As complex phenomena, spirituality and religion defy any single definition and are delineated differently yet often conflated. Despite the confluence of the terms, religion and spirituality are not interchangeable or equivalent. Spirituality aids the process of developing the whole student and affects learning while shaping perspectives and…

Author Anne Lamott wrote "This is a difficult country to look different in...and if you are too skinny or too tall or dark or weird or short or frizzy or homely or poor or nearsighted, you get crucified." Lamott's comment speaks to what happens when people do not fit into neat social categories. Such experiences of not fitting, of being…

One undergraduate's transformational story of self-discovery and personal development frames this discussion of the importance of undergraduate involvement in social justice research. In this article, the authors first share a bit about the national landscape regarding community-university engagement initiatives. They also share research findings…

In this article, the authors report on a successful collaboration between academic and student services that resulted in a Rutgers University Byrne Seminar on social entrepreneurship. The course, entitled "The Business of Doing Good: Combining Business Practices with Social Activism," was designed to inspire the next generation of change makers,…

The author shares the results of her research with focus groups of Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and atheist students who discussed their religious and spiritual beliefs with her and with each other. She offers these students' words in order to encourage other educators to consider hosting similarly structured conversations and to think about the…

Student organizations enhance college students' experiences and contribute to the vitality of campus life. As staff and faculty, the authors are regularly called on to advise these groups. Good advising can help an organization stay connected with its true mission. One tool that can help advisors navigate and grasp the culture of student…

Charles Schroeder, "About Campus" executive editor, interviews Russell Edgerton, director of the Pew Forum on Undergraduate Learning, to get his views of a number of important issues including the status of the undergraduate reform movement; the role of assessment in performance improvement; and the emergence of deep learning as a new focus in the…

Presents an interview with George Kuh, who has been a leading proponent of focusing attention on the nature of the undergraduate experience--particularly the degree to which students are meaningfully engaged in a variety of educationally purposeful activities that enhance their learning and success. (GCP)

With the dearth of African American men in academe, African American college men have few opportunities to be mentored by those who can best help them make sense of their experience. Du Bois' writings give voice to much of the African American college experience and provide concrete examples of how to think, act, and persevere in the U.S.…

What are colleges for? What are they supposed to do? Are educators teaching their students how to grub for grades or how to learn in deep lasting ways? These are just some of the questions that the author attempts to explore in this article. An unbiased observer, looking at any organization, would look to its core processes, what its members do,…