The purpose of this study was to explore the performance appraisal experience of 14 mid-level women in student affairs administration at four-year colleges and universities in Northern Illinois using a qualitative research approach involving personal interviews. Previous research on career development and advancement of mid-level women in student…

This article investigates the experience of individual learners who have been allocated learning support in the further education system in England. The particular focus is on interviewees' constructions of their emotional and psychic experiences. Through the adoption of a psycho-social perspective, learners' tendency to "idealise" their…

To improve student retention in distance education, Simpson suggested in 2003 that institutions analyse their own retention characteristics and "spot the leaks." In 2008 the Centre for Distance Learning at Laidlaw College, New Zealand, employed two part-time academic support coordinators in an effort to improve student retention and…

This study investigates the cultures of the academic and student affairs divisions within one selective residential liberal arts institution. Specifically, the study investigates how faculty and student affairs personnel perceive their own and each other's roles as educators on the campus and how these perceptions influence the potential for…

As part of the "face" a university projects to the world, student service staff play a key role in constructing an institution's external identity. Yet, there have been few studies of who are the general staff providing these services, and how they define their role within their institutions. Although there have been several excellent studies…

The purpose of this study was to promote an ethic of care and justice through the examination of the manifestations of whiteness within student affairs on a Jesuit Catholic university campus. To achieve this purpose a qualitative, exploratory case study was used to examine a student affairs division at Western Jesuit University (pseudonym), an…

This article reports themes that emerged from interviews with 16 senior student affairs officers following the September 11th tragedies. Themes related to personal and professional reactions to the terrorist attacks are discussed. The authors focus on the stated desire of several SSAOs to compartmentalize their reactions and the possible…

The author contends that very often what students do not ask or say during an interview is more indicative of their potential than what is traditionally verbalized. It is the job of the recruiter to go beyond this disguise. (BY)

This article presents the methodology and findings on school attendance obtained over two years from 2006 for the National Behaviour and Attendance Review in Wales. The review was led and chaired by the author and the report was presented to the Minister for Children, Lifelong Learning and Skills and the Welsh Assembly Government in May 2008. The…

For-profit higher education has expanded dramatically over the last decade and represents a newly prominent choice for students pursuing postsecondary education. How do for-profit institutions serve and support students? The practice of student affairs in the for-profit sector was explored through campus visits and interviews with administrators…

Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is an organization development (OD) philosophy that utilizes and builds on past successes, using these as positive momentum for future change. AI provides student affairs with an alternative and generative approach to improving their organizations' processes and culture. As student affairs professionals look to the future…

Margaret Ruth Smith interviews Esther Lloyd-Jones, a pioneer in Student Personnel work and, while tracing her career, highlights major trends in the student personnel field. (HMV)

Four student affairs administrators were interviewed to determine the topics they felt the campus activities profession ought to explore. The question of how campus activities can be used to aid social issues, such as depression, substance abuse, and loneliness, are discussed. (MLW)

To many students who are in the process of withdrawing, the exit interview is an important and helpful service. It may be the last chance to help or assist the student, and to help him perceive the university as being concerned about him as an individual. Most importantly, the exit interview opens the door for the student to return to college…

Little has been written about the roles and functions of student affairs administrators during the civil rights era. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine how the civil rights era influenced the student affairs profession, paying particular attention to the roles played by student affairs administrators in relation to students, other…