Student Affairs Professionals

Higher education institutions have a remarkable opportunity to positively educate and support a massive college student population and thus help provide the necessary resources to the many students struggling with mental health issues and concerns. Creative programming and strategies should be implemented throughout college campuses with an emphasis on proactive coping skills, intervention and mental health promotion. Meeting the needs of a diverse population, a population experiencing an unbalanced stage of life and finding ways to effectively connect with these individuals must be an area of emphasis in framing campus resources and

After reading Sonja Ardoin’s (2014) “the strategic guide to shaping your student affairs career” book, I read a variety of important content that has allowed me to reflect not only in my fieldwork position, as an Advising Assistant for the Puente Program, but also my current status as a graduate student in the Educational Counseling program.

Student affairs is charged with finding the resources needed to better services, programs, student learning experience, and the teaching of technology to students (Jones, et all, 2011, p.539). In 1890 LeBarron Russell Brigs was appointed dean of men, the first dean appointed. Briggs’s duties as the first dean of men was dealing with student issues. As colleges developed into more than just a place for students to learn the dean of men’s role had changed, the role became focused on helping students to become more rounded in not only education but, help them to become better citizens, and to teach students to have a better social and moral foundation. There are several major roles of student affairs, helping in retention of students, learning

The first two chapters of this book set the background for student development and how theory has evolved over the years. As time passed and college student demographics changed, new ideas and views were developed to understand the ever changing student body. Theorists realized that the college experience was different between demographic groups. Being able to develop student affairs practices and activities that can reach the different student groups is probably the biggest challenge a student affairs professional will tackle. It is said that student development is most achieved by involvement by the students. This means that these activities must be designed to accommodate students from all walks of life.

The mental health of college students has declined in the last several decades. As some students enter college, their lives drastically changes. They go through many different difficulties in trying to live a college life without realizing what it can do for them. Everyone comes to college with an expectation of doing well in classes and enjoying what college has to offer. As the pressures builds for some people, their state of mind alters in a negative direction, where help from counseling services are needed. Nationally, 22% of collegians are seeking therapy or counseling each year (Marano 2015). That would be approximately 14,000 students at The Ohio State University, which is considered significantly

As a Graduate Assistant, I’ve worked closely with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at North Carolina Central University by ensuring the new incoming students complete their enrollment process while attending New Student Orientation. I’ve traveled to many enrollment events to provide information to prospective students regarding the orientation, financial aid, academic advising, and residential life processes. Lastly, I’ve assisted with the majority of the New

College students will always encounter some type of “problem” during their college experience. A problem can be something simple such as a lack of adequate parking or more complex such as sexual harassment. “A new report from Student Monitor asked college students to identify the biggest problems on campus, and their top three answers were cost of education, stress, and alcohol abuse,” (Jacobs, 2014, p.1). College students will be affected by a number of problems during their college career. As a professional in student affairs it is our duty to help students decrease their problems and help them have a successful experience. Andrews University is experiencing one of the top three biggest social issues on their campus, alcohol abuse and

What are student affairs in the higher education field? How are the student affairs personnel supposed to help me succeed during undergraduate years? These are the questions I’ve asked myself four years ago when I first heard the terminology during my freshmen year in college. Based on my research of student affairs, I’ve learned that the personnel goals are to provide services and support for students at institutions of higher learning to enhance student growth and development. I really didn’t know the logistics of student affairs until I had an opportunity to be an orientation leader my sophomore year. During my years as an orientation leader/coordinator, I met a lot of faculty and staff members at North Carolina Central University. I remember my first year working in orientation, seeing the expression on the Class of 2013 faces at each orientation and the excitement of officially being an eagle and going through the orientation process. I was extremely grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of the staff. It felt great to serve as a mentor to all my students I had in my groups during the Eagle Institute Orientation sessions help guide them to a successful first year in college. My desire to go into Higher Education and Student Affairs came during my second summer of orientation when I became the coordinator of the Eagle C.O.R.E. Orientation Leaders based on my leadership skills. I really enjoyed working in the “behind the scenes” of orientation and

My personal philosophy is that the role of a Student Affairs Professional is to always help students when needed, refer students to additional resources as necessary and enable student learning when possible. One can accomplish these through a variety of activities/tasks and utilize different theories depending on one’s job, functional area and organization. In helping students, I seek to foster positive relationships, to take a holistic approach whenever possible and to support student learning. In order to accomplish these, I will implement different student development theories into my practice when working with students such as Chickering’s Theory of Identity Development and Perry’s Theory of Cognitive Development. I have found Perry’s

It will be my responsibility to help students accept and appreciate themselves; in turn they will improve relationships and have greater academic achievement. This will be demonstrated through the use of data such as the four components of program evaluation and improvement (ASCA, 2012). It is imperative to know that being a leader and advocating for students is one of the major roles of a school counselor. According to Erford, to achieve this counselors must ensure that “ school counseling programs are data driven, are action oriented , and demonstrate their belief that all students deserve the academic, career and college readiness, and personal/social resources to access the very best academic, career/college, and personal/social opportunities during and after K-12 schooling” (Erford, 2015,

On the school campus, school counselors are uniquely positioned to provide traditional counseling to students based on the request made by the student, parent, teacher, or administrator (Collins, 2014). Ultimately, the counseling service will be a direct service available to students with the purpose of promoting healthy academic, social, and emotional growth (Farrell et al.,

Based on a review of these documents and considering your chosen institutions, student subculture and student affairs functional area, please respond to the following prompts.

Student Affairs is appealing to Student Life for assistance because of your already strong relationships and outreach programs with students. While your department has the reputation of directly involving students through your events, our section finds it more difficult to connect with the students in such

In one interaction with a student, the student suggested she had had thoughts that were suicidal and denoted depression. I was once very uncomfortable with serious conversations like this, but I realized while listening, that the most important thing wasn’t to give advice; it was to listen and express empathy. Most of the time, students just want to feel heard and given attention. By listening and caring about students, college coaches give the students a voice to express themselves.

Student personnel point of view encompasses the student as a whole. The concept of education is broadened o the student’’s well rounded development- physically, socially, emotionally and spiritually as well as intellectually. (sppv) Student affairs not only emphasize on academic excellence but to shape each individual as a unique human by providing a holistic learning and living environment. Student Affairs professionals play a pivotal role in the development of the students. By applying different theories in student development, they can foster student learning to help them shape their identity. Student affairs staff members must view themselves as educators to refute the belief that learning is held only in the classroom. (contested issue, 29). Learning does not only occur in the classroom but through out of class activities as well. Student affairs staff should talk about student learning and development to enhance the multiplicity of growth areas for students in higher education. These learning and development experiences do not simply happen to students. They happen with their active involvement. There are numerous branches of fields in student affairs that attend to the unique needs of each individual. Residence Director trains Residence assistance to cater to the needs of first year students who are new to the college environment. RA plays a major role of introducing the life of college through building relationships and community to help them develop their sense of