Advising and Supporting (A/S)

            My experiences working at Colorado Mesa University and Oberlin College gave me the opportunity to grow within the Advising and Supporting competency.  By participating in the on-call rotations at those institutions.  Several of the outcomes within the Advising and Supporting outcome defined by ACPA and NASPA relate to participating in the on-call rotation:

Identify when and with whom to implement appropriate crisis management and intervention responses.

Maintain and appropriate degree of confidentiality that follows applicable legal and licensing requirements, facilitates the development of trusting relationships, and recognizes when confidentiality should be broken to protect the student or others.

Initiate and exercise appropriate institutional crisis intervention responses and processes.(ACPA & NASPA, 2015, p. 37)

Some of the skills that I developed as part of the on-call process include beginning the mental health and facilities emergency protocols, maintaining privacy and sharing information only with the appropriate staff members, and activating various resources for students in crisis such as room changes and setting meetings with the Dean on Call. 

I have an edited incident report from a time when I was on call and participated in the appropriate responses.  The incident report documents the response for tracking down a student in crisis, and assisting the resident get connected to the appropriate resources, and gather the necessary information for the family and hospital.  Throughout most of these types of incidents care is taken when working with students when gathering information and inquiring about a student’s state of being.  Not only does the information need to be documented, but also the Dean on Call and Safety and Security at Oberlin need to be alerted to updates for each situation.  In this case, I worked with Safety and Security to find the student based upon their card usage because there was a sense of urgency.  However that information could only go to the appropriate sources as Dean on Call, Counselor, and Safety and Security.  It would be highly uncouth to share any information learned while responding to an incident, to the point where we do not acknowledge a student we assisted on a call unless they initiate contact so that they do not feel awkward or draw unwanted attention to themselves.  Incident reports at Oberlin and Colorado Mesa University are used to track cases for federal reporting, and also transferring information to those who may be following up with any students.  At Oberlin for instance, the information is used by class deans who follow up with those students.

            Responding to on-call incidents is not limited to mental health crises.  I have responded to incidents of physical assault, alcohol poisoning, sexual assault, floods (of unsanitary and clean water) in residence halls, and bed bugs.  These incidents each required conflict management, mediating differences, consulting with professionals, and collaboration with other offices including Deans on Call, Facilities, Residential Education/Residence Life, and the Title IX office.  All of these skills are included in various outcomes under the Advising and Supporting competency

            My growth in this competency was from my experiences at Colorado Mesa and Whitman College, though on-call looked very different at Whitman.  I had the support of the Admins-on-Call or 24-hour Counselors-on-Call and Health Center, which gave me guidance when I needed on-site guidance.  Validation and feedback from the Admins- and Deans-on-Call were helpful in situations I felt out of my depth.  The constant contact has been valuable for developing strategies and coping mechanisms for those high-stress situations.  At Oberlin I have the support of the Dean-on-Call and Safety and Security whom I confer with at every stage of an incident.  We also have monthly on-call meetings with Safety and Security, the Director of the Counselor Center, and all the Deans- and ACs-on-call to share information and smooth the procedures. 

Leadership (LEAD)

            Within the scope of the Leadership competency, my experiences working with student organizations, most recently IYS, and coursework in CSP 6400: Organizational Leadership, Management, and Administration assisted the most with my grown and development within this competency.  Primary outcomes within this competency include:

Identify and understand systemic and organizational constructs of “leader” and “leadership.”

Seek out training and feedback opportunities to enhance one’s leader and leadership knowledge and skill.

Create environments that encourage others to view themselves as having the potential to make meaningful contributions to their communities and be civically engaged in their communities.  (ACPA & NASPA, 2015, p. 28)

            Prior to CSP 6400 I had a foundation of thought regarding “leadership” but this foundation was built from experience rather than theory.  My personal view of leadership meant the idea of “leadership” was not a singular entity, but rather a collection of skills, but I did not know that there were so many models of leadership.  During the course we were each assigned a different leadership theory to research and present to the class.  Through these presentations I was exposed to a number novel of theories and constructs.  The course was also very helpful in that we were also assigned a case study, through which we had to identify prime decision makers, relevant theories, and possible solutions to the predicament presented in the case study. These realistic situations not only helped us apply the theories and thoughts about leadership, but also helped to place the theories into an organizational context.  

            My artifact for this competency is the leadership retreat agenda I created to IYS’ spring retreat.  Part of the retreat was teambuilding, while the other half focused on the goals, mission, and operations of the organization.  While team dynamics were not an obstacle to IYS, the group was entering a high stress time when participant applications were coming due and there would be more tasks for individuals to hold each other accountable to.  By practicing frustration with each other in a safe place working just with the Helium Stick exercise the students could recognize and talk through their frustrations.

            The second half of the retreat focused on the mission, goals, and tasks for the group.  This section especially corresponds to the outcome of creating a space for students to view themselves as civically active and making contributions to their communities.  Through IYS students are able to be active in both their campus communities as they plan alternative break trips, as well as in the communities of the partner sites.  When the group revisited the mission statement, the students were able to frame their actions in a definition of service that does the least harm to community partners and is not from an imperialist or benevolent attitude.  Rather service on the trips is framed in solidarity working to compliment the assets of a community rather than focus on the deficits of a community.  An important part of the goal setting section was to break down the goals into action steps and tasks that the group could realistically accomplish.  The point of breaking down the goals was to create a sense that the lofty goals could be reached by the organization.  If a goal is too high it may be difficult to live up to or complete, but by breaking it down the students knew that they could accomplish that goal.  Thus the students were able to see themselves as making “meaningful contributions to their communities” by providing these trips to other students (ACPA & NASPA, 2015, p. 28).

Organizational and Human Resources (OHR)

            Most of my experiences within the field of student affairs relates back to the Organizational and Human Resources competency.  Through advising Colorado Mesa University’s Residence Hall Association (RHA) and Conduct Board through my current position supervising the Community Service Resource Center (CSRC) and the programming associated with those bodies I have developed and grown in this competency.  Specific related outcomes include: “Evaluate the effectiveness of current staffing patterns and supporting job descriptions in regard to a unit’s ability to effectively meet institutional, divisional, and unit mission and goals” and “Effectively manage and lead meetings through the use of agenda management strategies” (ACPA & NASPA, 2015, p. 25).

            As a part of my position supervising the CSRC I have been responsible for filling open positions.  When I first started there was an opening for another CSRC Coordinator, however I found parts of two job descriptions.  I had to evaluate what was missing from the operations of the CSRC and combine existing job descriptions with novel pieces into one coherent position.  I attached the first job description for the CSRC Outreach Coordinator.  The position description has three main sections: qualifications, CSRC Coordinator responsibilities and Outreach Coordinator responsibilities.  The CSRC students must be able to work independently as they will have office hours that do not align with the intern’s hours and must be able to explain the programs of the BCSL to students and community partners.  Some of the job responsibilities are shared amongst all four of the CSRC Coordinators such as dealing with inquiries of service and updating the database of community partners.  The specific responsibilities of each position however, were created from the need within the CSRC to advertise its existence to Oberlin students.  Therefore maintaining the CSRC’s social media presence and tabling during events were key parts of the new position. 

Before I leave my internship I will update the position description again because aspects of the CSRC have changed and grown.  There is a new online platform for community partners and students to find each other, replacing the CSRC as the middleperson trying to form those connections.  Such a new platform is only effective when both community partners and students are on the site and understand how it works.  Some of the outreach for both those constituent groups has fallen to the Outreach Coordinator.  Similar to when I created the position, I will be taking parts of the current description and matching them to current needs or disregarding that part.

            The other area of this competency that I have grown in is the use of meeting agendas to structure staff meetings.  Part of my internship is the management of all Winter Term projects the BCSL may sponsor that year.  I recruit projects with community partners, advertise those projects to students, support students and community partners through the application and registration periods, and manage the workshop series during Winter Term itself.  Often there would be too many aspects of Winter Term to get through during a regular staff meeting so I met with the staff to give updates and receive feedback on various aspects of the program.  I attached an example of one such meeting agenda.  It is from one of the first meetings we had where I was presenting information from Winter Term 2015 and giving an overview of Winter Term 2016.  These meetings, and the agendas, were invaluable tools for keeping information clear and concise.  I also had the benefit of supervision from another staff member in the BCSL which aided the creation of the agendas and the schedule of Winter Term meetings.  This was the first time I was preparing agendas for professional staff and not the students I supervise.  Leading a meeting with those who supervise one is different than leading a meeting with those one supervises.  With the input of my project supervisor I feel I created a series of effective agendas and lead the meetings in a way that was productive and efficient.