Grant McCormack

Hey CFANS students!

I was born and raised in Northwest Indiana in a town called Schererville, but "home" is a few different places. I received my B.S. in Ecology, Evolution, Behavior from the University of Minnesota with a minor in Art, and I received my M.Ed in Student Development in Higher Education from the University of Maine. I’m excited to be back in the Twin Cities on Saint Paul Campus – my home away from home in undergrad! Previously, I worked in Residential Life at the University of Maine and Purdue University before returning to the U.

My background in the biological sciences, love for working with and in nature, and slight obsession with birds makes me very excited to work with CFANS! My hope is to both challenge and empower all students I work with to not only be successful in college, but personalize the experience for them to grow into the best versions of themselves possible. I love getting to know what makes each person unique, and my goal is to always provide the best resources, advising, and conversation to help each student develop into critical global leaders.

In my free time, I’m a complete geek. I play and stream video games on a regular basis while also finding time to travel and get outside every so often. I was formally trained in ballroom dance and have been working to self-teach myself freestyle hip-hop, so music is a huge part of my life. I love dogs, have a four-year-old mutt of my own, and have been repeatedly called a dog whisperer. I am also a highly avid watcher and follower of RuPaul’s Drag Race. My passion is helping you. Please feel free to reach out and ask tough questions about college, the University of Minnesota, society, and the world. I’ll more than happily help you navigate these questions to go out and make an impact. Go Gophers!

Advising Philosophy

Academic advising should be more about a relationship of trust than a formal meeting. No student should walk into my office feeling like a scheduled appointment, but rather a partner in navigating their college experience. Taking a student’s unique background, personality, and interests into consideration is integral in providing the best, most applicable advising to the student. In considering students holistically, I challenge them to develop the skills to independently determine their plan for college, empowering them to critically use the necessary tools to plan their college career.

I mentioned advising is a partnership. My role is to know the resources, programs, contacts, and information a student needs to personalize their experience at the U. The student’s role is to come in ready to learn how to manage their college experience, do their research before coming to advising meetings, and ask lots of tough questions! We are all constantly learning from each other at different stages of our lives, but we need to mutually work toward solving these tough situations and questions.

Professional Development Highlights & Focus Areas

Awards:

• Professional Staff Exemplary Intellectual Curiosity - Purdue University, 2018

Publication:

• McCormack, G. (2017). Measuring college student integration through social media. Journal of Student Affairs at New York University, 13, 17-34. Retrieved from http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/josa /Journal2017

Other interests/ focus areas:

• Social media's effect on gender performance and sexual orientation.