Education Commons^™

Student Affairs Professionals As Tempered Radicals: Lessons On Action And Advocacy, Devin A. De Both

Masters Theses

Modern universities are intricate organizations with many stakeholders each with their own goals and objectives. In a time of resource scarcity, student affairs professionals are tasked with advocating on behalf of their students, staffs, departments, and priorities against more solvent operations. Effective managers and administrators must align their priorities with other actors on campus and in accordance with institutional values. This study asked how professionals engage in the advocacy process, including the strategies that they use. Utilizing the tempered radicals perspective, this qualitative study was conducted through four interviews with experienced senior level student affairs professionals.

Is The Customer Always Right? An Exploration Into The Expectations Of Student Affairs Professionals, Brittany Floyd

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to gain perspective of how student affairs professionals are managing the changing dynamic of the student. The researcher sought to explore how student affairs professionals cope with the expectation that the “customer is always right” while encouraging students’ development. It was found that student affairs professionals share a common goal to assist and serve students, but administration, parents, and students have clear expectations as to how they do so. It was found that the customer service mantra “the customer is always right” does exist on a college campus, and it comes with a cost. …

How Do I Do This? How Universities Support Students Experiencing Grief, Jackie Hirn

Masters Theses

Grief prompts college students to ask, “how do I do this?” in many ways. This phenomenological study examined the ways in which student affairs professionals supported grieving students from four universities across the United States. It was found that grieving college students faced many challenges and barriers, including academic, emotional, financial and legal, and cultural issues. Grief is an individualized process that manifests differently in each student. To ensure student success, it was found that resource referral was vital for students, and that connections between departments were imperative to make those referrals happen. This study notes that the COVID-19 pandemic …

Retaining Staff Members Of Color At A Midwestern Predominantly White Institution, Tiffany L. Steele

Masters Theses

There continues to be a gap between the growing multicultural student body and predominantly White faculty and staff members who work with students. One factor in increasing the likelihood of persistence in college for minoritized students is the presence of a mentor with a similar ethnic background. Nevertheless, as of 2004, the populations of faculty, staff and administrators are still disproportionately dominated by White Americans. This study investigated how a university or college can better retain staff members of color. The participants were current and past staff members of color who worked at one university within the Midwestern United States. …

The Impact Of Study Abroad On Multicultural Competency Among Student Affairs Graduate Students, Matthew N. Musser

Masters Theses

Research has demonstrated the importance of multicultural competency for student affairs practitioners and their ability to effectively serve students (Pope, Reynolds, & Mueller, 2004). However, there has been little research into the various programs, especially study abroad, designed to impact multicultural competency among student affairs practitioners. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact that a short-term study abroad experience had on student affairs graduate students‟ multicultural competency. The study involved quantitative survey research methods involving 90 former graduate students who participated in the experience between the years 1999-2010 and who were still active in the profession. Participants …

Three Justifications For Support Of Female Student Affairs Professionals, Anna Filipek Adams

Masters Theses

Female student affairs professionals have experienced much advancement in the field. Yet we still suffer gender discrimination in our career paths, salaries, and work experiences. Unfortunately, this issue is not seen as important by decision makers, due to the acceptance of slow change, the past reluctances to begin this discussion, and the arguments of critics. In order to reinvigorate our growth and advancement in the field, I argue that there is value in supporting female student affairs professionals.

I justify the value of supporting of female student affairs professionals from student affairs, human resources, and cultural studies perspectives. From a …

The Perceived Benefits Of Participation In Living And Learning Communities: The Student Perspective, Sally Adams

Masters Theses

Students' experiences outside the classroom are important to their overall growth and development. Living learning communities (LLC) play a big role in helping to support these areas of growth. Students residing in an LLC are aware of the benefits of the LLC experience and can articulate how their residential environment can help them develop. Non-LLC members find it difficult to define the LLC experience and are not receiving the same benefits. Institutions and residence life often struggle in evaluating and assessing these communities because of the lack of direction and outcomes not clearly being stated. If institutions work to clearly …

The Path Into Student Affairs: How Undergraduate Experiences Influence Students To Pursue A Career In Student Affairs, Bryce Jacob Reuer Gergely

Masters Theses

The career field of Student Affairs is one that most individuals know nothing about until coming to college when they have the chance to interact with professionals in the field. How exactly do individuals come to be professionals in student affairs? This study looks to answer that question through the examination of nine individuals in various stages of the process into Student Affairs, analyzing their experiences throughout their undergraduate career. Special focus is given to experiences during participants' undergraduate education, influences on their decision to pursue Student Affairs as a career, and how interactions with Student Affairs professionals played a …