Being More Outgoing

Student Affairs is small. We all know it. How many times have you gone to a conference or other student affairs event, and run into people you have worked with in the past? When I first got my new position, I found out that there are a lot of people that have worked for my current institution that are now working at my graduate institution (and vice versa). But how often do we really try to take advantage of how small the field actually is?

One of my former supervisors does an amazing job at this. During my job search, every time I told him about a new position I had applied to or scheduled an interview with, he would recommend people that he knows who used to work at that institution. Then, he would take the extra step and contact them to see if they would be willing to talk with me about their experiences. It was something that I valued greatly, and I’m not even sure if I ever told him how much I appreciate it (I was usually so nervous about having to talk with someone new, that it probably slipped my mind).

This is definitely something I want to continue doing for people I know. I want to take an active role in helping them out as much as possible; whether it is a student, student staff member, peer, or even a superior. The only way I can go about helping them is through making connections and networks myself (something that I currently struggle with, as I’m not the typical outgoing Student Affairs Professional). But I’m trying to challenge myself professionally, and personally, by trying to make connections more quickly.

In Grad school, I waited until the middle of my second year to really start hanging out with people in the program. I am pretty young compared to my peers in my cohort, and I was intimated by the fact that they were older. This is one of the silliest things I could have done, because we were all going through a lot of similar experiences that could have benefited one another if we were only talking about them. Then, after I stated hanging out with them outside of the classroom, I realized that I have a lot in common with some of them, and we wound up becoming close friends.

Therefore, I am trying to be more outgoing, so that I don’t lose the opportunity for close friendships, as well as professional relationships. Please share some advice for what you do to be more outgoing in new environments.

Higher Education Revolutionized

Do you think Student Affairs professionals had any idea 10 years ago what the field would be like today? Do you think they realized the potential for online classes and new technological advances that could push the field of higher education further than it has ever been before? Times are changing and higher education is trying its best to adapt with the times, which is probably more difficult than many people think, especially given budget cuts and sometimes very unrealistic demands from students and their parents.

What if we reimagined what we want higher education to be? There are many visionaries currently at work for this specific task, and they are already dreaming up amazingly brilliant ideas; entire courses and curriculums available online and new ways of adapting online learning that anyone can be a part of (check out “TED talks,” http://www.ted.com/talks  and “The Floating University,” http://www.floatinguniversity.com/ ). These opportunities allow anyone to watch and learn from very thought-provoking discussions and lectures that can spark creative ideas in everyone.

However, students have been adapting with the times much more quickly than higher education has been. Students have brand new computers, iPads and iPhones, and all sorts of new technological advances. Meanwhile, I’m still trying to figure out how the hell to use the Twitter account that I created nearly three years ago. Because I feel so far removed from my residents (in terms of technology and innovating ideas), I began brainstorming what the future of higher education might be 10 years from now.

I think higher education will probably revolutionize into something very different from what it is today. We will need to continue to adapt and push the envelope in terms of challenging typical notions of what has been done in the past (similar to the way the “Big Ideas Conference” has challenged the typical notion of what a conference is…check out http://www.bigideasproject.org/ for more information. The Jersey Alliance has been working diligently to plan and host this conference which brings in experts from other fields to talk about their expertise and inspire us to bring aspects back to our field).

What if this new, revolutionized, higher education is more like Wikipedia? Perhaps higher education becomes free and something that everyone contributes to, rather than having professors stand up and ‘teach’ the course. This could be online, but it can also be done in real classes where instead of a professor, the course is managed by a facilitator. Then learning would be more of a round table discussion where higher education and free thought are something that people are excited about…not something they must plow through in 4-however many years in order to get a piece of paper so they can get a job.

Or, what if formal education becomes substituted by real world knowledge and experiences? Instead, students have full time jobs and/or internships that are complemented by courses where students can learn basics and share their experiences (almost like my field experience course in grad school).

While these are just some ideas that I was  having at the moment, I am curious as to how student affairs could potentially play into these situations or the future of higher education in general. Will we be able to continue incorporating new technologies (like  iPads and other things) to really engage our students? Imagine the possibilities of utilizing technologies in innovating ways for higher education; perhaps creating apps that enhance student scavenger hunts and replace paper fliers for programs. Imagine replacing textbooks with interactive apps to supplement real world learning!

Or imagine an app that syncs with location…so as students walk around during a campus tour, their phones and/or other technological devices automatically pop up with information about their current location to supplement the instructor. While it may seem unrealistic, I think it is a real possibility (especially given the fact that TV shows like Conan are already utilizing something similar. Check out http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/conan-obrien-presents-team/id501249857?mt=8 for a brief description).

While there are many positive aspects to these types of advances, we must remember that it will also present us with some challenges as well. In particular, what implications would these advances have on already declining social skills for our students?

What are your thoughts? Please share your opinion on the future of higher education and Student Affairs in general!