Studies over the past decade have resulted in significant data used to inform student affairs practitioners and graduate preparation faculty of desired competencies of new professionals entering the field of student affairs administration. Little information is available on the perceptions of senior student affairs officers at 208 institutions…

The following is a brief overview regarding: the history and development of Student Affairs as it pertains to (a) preserving the history of a professional association, (b) value and benefits of a professional Student Affairs association, (c) establishing and assessing goals and (d) organizational development/change within a professional…

The imminent philosopher George Santayana said, "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it" (1905). The protests that occurred on American campuses in the 1960s may lend support for that statement. This article will describe major events of the protest movement during this period, describe the societal and institutional…

Student governance has existed as an integral part of higher education since the time of the first college in Colonial America. Through a detailed history of each phase of student self-governance--from the earliest literary societies to the present-day student government associations--the struggles of students in higher education to acquire and…

In 2002, Pearson and Bowman examined the issues and trends in the "College Student Affairs Journal" over its first 20 years, from 1979 to 1999. This manuscript expands that analysis to examine trends from 2000 to 2007, paying particular attention to changes that occurred as the journal transformed from a regional to a national journal and how the…

Today, the student affairs profession values the diversity of race, class, and gender in their educational mission. However, the profession's growing respect for pluralism demands a more inclusive history. This article is one academic measure toward creating a contextualized and nuanced history of the development of the field as it was impacted by…

The community college has survived and thrived since its early inception in the 1800s and has become the center of educational opportunity providing access to all. Today, the influence of the community college system in the United States is impressive with 46% of all undergraduates attending community college. Although the community college boom…

Rather than anticipating an issue or proactively addressing it, college and university administrators often find themselves in the position of reacting to recent laws or court decisions. This paper examines an issue ripe for proactive thought; an issue not yet directly considered in court cases: free speech and the student employee. In the…

The author examined the impact on resident assistants of a social change approach to sexual assault prevention. The interactive multi-media program focused on engaging men on sexual assault prevention, accurately defining rape for college men and women, identifying aspects of the rape culture in society and on-campus, and empowering college…

Prior research on student affairs professionals has focused largely on the nature of student affairs work with most attention given to mid- and senior-level administrators. Thus, relatively little is known about new professionals and their socialization to the student affairs profession. Based on a multivariate analysis of survey data from a…

This article highlights the impact of campus ministers upon students within campus ministries at public colleges and universities. Data gathered for this qualitative study suggest that campus ministers serve as facilitators of religious development, personal development, and leadership development among the students with whom they work.…

Online degree programs have been one of many institutional innovations related to the enrollment growth in higher education over the last decade. The changing format of instruction alters the practice of student affairs in the virtual learning environment. This shift requires faculty, administrators, and student affairs professionals to examine…

The purpose of this paper is to provide student affairs professionals with an overview of the law regarding the constitutionality of expenditure limits in student government elections. Unlike campaigns for federal and state office, it is clear that the limited case law on this topic does allow universities to limit the amount of money that student…

This qualitative study employed focus group interviews to explore students' perceptions of three well established academically based living-learning communities at a large, land-grant university in the Midwest. Three themes merged that illustrated students' perceptions of a culture that promoted seamless learning, a scholarly environment, and an…

Colleges often seek to promote a psychological sense of community (PSOC) among their students. However, there is limited research on factors promoting PSOC, and little empirical evidence on whether students of different ethnic backgrounds might experience PSOC differently. This study, which took place on a predominantly White campus, explored…