The Professional Development of a Graduate Student

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." - Thomas A. Edison

     One of my first meetings with my supervisor and team involved a discussion on expectations, and one of those expectations of my supervisor was that we seek out professional development opportunities beyond attendance at conferences.  It being my second week on the job, and thus second week even working this school, I had no clue how I would meet that expectation and only slightly more of a clue what professional development even was.  The way I saw it, every day of training was professional development for me being new to the field.

     But once we left RA training and began to settle into a routine, I started to realize just what my supervisor expected.  Yes, I am already registered for a professional conference, but every single day new opportunities to develop professionally arise, some experiential and others more passive.  The experiential ones have been my favorite - I enjoy presenting, advising, teaching, and creating and have capitalized on every such opportunity that has come along.  They offer me to hone these skills and put what I learn and read about into practice.  The more passive opportunities, such as attending presentations and conferences, are exciting as well, because I not only learn from my colleagues but also have the chance to take what I learn back to my practice and experiences, employing that newfound knowledge.

     As great as these opportunities are, I have also started to be very conscious of the time commitment they require.  I am still a graduate student and hall director, which amount to a full-time job alone, and it is not as though professional development activities are an excuse for not completing duties for those commitments - those opportunities are extracurricular.  So now I am very careful to consider three questions: (1) How much time will this take?, (2) When will this occur?, and (3) Will I develop professionally in a way I am not already?  If the time is not taking me away for too long or during an important time of the year (i.e., Closing), and it will assist my development along a competency in which I do not have much experience, I consider taking it on.  The way I see it, I might as well make the most of what is available to me, because professional development will only help me in the end! 

Quote Citation: Edison, T. A. (n.d.). The Quotations Page. Retrieved from: http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/793.html 

Some Thoughts on Advising

"Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm." - Winston Churchill

     Well, a lot has happened since I last posted.  There was conflict, there were - and still are - readings, and there was a ton of fun (what?! =)).  But there was also group advising.  In my position I have the responsibility of advising a hall council - a group of students who advocate for the residents of the hall and put on programs using a portion of the student fees.  It is essentially a full student organization with a full executive board and everyone contributing.  More importantly, they answer to only themselves, as I can only require actions of them when policy (or the law) forces me to.  Other than that, I am simply a voice on the sidelines that they can choose to listen to when they want.

     I have been developing a lot in what I say with that voice.  Last year I advised an excellent Hall Council as a Head Resident Assistant, but it was a very different experience, because they were all upperclassmen, programmed for an Apartment Complex, and were fairly self-sufficient in generating ideas.  This year's Council consists of mostly freshmen living in a more traditional residence hall, and, even though the ideas are always flowing, the follow-through and communication skills are not always.  This has forced me to step-in and guide conversation much more than ever, but the need to do this conflicts with my own views of what an advisor should or should not do.

     An important aspect I see in advising is allowing mistakes to occur.  Plenty of times last year and already a few times this year, I have seen parts of programs and initiatives that I could and wanted to change, but I had to leave them be.  They were simply not mine to modify.  Instead, they were the residents' programs.  Because I have let them be, they have been able to see the mistakes occur themselves, then reflect upon those mistakes and (ideally) learn from them.  This is part of the leadership development that we facilitate in student affairs - growth through mistakes and seeing what does not work when leading an organization.

     This is not to to say that I am perfect, at all.  I have made, and continue to make, plenty of mistakes when planning and executing programs.  I have advised groups and been surprised when their programs do not go well.  The aforementioned growth occurs at every level - I just have the privilege to advise groups because I have experienced more - this does not necessarily make me better.  It makes my voice louder in the room, which is why I have to restrain it at many point.  Because as much as I have steered students away from mistakes in the past, they have also proven me wrong and experienced great success when I saw flaws.  Their potential to create wonderful programs is so vast that my voice on the sidelines could just get in the way.  And so I will continue to only steer when asked.

Quote Citation: Churchill, W. (n.d.). Goodreads. Retrieved from: http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2834066.Winston_Churchill 

Current Issues - Program Rankings by Public News Mentions

"To devise the rankings, researchers ran searches of the Google News archive to find out how often more than 12,700 faculty members had appeared in 6,000 news sources from 2006 to 2011. The citations for the professors in each department were tallied, averaged on a per-faculty member basis, and then ranked relative to the federal funds their programs had received." - Dan Berrett

Article Link: http://chronicle.com/article/The-New-Rankings-Frontier-/142197/ 

     It is no secret that the issue of how to rank colleges, universities, departments, and programs is currently at the forefront of news on Higher Education.  President Obama's new plan for higher education ranking and funding, which I commented on recently, re-sparked the debate on what constitutes quality and where does one find the value of a college degree.  It is a difficult, if not impossible, question to answer.  Being very new to the field, I am still among those who say it is a too subjective question to answer - quality and value of education depend on the student in my opinion.  If you want to view this issue in academic capitalist terms, the consumer drives the value, not the researcher or anyone else.

     Unless you rank programs using the system devised by the Faculty Media Impact Project, described by Berrett in the article hyperlinked above.  The Project ranks institutions based on the number of citations in the news per faculty member in departments of Anthropology, Economics, Sociology, Psychology, and Political Science/Government. Federal funding was also considered in the rankings.  The lead on the project, Dr. Rob Borofsky, recognizes that this approach has its flaws but simultaneously feels that its merits lie in the measurement of public service.  However, Borofsky also notes that "Much research is valuable and of high quality...while not being of interest to the public" (par. 15). 

     This was the exact sentiment I shared when reading Berrett's article.  For the sake of academic freedom, scholars should be able to research where they feel holes exist in the literature.  If a scholar has left a door open for you, and you want to walk through that door and have the ability to, then no one should be able to tell you "No" - besides your tenure board, federal funding agencies, the mass media, and others.  Cynicism aside, there are multitudes of research out there that no one outside of the scholars in a specific field have read, and yet those studies were incredible discoveries in their own right and led to even more such discoveries.  Furthermore, the frameworks and theories employed by authors of studies that grasp public interest were discovered or invented by previous scholars, and I am sure that most of those scholars were not cited in the news for those articles.  

     This is not to say that Borofsky's project has no merit.  Publicly funded institutions do have some implicit responsibility to their investors. "'People dealing with social sciences should be dealing with social concerns'" (par. 8) is not an unwarranted statement.  It all depends on what you see as the purpose of higher education.  Bowen (1977) separates the goals into those for individual students and those for society, noting some academic freedom in pursuing the direct enjoyments of learning for the individual student, while noting that promotion of social welfare was important in the goals for society.  Guttman (1987) more closely approaches the issue at hand by separating the purposes into academic and societal purposes while nesting both under democratic purposes. I believe that how well an institution meets a healthy balance of these varying goals should contribute to a metric of its quality - operationalizing that metric will be the next challenge.

Citations:

Berrett, D. (2013). The new rankings frontier: Mentions in the media. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/article/The-New-Rankings-Frontier-/142197/ 

Bowen, H. R. (1977). Investing in learning: The individual and social value of American higher education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Gutmann, A. (1987). Democratic education. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Picture source: http://seattletimes.com/html/opinion/2009679209_guest18kim.html 

Being On Call

"Nothing is so aggravating than calmness." - Oscar Wilde 

     Apologies for the pause in posts last week, but I had two important and time-intensive items on my plate - a leadership retreat for Hall Council two weekends ago and being the Hall Director On-Call from Tuesday to Saturday. Both were amazing experiences that I would do again in a heartbeat (well, I could use a short break from being on call), but the time they took away from work and sleep meant that I needed to read for class in the time I would have taken to write here. But no worries, I'm back!!

     I will eventually write more about helping with the Leadership Camp, but today I wanted to reflect a little on my first experience of being on call. The way our system is set-up here, there is one Hall Director on call for all of the residence halls at all times. We exchange the phone on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and each person does this duty once or twice per semester. The main purpose for having a Hall Director on call is to maintain protocol and procedure - this person enacts certain reporting chains, grants permission to call for emergency maintenance and custodial services, and acts as a consult when Resident and Desk Assistants are unsure of what actions to take. They also respond in person for more serious incidents to take control of these situations, making sure to obtain as much information as possible firsthand and ensure that the well-being of the community is kept in mind.

     All of the above became so much clearer to me after my first time being on call. Before that, I was not only terrified of not knowing what to do, making the wrong decision, etc., but also slightly uncertain of my purpose in everything. There are plenty of people above me in these reporting chains, and the protocols are rather comprehensive and clear. So why was I important, and why do those RAs and DAs need me?

     What I realized rather quickly was that a lot happens on a large campus that requires consultation. This is not to say that protocols and procedures are not clear enough - rather, students tend to find a way to sit in the few gray areas and make decisions difficult for RAs. This is where I come in. Not to save the day or be heroic, just to make the decisions and the calls that the RAs and DAs are unsure of. I get to be that reassuring voice saying, "Good job, you're making the right call" or joke with them about just how far out there an incident is. I hope they appreciate my sarcasm, because that's what I have to go on at 2 in the morning when something outright awkward is occurring. More importantly, though, is the calming voice I have to use when things really do blow-up and the person calling me is truly stressed. I find it extra-important in those situations that I am on my game, because those people are relying on me to be the voice of calm and reason. It is a great experience to be able to do them that kindness.

Quote Citation: Wilde, Oscar. (n.d.). Thinkexist.com. Retrieved from: http://thinkexist.com/quotation/nothing_is_so_aggravating_than_calmness/217597.html

Photo By Me

Current Issue: Social Media

"University-affiliated accounts—for instance, a department's Web site or library's Facebook page­­—are a different animal. They can broadcast a university's strengths, be used in teaching and research, attract prospective students and faculty and staff members, and cultivate relationships with alumni. But encountering a negative comment thread, or getting no response at all to questions or input, could turn off a student or donor. In the most dismal scenarios, online harassment or unreported threats could lead to legal complaints or campus violence." - Jennifer Howard

Article: http://chronicle.com/article/Worried-About-Message/141773/

     While this article does not provide much "new" or "exciting" information, the fact that it exists in the Chronicle should cause one to take pause and reflect on "What does my institution have out there?" and "How does my institution represent itself online?" As a student worker in my old institution's scholarship office, I was partially responsible for maintaining a website, Facebook page, and Twitter account. That was for one office. As a Hall Director, I have partial oversight over a Facebook page, a Twitter account, and an Instagram (I do not know how to use the latter). Again, that is only one out of over twenty residence halls. Knowing the amount of time and energy that should go into these initiatives versus the amount of time that I have put into each of them due to prioritization, I can relate to the desire for institutions to keep better tabs on their social media output.

     A big change that I have noticed at various institutions is one towards standardization and consistency. It simply makes sense. Inconsistency across social media accounts indicates a lack of cohesiveness at best and a breaking of ranks at worst. How many times have you clicked through a schools website and see myriad page backgrounds, fonts, colors, and even institutional names? If you are affiliated with that institution, it may not seem that large of an issue, but in that case you should consider the perspective of a prospective student. What does that inconsistency say to them?

     And then there comes the issue of student-run accounts. Not that students cannot run an account - as I have indicated, most students could run an Instagram account worlds better than I ever will. I am thinking of the administration's perspective on the exponential growth of social media accounts that occurs relative to the number of student groups there are, and the inability to control them. As Howard writes, institutions are moving away from the "We could never think to control this" perspective, and I am very interested to see what new policies and procedures come out of this movement.

Citation: Howard, J. (2013). Worried about message, colleges scrutinize social media. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/article/Worried-About-Message/141773/

Picture by: Me :)

The Importance of Faculty Connections

"The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles but to irrigate desserts." -  C.S. Lewis

     I had a wonderful conversation today with one of our AVPs of Student Affairs on our Faculty Fellows program in Residence Life here. It was a rather informal conversation, so I had prepared very little to be honest; however, I found myself speaking rather passionately on the program's importance to our students, citing my own former connections with faculty in my undergraduate experience.

     What I shared with our AVP were thoughts on the relationship between institution size and faculty connections. This is nothing ground-breaking or even that difficult to deduce - a smaller student body tends to afford undergraduate students with more opportunities to interact with faculty, while a larger one tends to decrease such opportunities. In my undergraduate experience, I was essentially able to ask any professor any question over e-mail and expect a response within 24 hours. Beyond that, they were very open to appointments and held regular office hours, and classes were usually small enough to allow for multiple questions each block. Yes, I was that student who raises hir hand at least once per session (and still am - apologies to my cohort...).

     When I overhear or speak to students about their experiences here - at an institution much larger than that of my undergraduate experience - I obtain a rather different story. Many students here do not have the same personal connection with professors, and those professors do not seem as available to them. Most know how to reach out to a TA much better than how to reach out to the professor, and even I would be very hesitant to raise my hand in a class of 800 students. Faculty do hold office hours, but I have not heard about students utilizing them as much, and it seems that they occur only two hours per week for the most part.

     These are simply personal observations - I did not collect any data and my sample to draw from is very limited and not random. However, I think these observations still highlight the important academic resource that all students living in the halls here have - the Faculty Fellow. When my hall's Fellow came for a program the other day, the program turned into a Q&A session, with the participants asking many important questions. These ranged from "How do I use a syllabus" to "How do I choose a major" to "What should I do to get into [insert program here]." When I heard these questions, I was surprised - why did these students not have these answers already. For some, the answer was probably that they had not thought of them yet. I am sure that others, though, had not had the chance or felt comfortable asking yet. That program gave them that chance, and the connection our hall has with that faculty member enabled that program.

Quote Citation: Lewis, C. S. (1943). The abolition of man. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Photo By: Me - Boulders Beach, South Africa :)

Article Reflection: "Developing a Leadership Identity, A Grounded Theory"

Abstract:  This grounded theory study on developing a leadership identity revealed a 6-stage developmental process. The thirteen diverse students in this study described their leadership identity as moving from a leader-centric view to one that embraced leadership as a collaborative, relational process. Developing a leadership identity was connected to the categories of developmental influences, developing self, group influences, students' changing view of self with others, and students' broadening view of leadership. A conceptual model illustrating the grounded theory of developing a leadership identity is presented. (Komives et al., 2005)

     This week I finally read an article on Leadership Development, which I think is slowly becoming a passion area of mine. Despite having been somewhat a leader at my previous institution through many clubs and organizations, I have never read any theory on how it happened. What stages did I go through to developing my own idea of who I am and what I do as a leader? How did I move from one stage to another - what were the influences? This article, "Developing a Leadership Identity: A Grounded Theory" by Komives et al. (2005) approaches these questions using grounded theory, a qualitative analytical approach that I believe is a great approach to finding motivations and influences in people.

     The article citation can be found below - you can find it on any database through which you can access the Journal of College Student Development. I will just be addressing what I found interesting in the article and how I will bring this into my practice.

     I really enjoy the focus on group and relational leadership this article puts forward - understanding, of course, that it was really the participants' inner theory driving that, and the authors simply extracted it through the interviews. The growth of the leader through interaction with the group is a concept that seems simple, especially given the unconscious nature of that growth at times, but the authors are able to pull it apart and show just how intricate and complicated and recursive that growth is. It builds itself just as the authors build the grounded theory, an analogy so appropriate that Komives et al. (2005) do not even need to state it.

     One aspect of this study I wish was made more explicit is the amount of time the authors felt was spent growing from one step to another. This may seem trivial, but as I was reading I found myself wondering at what point in my life I was at each step. When reflecting on Stage 3 - "Leadership Identified" and Stage 4 - "Leadership Differentiated" I felt as though I had spent years  in Stage 3 before moving into Stage 4 during my late high school years. However, I am now in Stage 6 less than six years later - and yes, part of being in Stage 6 is having the confidence to say that I am. :)

     I am certain that I am going to bring this theory into my role as a supervisor of student staff and an advisor of a Hall Council. Having these stages in my toolkit will potentially assist me in identifying developmental blocks of the student leaders with whom I interact. I see that Stage 3 to Stage 4 transition being a potentially difficult one for students who do not see themselves as leaders. To get past that, I think they need more from Komives et al.'s category of "Changing View of Self with Others" through more group interaction and "Meaningful Involvement" (2005). Furthermore, Stage 5 could result in leaving a group when a leader does not feel fulfilled - ze is not finding hir passion or values in the work of the group and thus leaves to find a group in which those values are realized. Without that passion being realized, ze will be unable to develop new leaders within the group, an element of leadership I see as essential to the sustenance of an organization.

Article Citation: Komives, S. R., Owen, J. E., Longerbeam, S. D., Mainella, F. C., Osteen, L. (2005). Developing a leadership identity: A grounded theory. Journal of College Student Development, 56(6), 593-611.

Photo By: Me :) 

Current Issue: Recruitment & Retention Practices

"Strategies that succeed at one college might not work for a competitor. There's no guarantee they'll even work at the same college for long." - Eric Hoover & Beckie Supiano

     An article in the Chronicle the other day, entitled "In Admissions, Old Playbook Is Being Revised," caught my eye. Not because it was a surprise - most professionals in and scholars of Higher Education are aware of how enrollments have gone "bonkers" these past few years. They're up, they're down, they're more diverse, they're orange, but whatever they are, they are not what were expected. I was interested to read this article and see who was recommending what to make expectations come closer to reality.

     The chart about two-thirds of the way through the article - Pros and Cons of Key Enrollment Strategies - gives away the rest of the text. No one can definitively recommend anything. Part of this is that the problem transcends most, if not all, strata of institutions; large state schools, small private schools, for profits, and everything in between and beyond all need better enrollments in some cases. What works for one will not necessarily work for the other, if at all. Moreover, as the title alludes, what used to entice students does not look as appetizing anymore. 

     My guess is that this latter element of the issue stems from a combination of growing student debt and a change in character of the applicant pool. (Yes, this is meta-reflection, as I am a millennial). Students, as evidenced by the comments on St. Mary's survey, want and almost expect that very personal, connected admissions process. They want to be able to text admissions officers, post questions on a Facebook page, and see what is new with the process on Twitter. Not providing that could mean providing another school the opportunity to make that more personal connection.

     An additional aspect of this article that spoke to me was the emphasis on retention. As the authors indicate, many admissions offices forget that the number of students still enrolled in their second or third semester matters much more than the number of students enrolled on day one. They need a reason to stay, or the reasons that they came mean almost nothing. While the idealist in me is conflicted on the needs-aware admissions that University of Denver has begun employing, I think that it is an appealing solution to growing student debt and thus better for both the student and the school in the end. Again, schools want the students walking in to only walk out having completed a degree.

    I have learned a lot about how my position as a Hall Director can and does affect retention, and I won't lie - it adds some pressure. Students who live on campus can gain a sense of community here in the hall. They can gain leadership positions. They can study in the lounges. Such aspects of residence life give them a reason to stay, not only in the halls but at the university. These can also factor into a positive effect on their grades, giving them a sense of accomplishment in their studies and thus a desire to continue. Something I require the RAs I supervise to do is have one of their events per month be either bringing their residents to a campus-wide event or bringing in a campus partner to meet and present to their residents. Again, this plays into retention, as such events build better connections with the campus at-large. Hopefully they will connect to campus and stay enrolled.

Article Citation: Hoover, E., & Supiano, B. (2013). In admissions, old playbook is being revised. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/article/The-Admissions-Playbook-Is-Up/141625/

Photo By: My wife, Jenn :) Enrollment numbers seem to be delicately balancing, much like that rock on the right!

Colleagues & Classmates

"Sometimes you put walls up not to keep people out, but to see who cares enough to break them down." - Unknown

     Moving across the country to start a new job and program has made me incredibly appreciate the importance of the people around me. My wife and I left a ton of family and friends behind when we moved, and I would be lying if I said I were never homesick for either my hometown or my old campus. Keeping in touch has been tough; missing important events that I definitely took for granted at the time has been tougher. I do not know what I would do without my wife, Jenn, as she has been wonderful support in addition to being one of the very few aspects of my life that has remained constant. And my new colleagues and classmates have been wonderful as well.

     I could tell from day one that my new department was going to provide me with an amazing experience. Several of my new colleagues were standing on the curb when Jenn and I drove up, ready to assist our moving-in with hand trucks and smiles (the latter was more impressive with the heat). The welcoming nature only continued - our Director asked me about our wedding as soon as I met him, Jenn was always welcomed warmly at social events, and I began feeling at home much more quickly than I ever expected. It always stops me in my tracks when I remember that I have been here only three months, since it feels as though I know my co-workers so well already and they help me along as though I have always been part of the family. I miss my former co-workers dearly and will never forget where I have come from, but I am also thankful that I have made it to my current institution. :)

     My second life here is as a student, and if my undergraduate classmates ever helped me along, my graduate classmates will be about a hundred times more important if my syllabi are good indicators! Today starts the fourth week of classes. The fourth week of reading. The fourth week of completely new concepts, theories, and readings. The fourth week of reading. Did I mention reading? We help each other through these trials and tribulations that are the (digital) stacks of papers we must sift through every week. Going out after the last class of the week has been a wonderful weekly tradition thus far - I cannot stress the importance of de-stressing with friends while in graduate school. It is also important to do after training/opening with colleagues!

     Again, I would not trade the friends I still have across the country for anything. I have finally gotten to chatching-up with some and hope to be more consistent. I also know that they are happy for me and glad that I have found an incredibly supportive environment here as I continue my new adventures in Higher Education. =)

Quote Citation: Unknown. (n.d.). Thinkexist.com. Retrieved from: http://thinkexist.com/quotations/Friendship/

Photo By: Me - anotehr new friend I made on a recent hike! =)

Current Issues: MOOCs

"Technology is just a tool. It terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is most important." - Bill Gates

     I do not expect this to be my one and only post on Massive Open Online Courses - better known as MOOCs. It is a very current issue with too many stakeholders for me to fully wrap my head around in one go. In addition, I do not yet know how I feel about it - and the same can be said for many professionals and educators much more experienced than I am. There are clear benefits: access, low costs, time management. The caveat is that these only come if MOOCs are utilized with the intention of better-serving students. If not, the clear deficits arise, the most worrisome being the undermining of public education and the decrease in value of the campus experience. Not to mention businesses replacing administrators. Yes, I am slightly biased.

     Today's discussion revolves around two articles from the Chronicle. One concerns Google and EdX's new venture in providing an open-source site for anyone - literally anyone - to post their own MOOCs. The other is in regards to a renowned MOOC professor "defecting" due to his worries that supporting this movement will help justify lower funding for universities. Thus, we have two sides of the same issue.

     As far as the invention of MOOC.org, I think it is safe to say that it is too early - both in the MOOC movement in general and in the life of this -3-month-old site - to see where this will take us. In general this movement is taking us back to the goals of higher education, which I recently learned are too many and too diverse to attempt to delineate. Do they match the purposes of MOOCs, though? I have my doubts. Both have excellent goals, assuming that MOOCs have general purposes lying in the engendering of a better-educated society and wider dispersion and sharing of research and knowledge. And the fact that this site will be open to any aspiring teacher makes it all the more intriguing and impressive. While I worry about regulation of courses, I am sure that the CEOs running this venture will be careful. Furthermore, I have high hopes for educated, proper use of the data collected on the students using MOOC.org.

     In the case of Professor Duneier, I trust that he is making the decision that is best for him, and it is clear from the article that there is no general opinion coming from higher education professionals or professors on MOOCs. I do share concerns for the future of public education and the place of living, breathing professors who make their living teaching these introductory courses in person, though. The article alludes to cutting costs. I would prefer that the institutions be open about whether or not those monies are being repurposed, and then what they are being repurposed to. If you are taking the money that you would be using for your Intro Psych classes and putting it toward starting a new academic program, say so. If it is going towards the football team, tell someone. Either way, there are always going to be stakeholders agreeing and disagreeing with that decision, so you might as well be transparent. Hopefully cutting costs is the reality, though, and not Duneier's fear of cutting funding.

Article Citations:

Kolowich, S. (2013). Google and edX create a MOOC site for the rest of us. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/google-and-edx-create-a-mooc-site-for-the-rest-of-us/46413

Parry, M. (2013). A MOOC star defects - at least for now. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/article/A-MOOC-Star-Defects-at-Least/141331/

Quote Citation: Gates, B. (n.d.) BrainyQuote. Retrieved from: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_technology.html

Photo By: Me =)

Policies, Procedures, and Conduct

"People say I make strange choices, but they’re not strange for me. My sickness is that I’m fascinated by human behavior, by what’s underneath the surface, by the worlds inside people." - Johnny Depp

     This past week I heard my first conduct cases, and the building I oversee saw its first policy violations. Consequently, I have had the chance to have some quality discussions about our polices and procedures for living in the residential community on campus, and how one's conduct in the community can affect those around them. Lots of educational moments.

     As I think is natural, I have left each of these conversations with the lingering thought, "Did I get through to him?" [disclaimer: every one of these conversations was with a resident who identifies as male] In other words, was the moment truly educational, or was that just happening on my end? Many elements of these conversations are scripted - I need to recite a policy or justification thereof, go through the sequence of a proper conduct hearing, or be consistent with the six residents involved in a single case. Due process in life is not always individualized, so we cannot individualize every hearing as officers. Overall, I am fine with this - not only is it part of the educational process, but it makes the process a lot easier for me.

      I think that the due process element of conduct hearings educates residents. It shows them that they are members of communities, and that they are all members of communities. The other elements - the non-scripted conversations, the rationale for decisions, etc. - are up for discussion. When I ask residents if they understand how what they did violate policy, they invariably agree, because the policy is right there in front of them. When I ask if they understand how what they did affected their academic pursuits and those residents in their community, they invariably agree, because I am right there in front of them. That is more of an issue. I need to be there to hear the case and ensure an educational moment, but my being there adds a stark difference in power/authority to that same moment.

     All I can really hope for now is to make the conversations as organic as possible. I start the conversations with asking them about their days, classes, environment. I try to be personable. I show them that I care about their growth more than their sanctions. How this comes across is also up to them, and I need to remind myself that more than anything - student development, especially their conduct, is at least a two-way street.

P.S. Apologies for the delay since the last post! More urgent and important things came up...see my post on Time Management for how I prioritize.

Quote Citation: Depp, J. (n.d.). Quotelicious.com. Retrieved from: http://quotelicious.com/quotes/famous/johnny-depp-quotes 

Photo By: Me (community of penguins!)

A GA's Dilemma - to keep the door open or not...

"Every wall is a door." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

     Happy Labor Day! I promised a post every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so this is me keeping said promise. :)

     Today I am going to comment on a dilemma I have been facing lately - whether or not to keep my office door open when doing my reading for classes. I have been attempting to not read in my and Jenn's apartment, because it is too easy to fall asleep, turn on the TV, and/or do anything but work there. Furthermore, when you add up all of my "scheduled time" - meetings with RAs, professional staff meetings and trainings, conduct hours, hall council time, committee meetings - that amounts to about 15 hours, give or take 1 depending on the week. To keep the good work-life balance I am still acquiring, I am supposed to work 20 hours a week. If I stuck to that, I would be in my office - available to residents to stop in, say hi, and most likely ask questions - only 5 hours a week. Since I do not find that fair, I read in my office when not doing 5 hours of preparing for the scheduled time (returning e-mails, preparing team-builders, writing reports, etc.).

     The associated dilemma is whether or not reading will actually be done in such an atmosphere. So far, the open door policy has proven quite helpful as far as assisting residents. I have helped residents to order refrigerators, switch rooms, watch "Pretty Little Liars" in the TV lounge, work through other crises, and more. When I am helping them, though, I am not helping my studies, because I need to focus my attention elsewhere for the moment, and then take time to refocus it upon my return. It is not an incredible interruption. Of course, there is also the noise factor - my office is right off of the lobby and near a lounge. Factoring in the usual noise from the front desk and the piano in the lounge, there are additional organic detractions to focus.

     Is the open door always helpful to residents? Emerson seems to lean towards "No" in the quote above. If they had a smaller issue - one they could fix themselves - then possibly a closed door could create an educational moment. As I have been learning more about the goals of higher education, I can now say with some authority that we hope for students to learn how to solve problems on their own. We want them to know their options, think critically about each of them, then use that thought to choose one and follow-through. By being so available, I am providing them a shortcut that they may not need, and thus taking away a potentially educational moment.

     Still, the fact that a larger issue - one in which a resident truly does need me or someone to talk to - could walk through my open door keeps it open for me. I still have not gone through my weekly routine yet, and will not until next week, so I cannot say definitively whether or not I have enough time to read in my office. I will report back eventually, but for now I may just need to turn up my classical music.

Quote Citation: Emerson, R. W. (n.d.). Goodreads. Retrieved from: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/31820-every-wall-is-a-door

Current Issues - Tiffin University's Ivy Bridge College

"News of the investigation comes just weeks after Tiffin's accreditor ordered the university to halt new enrollments at Ivy Bridge, an associate-degree program designed to serve working adults that has been recognized as an innovative model by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other organizations. More than 90 percent of the program's students received Pell Grants." - Goldie Blumenstyk

     I will be honest that I am only just catching-up on the news on Ivy Bridge College, but what a saga it seems to have been. You can find the article about the Justice Department's recently-opened investigation here, but if you want more background you should select the links within the article or even read the links below first:

• Initial article reporting on the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) order for Ivy Bridge College to stop enrollments
• Follow-up article HLC defending its decisions
• Article on HLC permitting Tiffin University to bring Ivy Bridge into its own online Associate's Degree program
• Almost most importantly - the Ivy Bridge College Facebook Page

     To summarize the "issue" at hand: The HLC of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools - a regional accreditor (basically decides what education is and should be) - told Tiffin University to stop enrolling students in Ivy Bridge College, its joint business venture with for-profit company Altius Education, Inc., the purpose of which is to offer online Associate's Degrees. Ivy Bridge's students appear to be primarily working adults from traditionally underserved populations. The HLC had originally ordered that all students must transfer either to another Associate's program or to Tiffin's Bachelor's program, but then alleviated some of the strictness in saying that they could continue in the online Associate's program originally offered by Tiffin before it created with Ivy Bridge. It is difficult to tell what, if any, of that has changed with this new investigation.

     The rest seems to be a battle of subjectivity and "he said, she said." There is disagreement as to the crux of why the relationship originally needed to end - the top reasons appear to be (1) The HLC having stricter rules governing such partnerships, (2) Tiffin University withdrawing its accreditation application for Ivy Bridge, or (3) The HLC's order, which it retroactively defended with claims of lacking academic integrity and oversight by Tiffin - but the primary reason depends very much on to whom you are speaking. Many words have been exchanged between and said about the HLC, Tiffin, and Altius Education, and most can be read on the articles and Facebook page. On one hand, we have a university that could have been a degree mill, simply taking Pell Grants to pay for pieces of paper. On the other, we have an innovative approach - regarded as such by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - to providing education to those who simply do not have any other option than this relatively inexpensive, online medium of academics.

     The issues of academic integrity and oversight bring us to the new investigation. Prompted under the Federal Claims Act, which covers the misuse of federal funds, the investigation seems to be primarily concerned with what recruitment measures were used by Tiffin for Ivy Bridge and what Tiffin's true role was in the administration and education occurring through Ivy Bridge. These factors play into whether or not the College followed federal-aid guidelines.

      I would like to bring some focus back to the students. The Chronicle's articles were at least decent in their profiling the students enrolled at Ivy Bridge, but more is deserved. These are mostly non-traditional students. They provide care and have dependents relying on them. Most are receiving Pell Grants. No matter what decision is arrived at, a disservice has been done unto them. If the DOJ decides that mismanagement occurred with their funding, I am confident in saying someone should be ashamed of their actions. If they decide nothing is wrong, then these students have been put through frustration for the second time in two months - not knowing if they will have to transfer (some of them for the second time, according to Facebook), not knowing if their degree is or will be worth something, or even attainable. One can only hope that their advisors are helping them each step of the way.

Article Citation: Blumenstyk, G. (2013). Justice Dept. opens investigation of online program at Tiffin U. The chronicle of higher education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/article/Justice-Dept-Opens/141289/

A Day in the Life...Now a MWF Blog!

"Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it." - Henry David Thoreau

     Yesterday was my first Tuesday of the semester, and it was eye-opening in some ways. A quick disclaimer: this will sound like complaining, but I enjoyed almost every minute of yesterday. Here is the schedule of yesterday's events:

• 5:30AM-6:00AM: Wake-Up; make breakfast for my wife, Jenn; and get ready for my run
• 6:00AM-6:45AM: Jenn leaves for work, and I go on my run
• 6:45AM-8:00AM: Stretch, shower, dress, eat breakfast, do the morning's dishes, and quickly check e-mail and schedule for the day
• 8:00AM-10:00AM: Get coffee, prepare for morning staff meeting, prepare materials for area-wide program later in the day, and answer e-mails
• 10:00AM-12:00PM: Area Hall Director Meeting
• 12:00PM-1:00PM: Lunch
• 1:00PM-3:45PM: Respond to multiple calls (all from different offices), show a campus partner a public space for a future event, assist a resident with multiple cable issues, call Tech Services to report that issue, prepare more for program later, prepare a form for my staff to do roster verifications, and prepare for class
• 3:45PM-4:15PM: Change for class and later program, carry items for program over to other hall (including a large cutout of the school mascot - it looked hilarious I bet)
• 4:15PM-6:15PM: Statistics Class (got out early!!)
• 6:15PM-7:15PM: Assist with final parts and clean-up of area-wide program
• 7:15PM-8:00PM: Dinner with Jenn
• 8:00PM-10:00PM: Hall RA Staff Meeting
• 10:20PM - Bed time!

     I hesitated in posting this, since it could look as though I am trying to scare future professionals away. That is not the intention at all - I have always disliked any program, be it undergraduate, graduate, or professional, that attempts to weed-out or scare its students. I thoroughly enjoyed yesterday and appreciated the reality-check of how the next two years will look every now and then. The only item yesterday that will not always occur is the area-wide program (which went really well!) - other than that, this is how Tuesday will look weekly for me. I am fine with it. I am both a student and a graduate assistant, and I want to be a student affairs professional, so this is what I signed-up for!

     Given all of that, I have decided to change this blog to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday blog. As you can see, Tuesday is slightly cramped, and my class with the heaviest reading occurs on Thursday, so I will rarely be able to prioritize posting if I have not already prepared something the day before. I promise the content will stay the same, if not improve! Thank you for staying with me as I continue this experiment in reflection. :)

Quote Citation: Thoreau, H. D. (n.d.). The quotations page. Retrieved from: http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/26843.html 

Running!

"You have to wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years, I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement." - Steve Prefontaine

     Sorry this post is so late, but I had errands today...and my graduate program orientation! Tomorrow I have my first-ever class as a graduate student of higher education, and I am honestly super-excited! Sure, looking over the syllabi was a wake-up call of just how much work this will be, and thinking about what professional development opportunities to take, what organizations to become involved it, and what research I should / want to do has been making my head spin at times. But overall it is exciting to think that tomorrow is the next big step towards my career.

     Adding classes and reading to my weekly schedule has sparked new thoughts on the ever-elusive work-life balance that many of my advisors have preached these past few months. The past few years I have developed a much higher regard for my own mental health and downtime. A momentous point was when I realized how much more productive and focused I was if I gave myself a break from work every once in awhile. Really, it worked.

     Thus, I have spent much time thinking of how to fit classes, readings for those classes, my assistantship, and some free time (which includes actually spending time with my wife of two months) into my weekly schedule. I know it is do-able, but these next two weeks will be an experiment in actually doing it. This brings me to the title of this post - running! Part of that free time needs to also consist of making sure that I stay healthy. My father has always taught me that maintaining physical health and shape is one of the most important parts of life, and I finally started listening in my senior year of college. 

     This past month, I have started running on weekdays in the morning after my wife leaves for work (I technically started last semester, but now I am much more consistent). I never thought I would like it. Against all odds, I have now begun to enjoy running. I do not know whether it is the participation in a mindless activity, how quiet it is on campus at 6 AM, or rocking out to my tunes, but I just feel great after finishing a run. And with my conduct hours all being in the morning, it is a good thing for students that I start the day off feeling good!

Quote Citation: Prefontaine, Steve. (n.d.). Brainyquote.com. Retrieved from: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/s/steveprefo177923.html

Current Issues - President Obama's New Plan

"The heart of the proposals is a controversial plan to rate colleges based on measures of access, affordability, and student outcomes, and to allocate aid based on those ratings. Under the plan, students attending higher-rated institutions could obtain larger Pell Grants and more-affordable loans." - Kelly Field

     The articles headlining today's Chronicle of Higher Education were a great incentive to start fulfilling a additional goal I have for this blog - to stay abreast of and reflect on trending issues in the field of higher education. Connecting some of these issues to practice may be difficult, but I will do my best. On such posts, I will start with a summarizing quote, then provide links to the information on which I am commenting, and finally provide some commentary, ideally sparking some of your own thoughts that you should please post as comments!

     The article I read today from the Chronicle can be found here. It is very informative article providing some of the reviews various people in the government and the field of education have given on President Obama's new plan for higher ed. The "Fact Sheet" that the White House has published can be found here. As the quote above states, the President's stated goal is to put federal aid where the "best" outcomes are being produced, and to make college more affordable for students.

     Overall, I can see where most of the worries given in the article are coming from - most were ones that I had while reading the fact sheet. How do we prevent colleges from "stacking the deck," as it were? How do we ensure that schools producing excellent graduates in lower-paying fields do not get hurt? What kind of ratings system exists or could ever exist that is actually a level playing field?

     At the same time, the plan makes sense to me. I am definitely biased, coming from a small, public, academically-focused school. I also look forward to reading more about this plan as the questions above are addressed. Two additional concerns that I have, though, are the potential for a "snowball effect" and the rating biases against certain schools. By a "snowball effect," I mean the idea that certain schools will not receive as high of ratings, will receive less aid accordingly, will not be as able to increase their ratings as a result, and then the cycle repeats. Is this fair? I do not know. It does not feel right to me, but at the same time it seems to be a goal of this plan.

     Similarly, I am unsure about not only how ratings will be developed, but also how they will be interpreted. What will a low rating say to a potential student, other than what it used to say in US News & World Report? At least one additional label that such a school will receive is now "You will not receive as much federal aid here." The plan for the ratings (so far) seems to be primarily based on academics and graduate earnings and performance, while as a Student Affairs professional I am confident in saying that is not all a student's campus experience is about. Colleges do so much more to develop students than teach them statistics and psychology. A student should still look at the full student experience when choosing school. And while such social development outcomes are not as measurable, I hope that the DOE's future metric will somehow account for them.

Article & Quote Citation: Field, K. (2013). Obama plan to tie student aid to college ratings draws mixed reviews. The chronicle of higher education. Retrieved from: http://chronicle.com/article/Obama-Proposes-Tying-Federal/141229/

Other Source: Office of the Press Secretary. (2013). Fact sheet on the president's plan to make college more affordable. Retrieved from: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/08/22/fact-sheet-president-s-plan-make-college-more-affordable-better-bargain-

Photo By: Me (view of Atlantic Ocean from Table Mountain in Cape Town)

Article Reflection #1 - Ally Identity Development

“If you've come here to help me, you're wasting your time. But if you've come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”       - Australian Aboriginal Leader Lilla Watson

     This post acts as an introduction to a primary goal I have for this blog - connecting scholarship and practice in Higher Education. While I have not yet started readings for classes, I have had the privilege today to read part of Keith E. Edwards's article "Aspiring Social Justice Ally Identity Development," an article explaining a conceptual model of different types of allies, and how those different identities relate to diverse motivations for being allies. To read the entire article, please visit this link. The provide a brief summary, Edwards outlines three types of allies: the Ally for Self-Interest, Ally for Altruism, and Ally for Social Justice. These are listed in order of awareness of systems and actions of oppression - in other words, the Ally for Social Justice is most aware of the systems of oppression and how to "'speak with the oppressed without speaking for the oppressed'" (p. 50). 
     The purpose is not to fault the ally for self-interest or the ally for altruism, but rather to provide some insights into their motivations. The ally for self-interest is simply acting "to protect those one cares about" (p. 46), but does not have a complete of how oppression acts on a systematic rather than individual level, and thus can feel "deeply powerful and self-actualized when intervening on behalf of individuals they care about who are members of oppressed social groups" (p. 48). This unintentionally perpetuates the oppression that this ally is attempting to address. Similarly, the ally for altruism, while more aware of the systematic nature of oppression, is motivated primarily by guilt, and thus "distances oneself from others in the agent group in an attempt to minimize the guilt" and becomes defensive when their own oppressive actions are addressed (p. 49). This also unintentionally perpetuates the oppression, for these allies see themselves as helping the target group, which is not the goal of social justice. 
    The true goal is rather for everyone to work together for an equitable liberation of all peoples - both the oppressed and the oppressor, as both are affected by systems of oppression. Such is the goal of the ally for social justice: "to better connect all individuals...to restore individual and collective humanity and spiritual liberation" (p. 52).
     I read this article on a suggestion from our departments Coordinator for Social Justice Education, since the building I direct has a Living-Learning Community focusing specifically on social justice. A principle in our department is that our RAs are expected to at least be advocates for all residents, but not expected to be allies. If they wish to be allies, that is great, but we cannot require them to be. With this community being in my building, though, I see it as one of my own responsibilities to be as educated on social justice as possible, and this article was a great introduction. For example, I feel that I now finally, fully comprehend the opening quote to this post - one which our Coordinator used in a training session. See page 50 of the article for the point at which the lightbulb switched on. :)
     One manner in which I plan to utilize this article is for a better understanding of the development of the aspiring allies in my building. I know that I have many in that living-learning community, yet I do not expect them to be fully-developed allies for Social Justice. Many on that wing may be in Edwards's category of aspiring allies for altruism, while many throughout my hall may be allies for self-interest. Consequently, I expect issues and microagressions to arise through their well-intended actions, and having a better-educated background through this article prepares me to better address these issues. The same applies to both my own development as an ally and the development of residents who come to me for help with their own ally developments. I myself am currently on the border between an ally for altruism and an ally for social justice, but I hope that consistent reflections such as these will help push me over the edge.

       Please let me know what you think about my first attempt at addressing/connecting an article!

Article Citation: Edwards, K. E. (2006). Aspiring social justice ally identity development.  NASPA Journal 43 (4), 39-60.
Quote Citation: Watson, L. (n.d.). Goodreads.com. Retrieved from: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/306551-if-you-ve-come-here-to-help-me-you-re-wasting-your.
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