This descriptive study aimed to answer two research questions: (a) what are the assessment, evaluation, and research (AER) competencies necessary for three educator types (teachers, K-12 administrators, and higher education student affairs professionals); and (b) what are the similarities and differences in competencies by educator type? Current…

This qualitative study grounded in feminist theory uses narrative inquiry to explore the stories of 26 senior women student affairs leaders. We tell the collective story we heard participants bring forward by describing plotlines that reverberated across their accounts. We call these plotlines: "Experiencing Communication through Gendered…

Learning centers and tutoring programs serve a unique function as they are situated between academic and student affairs. Despite their importance, little research has focused on the key knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies required for success as learning center directors. This qualitative study addressed this gap by exploring critical…

This ethnographic study aims to understand the effect of COVID-19 on schools in the United States and Scotland for students at secondary schools. Challenges in education have been immense since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools shifted to "safer at home" policies driving in-person classroom learning to online learning. Early…

Student affairs administrators in higher education spend time advocating for students in times of crisis. Whether case management occurs within a full-time case management role or as added responsibilities onto an administrator's job, the hours and minutes spent helping students manage crises add up to a significant amount of time. This article…

This study examines how Chief Student Affairs Officers (CSAO) make sense of their role engaging with fundraising at small, private, liberal arts institutions with endowments below the median endowment size of $140.2 million. Specifically examining how they make sense of engaging with fundraising and how they have gained knowledge or experience in…

Student affairs practitioners in higher education have been leaving the field at an alarming rate (National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, 2022). As personnel working on the front lines in efforts related to student success and retention, early-career incumbents in these positions experiencing such high rates of attrition…

Approximately two-thirds of Latinx college students attend Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). Despite the growing number of HSIs, these institutions often fail to result in better educational outcomes and success for Latinx students. As such, more research is needed to explore factors that may hinder HSIs in their ability to support Latinx…

Vice Presidents of Student Affairs (VPSAs) lead in a context nuanced around race that conflicts with their duty to enact the student affairs profession's espoused values of social justice and inclusion. This paper summarizes findings from a critical qualitative case study conducted with 10 VPSAs from a diverse group of institutions located in the…

The experience of undergraduate students in American higher education is curated by student affairs and student services professionals. However, there is not a great deal of scholarship focusing on how these practitioners' leadership style impacts this experience. This study seeks to analyze how student affairs and student services directors'…

Adjudication of allegations of student misconduct in campus living facilities is one of many responsibilities often held by residence hall staff. After receiving an incident report, these administrators may address concerns like roommate conflicts, fire safety, vandalism, and alcohol consumption with their residents in formal or informal meetings…

The sustainability of the student affairs profession continues to be questioned, as is the conditions influencing attrition and "burnout" of those working in the student affairs profession over time. Therefore, understanding the workplace conditions of midlevel student affairs administrators continues to be an important area of inquiry…

Student conduct administrators are charged with crafting and enforcing an institution's code of conduct equitably for all students. Few administrators are in a position to disrupt or end a student's college career. Public institutions' administrators function as state actors and must uphold the student rights protected in the landmark 1961 Dixon…

The aim of this study is to explore the functions that professional networks could have as sense givers during the process in which professional support staff at higher education institutions make sense of their roles. The empirical data comprise interviews with three categories of support staff at three technical universities in Sweden and a…

The study aims to explore the practice of continuous assessment (CA) and associated challenges of implementation in higher education institutions located in Amhara National Regional State, Ethiopia. Drawing on assessment for learning and institutional theory, the qualitative multi-case design includes informants from three public universities.…