American College Personnel Association Research Articles

Learn to build an engaging mobile communication strategy

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Effective electronic communication with students has become more essential than ever, especially in this age of social distancing triggered by the COVID‐19 crisis. But today's generation of students tends to open emails less often, which can be frustrating when you just need them to fill out a form you've re‐sent multiple times, said Elizabeth Leslie, Account Manager for the GuidebookEDU team. The former student affairs practitioner spoke at the annual convention for the American College Personnel Association.

From the Editor: 60 Years of Scholarship

From the Editor60 Years of Scholarship Debora Liddell, Editor With this issue (November–December 2019), I am pleased to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of The Journal of College Student Development. Since its inception in 1959 as The Journal of College Student Personnel with Charles Lewis as its first Editor, the Journal has reflected the increasingly deep, broad, and complex scholarly work of researchers and practitioners who study and work with college students. The change to its current name in 1988 reflected a professional ethos of honoring the development of the whole person over personnel functions (American College Personnel Association [ACPA], 2019); likewise, the practice of student affairs work has enveloped a commitment to assisting students in reaching their full capacity and all of their complexity. THE EVOLUTION OF JCSD WITH THE FIELD Like many graduate programs, the one in which I have spent my own career (University of Iowa) has undergone shifts reflecting changes in the field. It was founded in 1960 as a counselingoriented program, led by counseling psychologist Albert Hood, JCSD's third Editor, and situated in the Department of Counselor Education. The Student Development in Postsecondary Education (SDP) distinguished itself from the Higher Education program, located in a different department, by its focus on theoretical advances and measurement concerning individual development. It flourished in this configuration until the SDP program eventually merged with the Higher Education program in 2010 to reflect a commitment to understanding students, their environments, and the institutions in which they study—thus, the Higher Education and Student Affairs program emerged. Again, as a profession, we have seen these kinds of shifts in foci reflected in the scholarship that is produced, the innovative work that is done, and the graduate curricula that are delivered. The Journal, once in a paper-only format, increasingly used available technologies both to manage manuscripts and their reviews, and to make available issues (past and current) to subscribers. Where we once allowed subscriber/members to opt out of paper subscriptions, now members opt in and pay an additional fee for paper subscriptions. Using available technologies allows for democratization of knowledge, but may conflict with more traditional metrics of a journal's value—the journal impact factor. The impact factor is a traditional proxy of a journal's reputation, as measured by the number of citations it has by other scholarly works. While measured in a variety of ways, impact factors "have become self-reinforcing measures of journal quality, the papers therein, and their authors. Researchers now consider IFs when choosing their publication outlets; journal editors formulate policies explicitly designed to improve their IFs; and publishers advertise their IFs on their websites" (Lozano, Larivière, & Gingras, 2012, p. 2140–2141). Given the time to publication and other limits to the publication process, are there alternative measures of impact that help us assess the influence of a journal or an individual career? Perhaps download frequency data from the publisher could tell tenure and [End Page 641] promotion committees something about how an article is used in teaching or practice. Surely viable alternatives to the impact factor exist and offer a more accurate picture about influence. In my past four years as Editor, I have had many opportunities to consider what the role of an association journal should be and what it should stand for. I have concluded, at least for the work we've advanced with The Journal of College Student Development, the following practices and commitments. First, our journal is a powerful venue where new knowledge is scrutinized and disseminated to improve practice and future scholarship. This is evident by the inclusion of JCSD in several national and international studies of higher education literature (Bray & Major, 2011; Harper, 2012; Harris & Patton, 2019). This is also evident by the way that we work with reviewers. Each article that passes an initial evaluation by an action editor is sent for review by at least two members of the Editorial Board, who are matched to the manuscript based on their content and methodological expertise. When necessary, we tap external reviewers to secure the expertise needed for a thorough review. Second, the Journal is a space where diversity in persons, perspectives, and epistemological...

Connecting Professional Competencies to Experiential Learning: An Intervention for Supervisors and Graduate Assistants

Connecting Professional Competencies to Experiential Learning:An Intervention for Supervisors and Graduate Assistants Jeannine Kranzow (bio) and Stacy A. Jacob (bio) The revised ACPA/NASPA Professional Competency Areas for Student Affairs Educators (PCASAE) reinforced the profession's commitment to educating students as whole persons while also detailing specific areas in which student affairs practitioners should be knowledgeable and competent (American College Personnel Association [ACPA/NASPA], 2015). Both an understanding and consideration of the professional competencies of the field and the ability to practice them are essential (Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education [CAS], 2015). It is crucial that students in student affairs preparation programs (SAPP) are able to connect the important concepts and theories that they are learning in the classroom with what they are learning in their internships, field studies, and graduate assistantships (GAs). Experiential learning opportunities are therefore a common feature of SAPP helping students develop skills and knowledge necessary to excel in their professional practice. Scholars have identified the need to intentionally consider the influence of experiential learning on professional preparation (Kuk, Cobb, & Forrest, 2007; Renn & Jessup Anger, 2008); however, there is an absence of scholarly research addressing ways to maximize the benefits of assistantships and other experiential learning in the field of student affairs (SA), particularly for students who are guided and supervised by someone not highly experienced with the PCASAE and/or professional preparation outside the field of higher education and SA. PURPOSE AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK We sought to extend the current scholarship related to the juncture of the academic curriculum and experiential learning opportunities in order to better guide and support future SA practitioners in their professional competency development. Further, we aimed to support campus partners whose professional training is in an area outside of SA or those less familiar with the PCASAE. The primary question guiding this study was: How does reflection on competency exposure increase student self-agency and awareness about the PCASAE in their GA or work roles? This study is rooted in the educational concepts of andragogy that emphasize critical reflection and learner self-direction in the adult learning process (Knowles, 1975; Mezirow, 1985). Many scholars "posit that [End Page 366] self-directed learning should have as its goal the development of the learner's capacity to be self-directed" (Merriam, 2001, p. 9). Through the utilization of pedagogy that encourages students to reflect critically on their role in their own future learning and professional development (PD), faculty can help students reach this goal (Dynan, Cate, & Rhee, 2008; Kranzow & Hyland, 2016). In the classroom, as faculty members in SAPP at different institutions, we historically utilized the PCASAE (ACPA/NASPA, 2010, 2015) and the Professional Competency Areas Rubrics (ACPA/NASPA, 2016) developed by the professional organizations as part of the standard curriculum in their Introduction to Student Affairs courses. While students learned of the documents and examined their level of competence in each area, they rarely used them to evaluate their own competence proactively and intentionally, to identify gaps, and to map out a PD plan. To address this deficiency, we created an intervention and tool (rubric) intended to help students think purposefully about how they could gain higher levels of competence and how they could communicate PD goals to a supervisor. Distinct from the ACPA/ NASPA rubrics (2016), this one helps students to measure their exposure level (opportunity to practice a skill) to the PCASAE in their experiential learning positions. From a pedagogical perspective, the focus of the intervention is not the rubric itself, but the purposeful examination and reflection on exposure opportunities to PCASAE. Even so, students and supervisors lacking experience in SA or student learning concepts may benefit from a similar rubric. By helping students to consider the professional competencies from this (degree of exposure) vantage point, we hope students will be poised to consider gaps in exposure to PCASAE and to make intentional plans to address them. METHOD We utilized qualitative methods to understand how first-term students in SAPPs make meaning around their professional growth and development. With IRB approval as an exempt study (on both campuses), the data came from the reflections/journals of students in master's-level introductory courses in...

Linking Theory to Practice: Case Studies for Working with College Students (4th ed.) ed. by Frances K. Stage

Reviewed by: Linking Theory to Practice: Case Studies for Working with College Students (4th ed.) ed. by Frances K. Stage Christa J. Porter Linking Theory to Practice: Case Studies for Working with College Students (4th ed.) Frances K. Stage & Steven M. Hubbard (Editors) New York, NY: Routledge, 2018, 243 pages, $47.95 (softcover) Socialization into student affairs, although different for each individual, should include theoretical knowledge and practical application of competencies of the profession (American College Personnel Association & National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, 2015). For most graduate students, professional preparation programs remain a primary path into the field and typically include some form of experiential learning. In 1993, Stage and Hubbard created the first edition of Linking Theory to Practice: Case Studies for Working with College Students to help graduate students and administrators apply theoretical concepts to their work with students. Now in the fourth edition of the text, the authors argue for broader exposure to the practical work of [End Page 383] student affairs administration. Similar to its previous editions, the authors have continued to use case studies written by those in the profession to advance experiential learning for graduate students and administrators alike. Chapters 1 through 3 provide a general overview (i.e., role of theory in a practical world; theory and practice in student affairs; and case analysis in action), while chapters 4 through 9 are case studies organized by topical areas (i.e., organization and administration, admissions, advising and counseling, academic issues, identity, and campus life). Chapter 1 begins with a hypothetical example of how a researcher and administrator would develop theory based on their understanding of students' experiences. Stage asserts the researcher would identify a more abstract perspective and ignore the details, while the administrator would pinpoint specific elements related to the student's individual self. This assumption is unnecessary; there is much to gain while conducting research with and alongside our students. Both administrators and researchers must maintain a student-centered focus and the author's example can cause division. Although previous researchers and theorists have focused on particular identities, more recent college student development scholarship is representative of holistic experiences and the systems within which they exist (Patton, Renn, Guido, & Quaye, 2016). Additionally, in chapter 1, Stage eloquently highlights the following four benefits of case study analysis: (a) it challenges conventional habits of administrative thought and action, (b) it promotes consideration of multiple perspectives, (c) it promotes consideration of unique campus environments, and (d) it manipulates problems with realistic legal, institutional, and political constraints (p. 5). Stage uses Argyris's (1976) conceptual understanding of professional behavior as theory to illustrate the challenge that graduate students and administrators have while trying to solve a case. Thus, Stage emphasizes: "Case study analysis is an ideal way to begin to challenge and modify theories in action or in the absence of theories of action, to cultivate positive ones" (p. 5). Chapter 1 sheds light on the personal foundations and experiences that graduate students and administrators carry with them into their professional positions. This information becomes even more valuable when discussing effective and sustainable socialization processes and supervision of graduate students in student affairs. Chapter 2 offers a substantial summary of four subsections of formalized theory—cognitive development, psychosocial, social identity development, and typology—and theories of college environment, outcomes, organization and administration. The summary is beneficial because it serves as an introduction for graduate students and administrators whose formal training into the profession did not include college student development theory; however, the proceeding conversation on critically analyzing theory is limited. Hubbard promises: "This chapter also provides a summary of critical analysis that will give the reader new insights on how to better apply theory and ask important questions for our profession and our use of theory" (p. 13). Hubbard offered two points. First, he stressed the need to reflect on issues of diversity and multiculturalism of today's student population and campus climate (Pope, Reynolds, & Mueller, 2004; Torres, Howard-Hamilton, & Cooper, 2003). Second, practitioners must strive to understand the influence of administrators and faculty on student success, development, and the overall college experience as an important theoretical concept (Bensimon, 2007). The depth of criticality of...

Factors Influencing Student Affairs Professionals’ Attainment of Professional Competencies

Limited research exists that examines factors influencing student affairs professionals’ attainment of the professional competencies that are expected of them. The study described in this article analyzed student affairs professionals’ survey responses to determine which demographics, pre-professional experiences, and educational experiences impact their attainment of the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) and National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) professional competencies. Findings revealed there are disparities between the attainment of professional competencies based on certain factors, especially gender, education level, and type of degree.

Midlevel Managers’ Supervisory Learning Journeys

The Association of College Personnel Administrators (ACPA) and the National Association for Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) note that is an important skill for student affairs professionals to learn. Supervision is key to the success of midlevel managers as they are vital to student affairs department success because they typically supervise new professionals (Mills, 2000). Midlevel managers' leadership can determine whether or not new professionals remain in the held (Harned & Murphy, 1998).Although most of the work of these midlevel manager professionals involves supervision, many midlevel managers lack basic supervisory skills (Winston & Fitch, 1993). The literature on supervisory practice in student affairs is limited (Cooper, Saunders, Howell, & Bates, 2001; Shupp & Arminio, 2012) and does not fully explore how people learn to become supervisors. Supervision is often seen as a negative reaction to poor performance when, in reality, good supervisory practices include supporting staff growth in order to build strong departments (Winston & Creamer, 1998).Effective is more important than ever before (Shupp & Arminio, 2012). Although mid-level managers need skills, many lack these skills (Winston & Fitch, 1993). The purpose of this study is to explore how midlevel managers learn supervisory skills.Literature ReviewIn this section, a brief review of the literature concerning the areas of in the context of student affairs master's programs, supervision, models of supervision, and pertinent literature related to midlevel managers and will be discussed. We will also explore learning strategies adopted by adult professionals to develop their skills.Supervision and Student Affairs and Higher Education Master's Preparation ProgramsBefore discussing the literature on supervision, it is important to review its relevance in student affairs master's preparation programs. Although is a basic aspect of a desired competency, Human and Organizational Resources (American College Personnel Association & National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, 2010, p.16), research shows that students desire more training in supervision. Results from a longitudinal study of 90 new professionals indicated they wanted additional training in practical skills such as supervision (Renn & Jessup-Anger, 2008, p. 329). Researchers also noted that graduates from student affairs preparation programs believed they were least prepared in the area of and believed that was an important skill for their positions (Cuyjet, Longwell-Grice, & Molina, 2009).When surveyed, midlevel and senior level student affairs professionals ranked 26th out of 32 competencies for new professionals but considered an important part of student professionals' job duties as it was ranked seventh out of 26 job duties (Burkard, Cole, Ott & Stohet, 2004). Faculty in master's student affairs preparation programs believe they should provide students knowledge rather than skills yet supervisory skills are needed on the job (Kuk, Cobb & Forrest, 2007). In short, there seems to be a difference of opinion on where students should learn supervision, but they need the skill.Supervision LiteratureSupervision has many dehnitions. For the purposes of this study, is dehned as the continuous process of providing guidance to an individual with the intended outcome of employee and institutional growth (Janosik & Creamer, 2003). We review literature concerning supervision, qualities affecting how people learn to become supervisors and midlevel managers and supervision.Synergistic supervision. In addition to examining the behaviors of good supervisors, much of the recent work on in student affairs has discussed Winston and Creamer's (1997) idea of synergistic supervision (p. …

APA Contributes to Guide for Suicide Response at Colleges

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Professional NewsFull AccessAPA Contributes to Guide for Suicide Response at CollegesNick ZagorskiNick ZagorskiSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:2 Feb 2015https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2015.2a5AbstractAPA teams with other organizations dedicated to student mental well-being to develop a guide to help colleges manage and move on from a suicide on campus.When a tragic event like a suicide hits a community, most questions instinctively reflect back—“Why did this happen?” “What signs did we miss?” and perhaps most agonizingly, “How could we have prevented this?”However, looking forward is a critical part of the process as well; a suicide needs to be properly acknowledged and managed to help a community move on. It’s a strategy known as “postvention,” and it’s particularly important in places like college campuses, where a student’s suicide can strongly reverberate among a population that is young, vulnerable, and undoubtedly dealing with many stressors of its own.“While none of us wants to experience a student suicide, it is an important reality of working on a campus,” said Leigh White, M.D., the chief of psychiatry services for Michigan State University Student Health.The use of suicide postvention plans is becoming more prominent across colleges and universities, though there has not been much research in this area, forcing college officials to develop plans ad hoc from their own experiences.“Colleges are well suited to manage a suicide in that they have an infrastructure to allow for a coordinated response in a way that a neighborhood community cannot,” said White, pointing to features such as on-campus security, counseling centers, and readily available ways to contact every student or his or her family. “What many of us in this field realized was missing was some overarching guidance as to what college campuses should do to make best use of these resources.” HEMHA’s suicide “postvention” guide is designed as both a campus planning tool and a useable guide for responding to a crisis situation.HEMHAWhite also serves as the APA representative to the Higher Education Mental Health Alliance (HEMHA), a consortium of groups dedicated to promoting mental well-being for students. The result of HEMHA’s efforts to address this issue is Postvention: A Guide for Response to Suicide on College Campuses, a resource to help colleges more effectively and sensitively respond to campus deaths. Published in November 2014, the postvention guide was designed to provide “actionable” guidance that colleges can adapt for their unique circumstances but is broad enough to be applicable to any campus environment from a tiny liberal arts college to a massive, multicampus state university.And while the guide was envisioned as a planning tool, it was kept concise to enable it to be useable in a crisis if a suicide occurs at a college before a postvention strategy has been fully developed.“Every suicide situation is unique, so this guide cannot provide a prescriptive set of best practices,” cautioned Victor Schwartz, M.D., the medical director for fellow HEMHA member the Jed Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works to promote mental health and prevent suicides in college students.“However, the guide can identify specific intervention areas to target and offer suggestions for implementation strategies,” he added.The key areas highlighted in the guide involve managing communications, providing proper clinical and support services, handling memorials and services, and getting back to the routine. Effective communication in particular can be complicated in a modern world where the facts—and rumors—regarding a suicide can spread rapidly via social media.Schwartz noted that HEMHA will make the guide a downloadable online resource and treat it as a living document that can be updated as schools implement the recommendations and provide feedback on effective approaches.Critically, noted White, a commitment to postvention does not diminish campus efforts to prevent suicides from occurring. “One of the biggest worries following a suicide is suicide contagion spreading through the campus and affecting other vulnerable people,” she told Psychiatric News. “And the HEMHA guide specifically addresses this risk and how to limit it. So if done properly, a postvention strategy is also a prevention strategy,” she said.In addition to APA and the Jed Foundation, other HEMHA members that helped develop this guide include the American College Counseling Association, American College Health Association, American College Personnel Association, American Psychological Association, Association for University and College Counseling Directors, and NASPA-Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. ■“Postvention: A Guide for Response to Suicide on College Campuses” can be accessed here. This site also contains HEMHA’s previous guide, “Balancing Safety and Support on Campus.” ISSUES NewArchived

Student Services: A Handbook for the Profession (review)

Reviewed by: Student Services: A Handbook for the Profession Maureen E. Wilson Student Services: A Handbook for the Profession. John H. Schuh, Susan R. Jones, Shaun R. Harper, et al.. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2011, 570 pages, $80.00 (hardcover) First published in 1980, Student Services: A Handbook for the Professionhas been a mainstay in graduate preparation programs. The focus of the book has remained on helping practitioners provide strong educational experiences for college students. As in the previous two editions edited by Susan Komives and Dudley Woodard, new editors John Schuh, Susan Jones, and Shaun Harper grappled with the title, noting that "student services" is outdated and rarely used to describe contemporary practice in student affairs. However, they retained the title "to be true to the roots" (p. xii) of the book. This book represents a generational shift. Nobody who contributed to the first edition authored a chapter in this one (or the last). Only George Kuh and Schuh contributed to the second and all subsequent editions. In all, 12 writers return from the fourth edition and half them brought in a co-author. Whereas only the final chapter was previously co-authored (by the editors), 18 of 31 are jointly written here and 35 people are writing for Student Servicesfor the first time. In contrast to the fourth edition in which all of the authors were widely-known and held a doctorate and most were faculty or senior administrators, the current writers include early-career scholars and practitioners, some without doctorates, and several without high-level administrative experience. The group is also more racially diverse. Regular users of the textbook will find a very familiar structure to the fourth edition. The book contains six parts. The first three follow the same order, sometimes with revised titles. Part 4 has been shuffled with one chapter splitting into two and others relocated to or from other sections. Parts 5 and 6 are largely the same with one chapter moving into each section and another moving out. Additionally, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) professional practice standards and the American College Personnel Association's (ACPA) ethics statements have been cut. As both are easily accessible online, that is a reasonable way to cut 20 pages of text to help manage the cost of the book. Indeed, this volume has 154 fewer pages. It is also available for download to electronic readers at a lower cost than the hardcover version. Part 1 provides a historical and contemporary context for student affairs practice. In the first chapter, John Thelin is joined by Marybeth Gasman to present a historical overview of American higher education. The chapter follows Thelin's framework from the last two editions, with updates as necessary. In chapter 2, Kimberly Griffin joins Sylvia Hurtado to focus on institutional variety (vs. diversity in the 4th ed.), including Carnegie classifications and institutions serving specific populations (e.g., HBCUs). This chapter has been shortened and topics such as for-profit institutions have been cut. The third chapter has been renamed "Campus Climate and Diversity," and has three authors new to the book, Mitchell Chang, Jeffrey Milem, and anthony lising antonio. While covering some similar territory, it is substantially different and has a greater focus on application of a multidimensional framework to improve campus climates for diversity. [End Page 169] Professional foundations and principles are the focus of part 2 and with just one author returning to the section, readers will find differences. Gwendolyn Dungy and Stephanie Gordon wrote the chapter on the development of student affairs, using a structure similar to the last edition. In chapter 5, Robert Reason and Ellen Broido discuss philosophies and values of the profession. They draw heavily the history and literature of student affairs to situate these concepts well for readers new to the field. Fried returns with her chapter on ethical standards and principles and includes good cases for discussion. Another new contributor, Gary Pavela, has written the chapter on legal issues and focuses on civility, troubled students, and risk management. Although he presents very important concepts, some may miss the inclusion of topics such as sources of the law, constitutional and civil rights...

Commemorating the 1937 Student Personnel Point of View

Commemorating the 1937 Student Personnel Point of View John M. Braxton, editor This year marks the 75th Anniversary of the publication of the Student Personnel Point of View. This noteworthy milestone in the history of the profession of student affairs merits attention in the pages of this journal. In this issue of the Journal, in an essay titled "The Student Personnel Point of View as a Catalyst for Dialogue: 75 Years and Beyond," Dennis C. Roberts reflects on the impact this important work has had on the scholarly and practice communities of the profession of student affairs. [End Page 1] Copyright © 2012 American College Personnel Association (ACPA)

Empowering Women on Campus

Empowering Women on Campus

Student Motivation and Program Participation

Student Motivation and Program Participation Robert C. Reardon (bio) and Sara Cummings Bertoch (bio) Student affairs offices in postsecondary institutions devote time and energy to developing programs for students on a wide array of topics. Inspection of college websites reveals numerous program options, ranging from outdoor recreational activities to leadership development, from current events discussions to health awareness seminars, and from college adjustment workshops to cultural diversity experiences. The views presented in Learning Reconsidered (American College Personnel Association & National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, 2004) conceptualize student services as learning events encompassing a broad spectrum of outcomes. But to what extent are students prepared to engage in such learning? If students lack clarity in terms of their goals, aspirations, and identities, they may not be able to benefit from these learning opportunities. One setting in which student affairs programs emphasize learning and development is in the area of career services. These professionals are devoted to assessing the need for programs, developing them, and then marketing them to students. In our experience, follow-up evaluations often reveal that some programs were successful with robust participation and positive outcomes, whereas others were not. Perhaps student readiness for learning is a factor in these variable results. We were interested in identifying students who might be ready to participate at a high level in a program related to career development, and we undertook a search to find a measure that would help us in this process. After reviewing the literature, we settled on the concept of motivation for our work. Given that motivation is one of the most widely studied topics in the behavioral sciences, we focused our instrument search for a measure of generalized student motivation that was brief, theory based, and documented. Moreover, given that our program was related to career development, we added that to the search criteria. Kohut's Theory of the Self Our search led us to the goal instability scale (GIS; Robbins & Patton, 1985), which is based on Kohut's (1977) psychology of the self. Kohut's theory includes two lines of development in the normal adult—the grandiose and the idealizing. These two lines, especially the idealizing line, can be useful in understanding how a person engages the career development process. Kohut's self-psychology added a humanistic component to traditional psychoanalysis, and focused more on personality than on psychological development (Kahn & Rachman, 2000). Kohut posited that, in the grandiose sector, the immature self represents one whose self-worth is obtained from external influences, such as admiration and approval from others. The mature self, on the other hand, is one able to internally regulate and energize self-esteem and ambition. In the idealizing sector, the immature self is again externally regulated and receives a sense of security and direction from powerful others. The mature self possesses an internal system of ideals and values (Robbins, 1989). [End Page 716] Kohut theorized that an underlying lack of self-cohesion and vulnerable self-esteem contribute to all disorders of the self. These two characteristics are a result of early childhood experiences and the parent's failure to provide the child with an appropriate model for normal grandiosity. Therefore, the child becomes "fixated" in a less mature stage of self-development, characterized by a lack of mature goals and a healthy expression of grandiosity. Such a person is characterized by an inability to empathize with others; a vulnerability to criticism, separation, and loss; and an inability to formulate realistic life plans, or the persistence to meet those plans (Robbins & Patton, 1985). Motivation as Goal Stability Kohut's psychology of the self addresses motivation by theorizing that the two lines of development in the normal adult—the idealizing and the grandiose—work together to sustain the structure of experience, which is the primary basis of motivation. Kohut believed that individuals who could not develop and maintain a healthy structure of experience were characterized by a sense of not being "real," "inner emptiness," "falling apart," and a lack of purpose, direction, energy, and focus (Pauchant & Dumas, 1991, p.54). The idealizing sector of development is thought to lead to a sense of self-cohesion, which is demonstrated by an internalized and coherent system...

Tips to Help Minorities Win the SSAO Position

Tips to Help Minorities Win the SSAO Position

Leading and Managing from the Middle

The editors of the Journal of College and Character welcome Larry Roper as contributing editor of the Ethical Issues on Campus section of JCC. In his continuing column, he examines ethical issues on campus and offers reflections on how such issues can be approached and resolved. Roper is Vice Provost for Student Affairs at Oregon State University, where he also teaches courses in the Community College Leadership and College Student Services Administration programs. He served as senior scholar with the American College Personnel Association and editor of the Journal of the National Association of Student Personal Administrators. He was previously the principal investigator and project director for a Kellogg Foundation grant for the Leadership for Institutional Change in Higher Education Initiati

Methods for Assessing Inner Development: Spirituality andBeyond

As practitioners and scholars of student affairs administration, we are committed to the development and growth of the whole student, a concept that has guided our profession since its inception (American Council on Education, 1937; American College Personnel Association & National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, 2004). Likewise, accompanying students on their journey of developing meaning and purpose has long been a foundational pillar of liberal education (Astin, 2004). We believe creating environments and conditions that enable students to focus on existential issues in their lives and discuss the Big Questions (Who am I? What can I believe in? Will my life make a difference?) (Dalton, Eberhardt, Bracken, & Echols, 2006) is one of the central purposes of college. As such, we must find means to measure and assess the inner workings of students’ lives: How do they make meaning? How do they define themselves? What is the state of their psychological well-being? What role does spirituality or religion play in their lives? How do they relate to others? However, the instruments and methods used–and the concepts and language they engender–will affect how students react and respond to assessment efforts. In the past 10-15 years, spirituality has been the term used to signify this aspect of student development, garnering much attention by postsecondary educators and administrators alike; yet the use of the term spirituality may not be appropriate for all students.

Student Affairs Professionals at Catholic Colleges and Universities: Honoring Two Philosophies

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.

Student Learning Community of Practice: Making Meaning of the Student Learning Imperative and Principles of Good Practice in Student Affairs

This ethnomethodological case study analysis explored and described how The Student Learning Imperative (American College Personnel Association, 1994), Principles of Good Practice for Student Affairs (American College Personnel Association & National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, 1996), and Good Practice in Student Affairs (Blimling & Whitt, 1999) are understood and utilized as guides to design and implement practice in a student affairs division. The Senior Student Affairs Officer (SSAO) provided leadership and direction to shape and cultivate a student learning approach to practice. Staff members developed an organizational ethos that is aligned with several of the guiding principles. Patterns and processes of congruence and incongruence that emerged from the ethos were compared with the principles espoused by the guiding documents. Incongruence demonstrated that three communities of practices were at work in this division of student affairs that includes a learning, services, or consumer mission. A focus on learning was not the primary mission for each functional area. Most functional areas with either services or consumerism as their primary mission did develop a secondary learning mission.

Where is the Scholarship in Student Affairs?

Four years ago the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) published a special issue of the Journal of College Student Development (JCSD) entitled "Scholarship in Student Affairs Reconsidered" (2001). A year later, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) also compiled an issue of the NASPA Journal on "The Scholarship of Student Affairs" (2002). In these two volumes, 16 articles written by 17 notable scholars and practitioners in the field were presented for our careful consideration. Each association held a session or two at their annual conferences those years, and perhaps 100 colleagues from around the country discussed the ideas presented in these volumes. The vast majority of us, however, skimmed an article or two and went on with the immediate pressing demands of our daily lives. Three years later, the NASPA Journal has no backlog of articles to print. Our online process has enabled us to go from submission to publication in 4 to 6 months. We also have reduced our publication rate from the upper 40 percentile to the mid-20s. We are now waiting for quality manuscripts to arrive. The JCSD also is actively seeking new manuscripts. What has been missing in these past few years is a national discussion of the ideas presented in the two important volumes on scholarship that our associations published.This essay will provide a case for the imperative facing us: What is scholarship in student affairs? How does it inform our practice? How does practice lead to new theory and research? The NASPA Journal editorial board will elaborate on these questions in the coming year, with the intention of bringing together in 2006 a group of scholars and practitioners for a summit on scholarship in student affairs. The board will advance a national conversation among all the related associations (e.g., ACPA, AAHE, CAS, ASHE, ACUHO) on this important topic. Over the next year, we will initiate discussions with the leaders of these and many other associations with the goal of coming together in 2006 at our national conference in Washington DC. We will also present a few essays such as this one over the next year to help provide the framework for this future conversation.On the theory of "If you build it, they will come," we will provide thoughtful consideration of questions regarding scholarship in our field with the hope of creating interest and action. The "action" may have several outcomes: (a) raised awareness and knowledge by our members and colleagues about student affairs scholarship; (b) production of new knowledge that enhances our field and higher education in general; (c) deepening connections with related fields of academic study such as anthropology, sociology, and psychology; and (d) practice based on theory and research. We look forward to engaging you in this effort.

Where is the Scholarship in Student Affairs?

Four years ago the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) published a special issue of the Journal of College Student Development (JCSD) entitled "Scholarship in Student Affairs Reconsidered" (2001). A year later, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) also compiled an issue of the NASPA Journal on "The Scholarship of Student Affairs" (2002). In these two volumes, 16 articles written by 17 notable scholars and practitioners in the field were presented for our careful consideration. Each association held a session or two at their annual conferences those years, and perhaps 100 colleagues from around the country discussed the ideas presented in these volumes. The vast majority of us, however, skimmed an article or two and went on with the immediate pressing demands of our daily lives. Three years later, the NASPA Journal has no backlog of articles to print. Our online process has enabled us to go from submission to publication in 4 to 6 months. We also have reduced our publication rate from the upper 40 percentile to the mid-20s. We are now waiting for quality manuscripts to arrive. The JCSD also is actively seeking new manuscripts. What has been missing in these past few years is a national discussion of the ideas presented in the two important volumes on scholarship that our associations published.This essay will provide a case for the imperative facing us: What is scholarship in student affairs? How does it inform our practice? How does practice lead to new theory and research? The NASPA Journal editorial board will elaborate on these questions in the coming year, with the intention of bringing together in 2006 a group of scholars and practitioners for a summit on scholarship in student affairs. The board will advance a national conversation among all the related associations (e.g., ACPA, AAHE, CAS, ASHE, ACUHO) on this important topic. Over the next year, we will initiate discussions with the leaders of these and many other associations with the goal of coming together in 2006 at our national conference in Washington DC. We will also present a few essays such as this one over the next year to help provide the framework for this future conversation.On the theory of "If you build it, they will come," we will provide thoughtful consideration of questions regarding scholarship in our field with the hope of creating interest and action. The "action" may have several outcomes: (a) raised awareness and knowledge by our members and colleagues about student affairs scholarship; (b) production of new knowledge that enhances our field and higher education in general; (c) deepening connections with related fields of academic study such as anthropology, sociology, and psychology; and (d) practice based on theory and research. We look forward to engaging you in this effort.

The American College Personnel Association (ACPA)

The American College Personnel Association (ACPA)

The American College Personnel Association (ACPA)

The American College Personnel Association (ACPA)