Running head: STUDENT AFFAIRS PHILOSOPHY 1

Student Affairs Philosophy

Amy Yang

Western Illinois University

STUDENT AFFAIRS PHILOSOPHY 2

Buckingham and Coffman once said: The talented employee may join the company

because of its charismatic leaders, its generous benefits, and its world-class training programs,

but how long that employee stays and how productive he is while he is there is determined by his

relationship with his immediate supervisor. Although this quote comes from a supervisor-

supervisee perspective, the main message, relationships, still significantly aligns to the student

affairs and higher education field. Not only do our relationships matter with our students, staff,

faculty, parents, and the campus community as a whole, but also sharing a common mission and

engaging in self-reflection are critical components to what I believe develops the success of a

student affairs practitioner.

Relationships matter: It connects individuals together and plays a role in how people

make meaning of the world around them. By developing relationships with students and other

stakeholders in higher education, student affairs practitioners will be able to foster student

development better. For example, my offices relationship with faculty from different

departments across campus could help me create collaborations with them. Although this

partnership may seem quite simple, it still aids in creating a bridge between student and

academic affairs. These relationships could then create learning inside and outside of the

classroom, which gives students the opportunity to gain a holistic undergraduate experience.

Overall, the power of relationships can create learning, empathy, understanding, and meaningful

partnerships among the campus community, all of which is crucial in higher education.

In addition to the importance of relationships, understanding the mission of the institution

is imperative. If student affairs practitioners understand what the institutions goal is, then they

would be able to create tailored services and programs to better meet that goal. Those services

and programs will be more intentional and effective because they align back to what the
STUDENT AFFAIRS PHILOSOPHY 3

institution is standing and or striving towards. I think sometimes professionals in higher

education forget about what the institution stands for, and consequently, miscommunication

occurs and relationships are put at stake. Most importantly, a disservice towards students could

be put in to play when there is a lack of understanding with the schools mission.

While it is important to understand the mission of an institution, it is also important to

engage in self-reflection. I strongly believe that I will not be able to help my students and the

institution to the best of my ability if I do not continue to learn who I am as an individual. This

self-reflection will be a life-long learning process. I have my own biases, and my background

has given me different experiences from others. As a result, if I do not continue to reflect about

who I am, I may be in danger of staying within my own comfort zone and lose out on valuable

perspectives. I also think self-reflection is a good way to help me be conscious about what I still

need to learn in the field to better serve my students. Staying current with hot topics and trends

in the field will help me understand what challenges higher education is facing and what

resources students need, all of which can help me frame how to meet my students where they

are at.

There are a variety of components that drives the success of students, staff, faculty,

institution, and the campus community. And with my philosophy, I think three most important

components are relationships, the schools mission, and self-reflection. Sticking to these values

will help me be closer to the success of helping my students and the institution as a whole.

Although I have discussed my philosophy, I think parts of it may change throughout my student

affairs career depending on my experiences and perhaps, position. With that said, I think it goes

back to the idea of viewing learning as a life-long process and just being open-minded to change,

all of which I strongly believe fosters a great student affairs professional.