your role utilizes Sierra Connect.

This user guide contains the following sections:

Support Counselor Role
Find Your Support Counselor Caseload
Find Your Support Counseling 1,2,3 Flags
Close Your Support Counseling 1,2,3 Flags
How to use Support Counseling Appointment Type
- Setting Up an Appointment
- Setting Up an Event

Support Counselor Role

Shows to students, up top, in their Support Network
Gives you your individual caseload of students
Keep “Term” as Active
Cannot be combined with Cohort
Permissions granted to use special tracking items (Support Counseling 1,2,3 flags)
Permissions granted to use special appointment type (Support Counseling)
- DO NOT SELECT FOR BUILDING OFFICE BLOCKS
- ONLY USE FOR APPTS WITH STUDENTS DURING SUPPORT COUNSELOR TIMES

Find Your Support Counseling Caseload

To see your Support Counselor caseload on the MY STUDENTS tab:

On your MY STUDENTS tab
Select Support Counselor from Connections.
Select Active from Term.
Leave Cohort blank.

You will now see a list of students who belong to your Support Counselor caseload

Support Counseling 1,2,3 Flags

There are three flags that raise at the beginning of each semester that a Support Counselor can use to track meaningful contact.

Support Counseling 1(Spring/Fall)
Support Counseling 2(Spring/Fall)
Support Counseling 3(Spring/Fall)

These flags are to be cleared once the meaningful contact is made. So, upon first meaningful contact Support Counseling 1 would be cleared. After second meaningful contact, Support Counseling 2 would be cleared. And so on.

Finding Your Support Counseling 1,2,3 Flags

To find your Support Counselor 1,2,3 Flags;

On your TRACKING tab
Select Support Counselor from Connections.
Select Active from Term.
Leave Cohort blank.
click Edit Filters to open the Additional Filters window.

The Additional Filters window shows you options on the left. Make sure Tracking Items is highlighted:

Select Flag in Tracking Items.
Select Support Counseling 1 Spring in Item Name.
Select Submit.

You now have a complete list of students who have the Support Counseling 1 Spring flag raised on them.

Workflow to Close Your Support Counseling 1,2,3 Spring Flags

The best workflow for managing flags is to use your TRACKING tab and work from your filtered list of students that we created from the steps above.

Hover over the flag until the student’s window opens.
Click on the student’s name to open the student’s profile.

When the student’s profile window opens you have all the contact information you need to begin outreach. That information includes the student’s name, email, and phone numbers.

To see the tracking information on a student, select Tracking in the student's profile.

Displays

Flag Name
Date Raised
Status

Close “Support Counseling 1 Spring”

Because meaningful contact has been made with the student as a Support Counselor.

Hover over the flag icon you want to comment on or close.
Select Clear to clear the flag.

Select the radio button “I was able to connect with the student and we are working towards a resolution”. NOTE = the text displayed may not pertain to your meaningful contact, but selecting that positive answer adds to reporting.
Comment if you have any information that would add to holistic case management. Remember, you can look back on the first flag’s comments to build on the second flag’s outreach reasons.
Select Close.

Now that student does not show on our list of “Active” Support Counseling flags. Repeat the process until there are no more Support Counseling 1 Spring flags, then move on to Support Counseling 2 Spring flags, and so on.

Support Counseling Appointment Type

As a Support Counselor, you have a special appointment type that you will use to schedule student meetings during your Support Counselor release time hours.

NOTE: When making your office hour blocks, DO NOT CHECK the Support Counselor appointment type.

This new Support Counseling appointment type is only to be used for when you’re working in release time, in a Support Counselor capacity.

How to Use Support Counseling Appointment Type

The Support Counseling appointment type is only to be use during your support counseling hours, so you do not set it as available in an office block. Instead, when you do your Support Counseling outreach or meet with a student in a Support Counselor capacity, you use the appointment type, Support Counseling, as an appointment or event.

Appointment = in the future

Event = in the past

Setting Up an Appointment

If you’re setting up a meeting in the future with your student, who you are a Support Counselor for, and the meeting is for Support Counseling needs, you make an appointment using the Support Counselor appointment type. The date and time must be open in your scheduler, so you can’t have another appointment or any reserve time blocking it.

When complete, click Submit. This will put the appointment on your calendar and sent the student a reminder email.

Setting Up an Event

If you’re documenting a meeting that took place, say a phone call or face to face, that happened without an appointment with your student, who you are a Support Counselor for, and the meeting is for Support Counseling needs, you document the meeting using the Support Counselor reason code in the event details. The date and time must be open in your scheduler, so you can’t have another appointment or any reserve time blocking it.