Bridging the President's Line in the Sand

I was glued to the TV last night for President Obama’s State of the Union Address, and these are just some ponderings I’ve had over the past few hours. J

First, the President called for accountability and affordability. Suggesting that federal subsidies will be based on affordability not necessarily by accreditation. He called for Congress to ensure that “affordability and value are included in determining which colleges receive types of federal aid.” Now personally, I am curious on what the President finds as valuable. Is his interpretation of value just the academic degree and name of the university? Or will it also include the services and engagement that Student Affairs brings to the table.

 Additionally, he mentioned of a College Scorecard that parents and students may use to compare universities to one another in order to figure out which college allows the individuals to, as the President said, “get the most bang for your educational buck.”

Now most of us Student Affairs people cringed during this portion of the speech. But upon locating the Scorecard, which I’ve linked at the bottom, it honestly wasn’t that crazy. The few points of information on it were points that, as institutions of higher education, we should already have posted. The Scorecard seems to simply make getting that information a ‘one-stop-shop’. I’ll be interested in seeing how the questions concerning institutions to follow their alumni much closer will turn out, but that’s another blog.

What seemed to be the real challenge for Student Affairs was bridging this line that the President seemed to have drawn between degree and experience.

Let me explain. In an overall context of the education portion of the speech, the President was adamant on getting the number of degrees granted up, at the lowest possible cost, disregarding the holistic practice that student affairs is pushing, which does require additional resources and time. Economically it makes sense. However, that seems to be how he is drawing a line in the sand between the degree and the experience.

Let me tell you, Twitter, during these large societal events is amazing. Twitter was all a flutter in #sachat, #studentaffairs, #emchat, #higheredlive, #sapro and many others that we SA professionals follow. Many first reactions seemed to question where in Student Affairs would universities and colleges cut in order to make college more affordable? And everyone’s defenses were high.

I think after an hour or so of tweeting the overall consensus was that rather than worry about what needed to be cut, we needed to be more purposeful and to look at this as a good challenge to meet. That our learning outcomes not only meet university standards and expectations but also how it aids in retention and job placement.

I feel that the President may be caught in a Catch 22 and is trying to make the best with budget issues, retention and graduation rates and unemployment. However I’m not sure if he is moving forward in the best way. Challenging institutions to raise the number of graduates and make college affordable for more students is admirable, but at what point does the quality and value of the degree become unbalanced with cost? Will we sacrifice engagement and the whole student for higher admissions and graduation rates?

It is definitely different than a few decades ago, when the government found higher education a key component to the success and progression of the United States and supplied an abundance of resources to ensure that it was successful, rather than continuing to pull support and call it a tax burden and a way to out compete other countries.

I’m looking forward to the next few weeks as things role out from the White House. I’m hoping that was as we move forward some of these ponderings will be put to rest with more information and details. Either way, if you have Twitter, follow some of the hashtags and websites that I have mentioned because there should be some interesting conversations coming in the next few days. J

Text of the State of the Union:

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/02/12/full-text-president-obamas-2013-state-of-the-union/

Scorecard:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/higher-education/college-score-card

Self-Reflect in Moderation

I’m quickly learning that Student Affairs Professionals either self-reflect a lot or because of job demands and time restraints, very little. So, let me tell you about a small panic attack I had this weekend, after a lot of self-reflecting and what I came to conclude about self-reflection.  

Over the weekend, while with the boyfriend and roommates, a discussion began about plans for after graduation. I began self-reflecting on myself and about my previous position and where I ultimately wanted to go with my future.  For some reason, this triggered a flood of irrational thoughts and anxieties that everyone experiences at one point, if not multiple points, in their life.

Some of my doubts centered on whether or not I was intelligent and strong enough to be a leader. Some concerned whether I could do the work of a Student Affairs professional. Other thoughts centered on whether I had the personality and qualities to be a leader. I questioned myself, as in; have I learned from all my mistakes and faults from my previous position? Will I be able to survive university politics, and do I want to be involved in university politics ever again? I’ve seen it at work and it is vicious and unrelenting. Can I get past some of those circumstances from my previous position and learn from them and then leave them behind. Am I too late to really become an asset to the Student Affairs field?

I’ve done many interviews this year for part-time position, GA positions, internship positions, and none of them have panned out. So am I good enough for entry-level Student Affairs positions, or am I delusional and need to change professions?

I’ve been told that my expectations for myself are too high and I should not expect so much from myself when I’m not that good and need more mentoring and training. Should I listen to them or continue with my high expectations and keep driving forward?

While I knew that everything was being emotionally and irrationally driven through my mind, it still took a few days to shake off the thoughts and feelings that were swerving around in my head and get everything back into perspective.

So far, I’ve regained most of my rationality back. While reflecting the past few days, you’ll be happy to hear (hopefully) that I’ve had mostly good come from it. I’ve been able to clear up some things for myself. I’ve realized that like many, I’ve taken a very untraditional route into my field. While I may be older and over qualified for entry-level positions, yet not qualified for anything higher, I shouldn’t lower my expectations. I have learned from my previous position, but I need to also leave it behind me, and not let it dictate what I do in the future. I need to just keep pushing forward. Get involved where I can, do what I can, and learn what I can. Only the future will be able to let me know if I am intelligent enough or have the qualities and traits of a leader for Student Affairs.

However, to get to the point of today’s blog, I have concluded that self-reflection is really helping me to get perspective, and learn about myself so that one day I hopefully become a better man, and professional. However I’ve also concluded that if not balanced with reality, self-reflection can also hinder an individual. If a person over reflects and criticizes his/herself, it kicks up fears and can enlarge their blind spots. So at the end of the day, my tidbit of advice: Self-Reflect in Moderation. 

Greeks for Thought

So, this post is a personal opinion on some musings and thoughts I've had about the recent event at Duke University. Being in Student Affairs, and from Campus Life and Student Organizations, I’ve been extremely watchful of the situation. Additionally, I am in a fraternity and have that vested interest as well.

The minute I heard, I read the first article I could find about the situation. From there, I think I have read over 100 different articles, blogs, and internet posts about the situation. And I’m still reading up on the situation.

Now, in case you have been under a rock for the past couple of days, or not been able to get to any news source, the situation surrounds a fraternity at Duke University who has come under fire for hosting a themed party that had several attendees depicting negative stereotypes of Asians.

So, let me just walk through my thoughts, and maybe give you some food for thought. As per usual, my thoughts may be scattered, but I’ve tried to organize them the best I can for you.

Themed parties are one of the characteristics of Greek Life. However becoming better individuals is another key characteristic of Greek Life. And part of becoming a better individual is being culturally aware and globally mindful. So, where is the balance between these characteristics? Does having a culturally themed party, which could have negative connotations to a specific group, counteract the progress made by the same organization in preparing the individuals for a global society? How, in Student Affairs, can I be proactive on teaching this balance? How do conversations move past “it was just for fun and no harm was meant”. Are there not other themes that can be used that do not further embed negative stereotypes of people? Do the most fun themes have to be insensitive? Is there such a thing as being too sensitive?

Personally, I’m a little put off on some of the insensitivity of the reaction by some of the opinions written. I have to admit it does frustrate me a little. I know the benefits of being in Greek Life. It seriously has changed my life, and my brothers have been there for me when at times my family wasn’t. However, it does get a little exhausting always having to fight the negative stereotypes of fraternities, especially in situations like this, which simply continues those stereotypes. (Yes, I totally see the irony of that statement)

Like I said, these are just some thoughts that I have mulled through over the past few days. I’m really interested in attending my class next week, where we are discussing sub-populations of students, and social Greek students are one of the sub-populations we will be talking about.

So maybe this has sparked some thoughts or ideas, or maybe given you another perspective but either way, its food for thought. 

Let Me Rant About Class

So, today is just gonna be one of those blogs where I rant on to try and figure out my class. So feel free to be thoroughly entertained by my thought process which maybe extremely unlinear at best. J

Currently I’m taking a class entitled Organization and Administration in Higher Education. Its primary focus is learning, reading and maneuvering through the higher education system from an administration/organization point of view.

Now, keep in mind I’m a communication major, an extremely Feeling and Perception based individual. So, switching my mind to business concepts is like telling me I can’t have warm fuzzy movies to watch…there will be resistance.

Anyway, so far, we’ve learned the terms core technologies, product functions, organization organism, and so forth. While my mind is spinning and still trying to get a firm grasp on these terms and this organization frame of mind, I have to admit it’s definitely giving me a new perspective on the way I view a university.

For example, according to the concepts and models of higher education organizations, the university is here to educate students. That is the primary function. Students attend for many reasons including, peer pressure, parental expectations, self-motivation and the list goes on. However the institution exists to educate those who are accepted.

Thus, according to the literature of organization theory in higher education, as Student Affairs professionals, we are the support of that purpose. We get the students in the door, offer them the services needed to get that education and then process them for graduation. However the core function of our existence as a university is to educate them and graduate them in specific fields. Core technologies will be different between institutions, however, the goal is the same; educate the students and graduate them in these core technologies.

It seems very raw and cold as well as very linear and small. I’m hoping in the next few chapters, as we build on these basics that it takes on a broader characteristic. As we talked in class, it seemed that it might and I hope it does. Though, again, perhaps the resistance and confusion in my mind is due to my Student Affairs family mindset. Even so, I’m hoping to really get out of my comfort zone with this class and maybe answer some of these questions in the hopes of being a better-prepared future administrator. Though I do acknowledge that I also may be missing the boat entirely on this class right now.

But rest assured, there will be later posts on this and my struggle to look at higher education as an organization rather than a family and how I champion these concepts :)

Food for Thought: Cheaper Baccalaureate?

When you hear community college, you don’t necessarily think of the baccalaureate degree. However, since 1989, states have slowly taken on the issue of allowing community colleges to grant baccalaureate degrees. Currently there are about 18 states with baccalaureate granting community colleges, with Florida leading with 18 granting institutions. The majority of the baccalaureate degrees granted at community colleges are in education and nursing to supplement the overcrowded public and private universities of the states.

But let me back up real quick to tell you how I decided to write about this. I first learned about baccalaureate granting community colleges last year when my state began conversations on allowing our community colleges to grant B.A.s in specific fields, in particular education and nursing, similar to Florida. And just recently read an article in a local paper about the legislation that is currently sitting in the State House.

At first I was skeptical and guarded about it. Granted I was biased, having a position at a public university and only having attended public universities as a student. So I hopped online and did a little Googling. Thus I discovered the debate of baccalaureate degrees granted by community colleges.

The argument in favor to allow community colleges to grant baccalaureate degrees completely makes sense, especially if there is a desire for more graduates in specific fields. However, I do wonder if there will be an effect on the state public and private institutions including enrollment and funding. It seems to need a balance of support and resources from the state legislatures and education boards in order to be successful.

I’m quite excited to watch as the state moves forward with allowing community colleges the ability to grant baccalaureate. My state has had decreases in state funding to higher education over the past few years; which makes me wonder how everything will play out in the legislature as far as support and resources. However, there are definitely major pros and cons to the state allowing the community colleges to grant baccalaureate degrees, but we'll just have to see what the legislature and education boards decide. 

Just food for thought :)