Student Affairs in Higher Education

As student affairs professionals it is our responsibility to help build the foundation of education shaped around true higher learning in higher education today. Applying theory through research in the field of higher education can result in productive change within the learning structure we know today as college. Students are pursing college degrees with the hopes of creating a better future for themselves and it is our duty to create the space for this learning to be nurtured in.

We must consider learning outcomes across all departments that are aimed at serving the whole student, intellectually. Developing a mission statement supported around holistically educating the student body including mind, body, and soul. According to Keeling & Hersh (2011) “Developmental learning is catalyzed by a tide of environmental stimuli, both inside and outside the classroom, and this fact lies at the heart of what we think ought to be taught for developmental learning in higher education (p. 50). Integrating developmental learning means we must stimulate our students to challenge themselves through curriculum and social structures within higher education.

This type of change in learning can only take place when the entire collective effort of the administrative staff, faculty, and students are on board to engage in this type of learning (Keeling & Hersh 2011). As many of us posted to Pinterest and tweeted about on Tweeter, change requires both theory and application because they are one in the same. To implement improvements in our education system we must use theory however, equally important is the application of this theory and the assessment of the curriculum.