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Starfish for Faculty

Faculty play at integral role in a student's journey and are encouraged to be active members of their Success Networks. A Success Network is a collection of faculty, academic advisors, and other program staff connected to the student. Starfish streamlines communication between faculty, students, and student services teams, making it easier to collaboratively support our students' success. 
 

Faculty can use Starfish to:

  • View student Success Networks.
  • Set up office hours so students can schedule or drop in.
  • Record attendance (as needed).
  • View their current class rosters.
  • Share essential information about student progress with students and members of their Success Networks.
  • Encourage students to check in with you or a member of their success network using a digital alert.
  • Refer students to student services areas such as Academic Advising, Financial Aid, or Tutoring using a digital referral.

 

Access to Starfish

Faculty teaching in the current term have automatic access to the system and are not required to complete training before gaining access. If a faculty member has another role at the college and needs a different level of access in the system, training must be completed. See Starfish for Advisors and Other Staff for more information. 

 

Starfish Resources for Faculty

For more information and resources about using Starfish, please reference the Seattle Colleges Starfish Resources for Staff and Faculty resource course in Canvas. The resource course includes 80+ pages of how-to guides and videos. There's a module specifically for faculty. 

Check out these modules:

  • Starfish Basics
  • Getting Started: Profiles and Office Hours
  • Making and Managing Appointments
  • Communicating with Students using Starfish
  • Faculty Specific Guides: Ways Faculty can use Starfish
  • Tutoring Centers: Resources for Tutoring Coordinators and Tutors
  • Educational Planning with Degree Planner
  • Tracking Items, Success Plans, and Progress Surveys
  • Appointment Kiosks

Not sure where to start? Here's an easy Getting Started with Starfish: Reference Guide for Faculty (PDF).

There are also links to resources on the staff home page in Starfish.

 

Starfish and Privacy

Starfish is FERPA compliant and uses a robust and flexible combination of roles, relationships, and privileges to govern access to system tools, enter notes, and view student information. Seattle Colleges maintains control over the student data and makes all decisions about who can access information. We have worked with a cross-functional team of student services staff, IT, and others to carefully configure access.

Generally speaking:

  • Instructors will see only the records of students currently in their classes.
  • Students cannot see any information about other students.
  • For instructional and student services staff, we have balanced privacy with the understanding that staff need basic access to student information to provide a high level of service.

For more information and better understanding of working with student information, please enroll in FERPA Training for Seattle Colleges in Canvas and/or complete the FERPA: Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act in Vector (accessed through MySeattleColleges login).