Abstract
Student affairs professionals are encouraged by their professional organizations to recognize the responsibility they have to their institutions by “supporting its mission, goals and policies” (American College Personnel Association [ACPA], 2006, p. 6) and by avoiding conflicts of interest between the self and the college or university (national Association of Student Personnel Administrators [NASPA], 1990), others point out that most students affairs professionals are educated at secular universities and experience little preparation regarding the Catholic intellectual tradition (Estanek, 2001). The purpose of this study was to explore the following questions: Are there student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities who are able to bring together a student affairs philosophy with that of catholic colleges and universities? If these professionals do exist, what can we learn from their knowledge and approaches that might help other student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities to honor both philosophies? The results suggest that a great deal can be learned from seasoned professionals in Catholic student affairs, which may well assist new professionals in negotiating these two different philosophies.
Highlights
Selecting Catholic Higher Education Brad, Rob, Vicky, and Lora each went through career changes and in the process actively sought work in the Catholic setting
While controversies around sexual orientation, sexual behavior, role of women in the Church, and other issues were challenging for many of those we interviewed, they talked eloquently about how their work in the Catholic setting was richer
We needed to find professionals who had a reputation for supporting both student affairs philosophy and the Catholic mission of their institutions
Summary
The purpose of this study was to explore the following questions: Are there student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities who are able to bring together a student affairs philosophy with that of Catholic colleges and universities? If these professionals do exist, what can we learn from their knowledge and approaches that might help other student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities to honor both philosophies? The results suggest that a great deal can be learned from seasoned professionals in Catholic student affairs, which may well assist new professionals in negotiating these two different philosophies. The purpose of this study was to explore the following questions: Are there student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities who are able to bring together a student affairs philosophy with that of Catholic colleges and universities? If these professionals do exist, what can we learn from their knowledge and approaches that might help other student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities to honor both philosophies? The results suggest that a great deal can be learned from seasoned professionals in Catholic student affairs, which may well assist new professionals in negotiating these two different philosophies. The purpose of this study was to learn from student affairs professionals in Catholic higher education who have found ways to incorporate a strong Catholic, institutional identity and a solid student affairs approach in their work. Our objective was to construct a coherent narrative of student affairs professionals’ experiences at Catholic colleges and universities
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