NUFP Midpoint

A highlight of my experience thus far has been my attendance to the 15th Annual National Conference on Students in Transition hosted by the National Resource Center for the First Year Experience and Students in Transition. The conference was held early November and highlighted several presenters from around the country. This was an eventful experience because this was my first time being in the presence of student affairs practitioners from institutions other than my own.

The focus of my mentoring experiences has been directed towards issues relative to my institution, the conference helped me hear that no matter the size of the campus, the population of students or geographic location the issues in some way are the same and student affairs professionals are needed to develop innovative and challenging means of servicing the whole student and ensuring their academic, social and mental growth with limited resources. From the conference I further explored my interest in the growing need to address the millennial generation as they embark on the workplace. We are at a place in time where several generations are mixing in the workplace.

For the upcoming semester I expect to further explore offices that I initially did not express interest in like development, the career center, admissions and judicial. This semester I will talk to more of USC’s own upper administrators and gain an understanding of the history of student affairs and the direction they see it moving towards. These conversations will help me understand my further role in higher education and student affairs..

To ensure that I have an opportunity to explore as many aspects of student affairs I will continue to have one-on-one interviews with staff and graduate students in the various offices. Speaking with the grad students is less formal than the staff members because I just want to learn how they came to higher education and essentially, they have helped with my application process. I will gain skills in cultural competency by attending in the Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SLDC), I am also presenting on diversity during the New Member Institute sponsored by the Office of Greek Life. My mentor and I actively examine my personal goals, both academic and professional. I plan to keep up better with my blog regarding my NUFP experience, I will be attending the annual conference over Spring Break and continue to read and reflect on articles relative to current events relative to student affairs.

My mentor, Anna Edwards and I will continue to meet each week. Meeting each week, even if not for the whole hour just to touch base on articles assigned to read or comments heard on the news relative to higher education helped build and strengthen our relationship. I really appreciate the flexibility of our schedule. Almost every learning objective as defined for fellows has been met or my mentor and I have identified ways to meet the objectives.