This essay compares the narratives that have emerged in recent years to describe the higher education enterprise with the narratives used to describe student affairs' endeavors. I posit that the way in which student affairs professionals present their agenda is out of sync with the market-driven culture of the academy. The seven "Principles of…

Little has been written about the roles and functions of student affairs administrators during the civil rights era. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine how the civil rights era influenced the student affairs profession, paying particular attention to the roles played by student affairs administrators in relation to students, other…

Although a growing body of scholarship describes the development of LGBT identity in college students and abundant literature provides evidence of the developmental impact of campus involvement, little has been known about the experiences of LGBT student leaders. We interviewed 15 students from three Midwestern institutions and analyzed data using…

Student portfolio development is an area of interest and activity on many campuses. This article describes an 8-year effort by leaders in student and academic affairs at a large research university to implement an e-portfolio. Initiated in response to a suggestion by the university president, the 5-year development process has led to the creation…

Tribal colleges play a powerful role in the personal development as well as the academic development of American Indian students. By providing access, exposure to native culture, personal support, preparation for further education, and a sense of empowerment, tribal colleges are influential in advancing self-awareness, interpersonal sensitivity,…

This quantitative study was based on the survey results of 216 chief student affairs officers' (CSAOs) at United States' colleges and universities whose enrollments were between 500 and 3,000 students. In the spring of 2001, 58% of the CSAOs returned the 42-item Survey of Student Learning Principles, based on the seven "Principles of Good…

The mission of the liberal arts institution is to educate the whole student; this parallels the aims of student affairs administration. How does this mission affect what student affairs professionals employed at these institutions do? For this study, researchers examined the nature of work for student affairs administrators at liberal arts…

The effects of living on campus on educational gains were estimated for a sample of African American college students. This study also examined the effects of specific residence hall experiences on African American students' educational gains in college. Controlling for an extensive array of demographic characteristics, institutional…

Students at a midsized public university in the southeast completed the Student Development Task and Lifestyle Inventory at the beginning of their first year, beginning of their sophomore year, and end of their senior year. More involved students reported greater development in moving through autonomy toward interdependence and establishing and…

A sample of 3,484 incoming first-year students at a large, mid-Atlantic University were surveyed to assess a variety of attitudinal and behavioral variables pertinent to the college experience. The current study focused on how student value system orientation, or the degree to which values are open or closed, related to key aspects of college…

The purpose of this study was to investigate how living-learning (L/L) program participation similarly and dissimilarly affects college students' intellectual growth at three large public research universities. L/L programs have been introduced at large universities in order to create more intimate peer communities that help foster students'…

Historically, student affairs professionals focused their work almost exclusively on undergraduate students. Doctoral faculty remained focused on the comprehensive needs of doctoral students. However, this situation is changing. Due largely to growth in numbers and diversity of graduate students, student affairs professionals at colleges and…