Academic Success and Advising Center

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The mission of the Academic Success and Advising Center (ASAC) is to provide resources and support to help students become successful independent learners. ASAC recognizes that a student’s ability to succeed academically is impacted by many outside factors, including, but not limited to, past life experiences, culture, educational background, language fluency, race, neurodivergence, gender, past trauma, veteran status, athletic involvement, career goals, and financial concerns. As such, ASAC’s approach to academic support is inclusive and encompasses the whole student, ensuring that they have access to resources to support them personally while also providing them with tools to understand who they are as students, to know more about the ways they learn best, and to navigate college curricula successfully.

ASAC, located in the Harris and Betts Smith Learning Center, is the primary source of academic support programs on campus. Students can request academic coaching appointments for topics such as: goal setting, time management, study strategies and various other academic skills. All of the services provided are free.

Our Disability Services Office and Office of Veteran Services departments also provide support services to our Centenary students and are located within the Academic Success and Advising Center.

ASAC holds a variety of success strategy workshops each semester. These workshops teach students strategies to improve their organizational skills both inside and out of the classroom.

The responsibilities of an Academic Advisor include:

Get to know a student’s interests and goals and serving as a guide to planning your academic program at Centenary University.
An Advisor will be knowledgeable about the curriculum, course requirements and options.
Sometimes your questions cannot be answered by your advisor but your advisor will direct you to appropriate resources on campus.

The responsibilities of the Advisee include:

Think about the academic goals you have for yourself as a Centenary University student.
Discuss goals, concerns and bring up questions you have about your college career.
Meet with your advisor a few times a semester, not just when you are ready to schedule courses or have a problem.
Become familiar with University resources and academic policies.
As a full-time student, you are responsible for making and keeping appointments with your advisor for academic counseling during pre-registration to avoid late fees and to ensure class selection.

“Good advising may be the single most underestimated characteristic of a successful college experience. ” Dr. Richard Light - Making the Most of College: Students Speak Their Minds

Meet the staff of the Academic Success and Advising Center.

Margie Pavlichko

Director of Veteran Services

A.A. Humanities, County College of Morris
B.A. Individualized Studies, Centenary University

Margie joined the Centenary Community in 2006 as the Administrative Assistant in the Academic Success and Advising Center. She was assigned the veteran/veteran dependent student population in 2007. The “one-stop” Office of Veteran Services became official in 2012 with Margie as its first director. She is the primary point of contact for Centenary’s student veterans/veteran dependents, as well as those veterans/veteran dependents living in the greater Hackettstown community.

As the Director of Veteran Services, Margie is committed to assisting this very deserving population in navigating the internal and external systems of higher education and government agencies, so they can maximize their education benefits and all other available services and resources.

Abbie Davis

Director of Academic Success & Advising

B.A. English, Minor: Environmental Science, William Paterson University
M.A. English, Montclair State University

Abbie has worked in higher education for numerous years. While pursuing her master’s degree at Montclair State University, Abbie worked at Centenary University as a Professional Tutor where she was able to engage and work with students on a daily basis.

Additionally, she taught Developmental English at Middlesex County College for three years, as well as academic strategy courses at Northampton Community College and Centenary University. As a Director of Academic Success and Advising at Centenary, Abbie enjoys being able to assist students in working towards a successful academic career.

Christina Lenway

Academic Enrichment Coordinator for Multicultural Students

B.A. Elementary Education, Elmira College
M.S. Education, College of New Rochelle

Christina joined the Academic Success staff at Centenary University in 2023, after supporting students in elementary through college in parochial, private and public-school settings for the last 3 decades. As a first-generation college graduate, Christina understands the unique challenges of these students and offers experience and perspective in leveraging their culture, family support, and personal strengths for success. A reading specialist, she is passionate about literacy education and increasing students’ academic capital by teaching them how to use brain-based learning strategies and metacognition to improve their academic success. Christina attributes student success to the personal development skills of goal setting, self-motivation and self-authoring and is excited to bring these and more to Centenary.

Dennis Higgins

Student Success Specialist

BS. Psychology, East Stroudsburg University
MA. Clinical Psychology, Adelphi University
MA. Mental Health Counseling, Adelphi University

Dennis joined the DSO staff as a Student Success Specialist in Spring 2021. Prior to Centenary, he worked as a project manager at a software company, a paratrooper in the U.S. Army, a case manager for a national veterans’ organization, and various therapeutic positions at VA hospitals, outpatient clinics, and private practice. Dennis uses these varied experiences to help his students forge a path to success that is both effective and true to who they are as individuals.

Marvin Bell

Student Success Specialist

A. Political Science, Minor in Gender Studies and Legal Studies, William Paterson University
P.A. Non-Profit Management, Norwich University

Marvin joined the DSO staff as a Student Success Specialist in May 2024. Prior to Centenary University, Marvin worked as a Director at a non-profit organization and also worked at Randolph High School, working with students under their special services department. Marvin uses experiences learned in previous years to help current Centenary students and guide them towards a successful path through college.

Nancy Podesta

Career Coach & Employer Development Specialist

B. A. Sociology, Centenary University

Nancy’s background incorporates education and staffing. Prior to Centenary, she worked in Randolph Township Schools as an Instructional Assistant/Job Coach. In this role, she taught, advised, and coached students on career readiness as well as trained them on specific job requirements for entry-level positions. Before Randolph Schools, she worked as a Senior Recruiter for Lloyd Staffing where she was the liaison between job candidates and employers. Nancy handled the entire staffing process from recruiting to placing candidates in a wide array of businesses from small to Fortune 500 Companies. Additionally, she was responsible for sales development which gave her the vital skills of forming and building relationships with employers.

Nancy’s passion is to support students and help them reach their fullest potential. She has a student-centric focus to assist them in finding internships and gainful employment.

Sasha Jackson

Student Success Specialist

BSW Social Work, CUNY York College
MPA Public Administration, CUNY John Jay College

Sasha joined the DSO staff as a Student Success Specialist in November 2024. With a background in social work and public administration, Sasha is dedicated to empowering students and fostering authentic growth. Sasha holds a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work and a Master’s degree in Public Administration, bringing a well-rounded perspective to their role. Having worked extensively with children in foster care and families striving to improve their lives, Sasha is passionate about creating supportive environments where students can thrive both academically and personally. Sasha believes in the power of education to transform lives and is committed to helping each student find their unique path to success.

Got questions?

We are here with answers:

Academic Advising

(908) 852-1400 ext. 2168

Hours:

Monday to Thursday 8 am - 6 pm

Friday 8 am - 4:30 pm