What is Starfish?

Starfish is computer software that makes it easier for students to make appointments with support services and faculty on campus, and makes it easier for faculty, tutors and advisors to coordinate the services they provide to students.

How can Starfish help faculty at CSU?

Is everyone at CSU participating?

Not quite everyone – at least not yet.

During Fall 2012 we gradually phased in most of the undergraduate population at CSU, along with their staff advisors. We also began working with some faculty members (primarily those who teach freshmen) and a variety of support staff. During Spring 2013 we will be bringing on board faculty members who teach undergraduates at all levels, and after that we will gradually phase in others in the campus population.

What does a student see when entering Starfish at CSU?

For faculty members who just can't wait to get started

Quickstart Guide for Faculty

Where do I find Starfish?

Log in to CSU's CampusNet, choose the "Student", "Advisor", or "Instructor" tab, and look in the toolbar at the top for a blue star next to the word "Advising". That's a direct link to CSU's Starfish. It looks like this:

Getting Into Starfish at CSU

What do I do once I get there?

• Set up your individual profile (including your email & appointment preferences)
• Put your office hours on the Starfish calendar (see the video linked below on "adding office hours")
• Browse the information available under your "students" tab
• Look around. See the "Starfish instructor/advisor getting started guide"
• Be aware that more and more people –students, staff, and instructors – will join you on Starfish as we go through the academic year

Setting up a faculty or advisor identity in Starfish at CSU

The institutional profile, email preferences, and appointment preferences in Starfish have recently been moved to a pull-down menu at the upper right of your Starfish screen, next to your photo. Please make that mental adjustment as you view this video and the associated handout.

I'm an Instructor, an Advisor, or a Tutor. What do I need to do to set up my Starfish pages?

What can I expect from Starfish at CSU during 2012-2013?

• An important function of Starfish is improving communication between instructors and advisors. Starfish has replaced our older "early alert" system with a more flexible system that we can modify over time – one that notifies both students and advisors when an instructor spots a potential problem. If you "raise a flag" to indicate that a student has a problem, the student will be notified directly via email and the student's advisor will also be notified. The same thing is true if you commend a student through Starfish, which is known as a "kudo".

I'm an instructor. How do I view information about my students in Starfish?

• If you're a faculty member, you can create a flag or kudo for any student at any time. It's done through the "my students" sub-tab under the instructors' student screen:

• If you're a faculty member, you may receive a request in the fourth and eighth week of the semester to complete a "flag survey" indicating whether any students in a particular class are doing particularly well or have specific problems. Completing such a survey will cause "flags" (for problems) or "kudos" (for good things) to be emailed both to the student in question and his or her advisor. See the video (below) on submitting a flag survey for more detail.
• Some instructors (especially ASC 101, and freshman and developmental Math and English) are being asked to report class attendance through Starfish. Training is being provided for these instructors; it's done through the "attendance" sub-tab under instructors' "students" screen:


I'm an instructor. How do I record attendance in Starfish? (only applicable to participating faculty!)

How to report attendance in Starfish

Where can I get help with Starfish if I have questions?

• Phone: William Beasley: 216.687.5583 / Carolyn Gilbert: 216.875.9699
• Email: starfishsupport@csuohio.edu

Useful links for faculty:

• Getting help in Starfish
• Update your Starfish Profile
• Add Office Hours
• The Student Folder: Preparing for a Productive Student Meeting
• Submitting a Flag Survey
• Starfish Faculty/Staff help pages
• Starfish Advisor/Instructor Support Guide
• I'm an advisor or an instructor. How do I record and view notes about a specific student?
• I'm an advisor or an instructor. How do I make an appointment with a specific student?

Contents of the Starfish Faculty/Staff help pages (this is a wiki run by Starfish Retention Solutions, the company behind the software):

Other things that faculty might find useful:

If you are a faculty member working closely with CSU's Starfish project, you might consider putting a statement on your syllabus similar to the following: This course is part of a student success project between CSU and Starfish Retention Solutions. Throughout the semester you may receive emails from Starfish regarding your course grades or academic performance. Please pay attention to these emails and consider taking the recommended actions. They are sent to help you be successful!

In addition, your instructor may request that you schedule an appointment via Starfish with a tutor or advisor, or that you contact a specific student support service on campus. You might also be contacted directly by one of these services.

To get to Starfish, log into CampusNet and look in the toolbar at the top for a blue star next to the word "Advising". If you have any questions about this process, please contact your instructor.

If you are a faculty member who would like to encourage your students to make appointments with you during your office hours by using Starfish, be sure to put your office hours into Starfish (see the "Add Office Hours" video linked above) and consider putting a notice on your syllabus and/or in your email signature line to this effect:

I encourage you to speak with me about any issues related to this course. My office hours are posted in CSU's Starfish system at https://sso.csuohio.edu/MACAuth/starfishprod.jsp (log in with your CampusNet ID and password) , and you can visit this system 24/7 to check on my times of availability and make an appointment.