Eric Stoller's Blog

Nontraditional / Older Adult Support Services briefing

Overview

What is an older adult student? Why are they nontraditional?
( University of Georgia — OWLs (Older Wiser Learners).

• Traditional Definition of a Nontraditional Older Adult Student:
  25 years of age or older.
• New views: Some have argued that the categorization
  of a student as an adult should be related to “life circumstances.” “People
  who are independent from their parents, people who have competing responsibilities
  such as work and family and community involvement—these people are
  adult learners regardless of their age.” (Tate)

OSU undergraduate students who are 25 years of age or older — 1,746

OSU’s oldest undergraduate student — 78

Eleven percent of OSU undergraduate students are nontraditional older adults.

History

• Higher Education has had an adult student presence since the late 1800’s
• Increase in Older Adult Students.
  From 1971 to 1991, adult students increased nationwide from 28% to 43%.
• Women make up a larger percentage of adult students than men.
  From 1970 to 2000, female adult enrollments have increased by 59.2 percent
  while male adult enrollments have increased by 40.8 percent.

Multiple Roles and Success

• Focus learning on skills and knowledge that are applicable to life circumstances
• Have a complex knowledge base due to age
• Are involved with families, communities, and careers
• Interact with faculty and peers without being ostracized

Functions of Nontraditional – Older Adult Support Services

• Information on financial aid and admissions programs that orient students
  to campus
• Information on child care, housing, and community resources
• Resources to help develop familiarity with computers, math, writing, and
  other student skills

Nontraditional – Older Adult Support Services Professionals

• No set standard.
• Commitment to diversity
• Orientation programs, Student Involvement, Deans of Graduate Schools
• Generalists

Competencies

• Advising and counseling adult students individually and in groups.
• Advocating for adult students in policy-making and design of facilities
  as well as the instructional program.
• Working with adult students to become involved in institutional activities.
• Arranging social activities for adult students.
• Working with faculty to understand the different approaches that may be
  necessary when teaching adult students.
• Conducting research into the underrepresented groups and, once identified,
  develop a range of proactive strategies that are welcoming, preparatory and
  assist in promoting success.
• Promoting the advantages of education in the community.
• Organizing cultural orientation/preparatory programs that assist in the
  transition into study.
• Negotiating appropriate space for observers of religious beliefs, as well
  as rooms and support for clubs, societies, functions, and the like.
• Initiating learning programs that are culturally diverse and meaningful.
• Offering staff development workshops that improve awareness of nontraditional
  student needs and requisites.

(INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS AND SERVICES PROFESSIONALS)

Future

• By 2010, 38.2% of college students will be 25 years or older.
  ( National Center for Education Statistics)

Implications for Student Affairs Practitioners

• separate registration, advising, and orientation;
• greater availability of and access to parking;
• more evening and weekend course offerings;
• special assistance with financial aid and housing; and
• better preparation of faculty and staff to meet the needs of adult students.

Organizational Examples

• California State – Fullerton
• University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
• University of New England
• Penn State University

Resources

Associations
NASPA
ACPA – Commission for Commuter Students & Adult Learners

Online

Back to College: http://www.back2college.com

Penn State University – Center for Adult Learner Services: http://www.sa.psu.edu/cals/

Purdue University – SPAN Program: http://www.purdue.edu/odos/counsel/indexspanplan.htm

Oregon State University – 25+: http://osumu.org/non_traditional.htm
Oregon State University Educational Opportunities Program: http://oregonstate.edu/dept/eop/

Iowa State University – Adult Student and Off Campus Resources: http://www.ocass.iastate.edu/resources.htm#ADULT

ERIC Clearinghouse on Counseling and Personnel Services Ann Arbor MI.
Benshoff, James M. – Lewis, Henry A.

http://www.ericfacility.net/ericdigests/ed347483.html

National Academic Advising Association

http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/index.htm

Miscellaneous
The Role of Student Affairs and Services in Higher Education: A Practical Manual
For Developing, Implementing, and Assessing Student Affairs Programmes and
Services. International Association of Student Affairs and Services Professionals
(IASAS).

Penn State Hendrick Conference on Best Practices in Adult Learning May 10,
2004 “Building an Adult Learning Focused Institution: Why and
How” Pamela Tate, President and CEO, Council for Adult and Experiential
Learning (CAEL)

University of Northern Iowa: A brief history

I attended the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) from 1997 through the summer of 2000. I experienced classes in both old and new buildings, attended campus rituals and was involved with Student Organizations. My involvement with UNI accounts for only 2 percent of the entire history of the university.

Founding and History
Founded in 1876 as the Iowa State Normal School, UNI had a dual purpose. First, the citizens of Iowa, affected by the Civil War, wanted to educate the children of Civil War soldiers/sailors. Second, Iowa needed an institution focused on the schooling of teachers. This does not mean that UNI was created without controversy. Private schools, concerned that UNI would take away their business, lobbied against its creation. “By thin margins — one vote in the Senate and two votes in the House — the bill passed” which started UNI.

“The first class at the Iowa State Normal School (UNI) was held on September 6, 1876, with twenty-seven students in attendance.” Students and faculty lived together in the school’s sole building, Central Hall. Students relied on Principal James Gilchrist’s personal collection of books for their studies and research. By 1880, 233 students had enrolled at UNI. To accommodate the college’s tremendous growth, South Hall (later named Gilchrist Hall) was erected in 1883. It contained classrooms, living space, and a chapel.

Student life was fairly rigorous:
During the week the rising bell rang at 6 A.M. Breakfast was at 7:05 with assembly and roll call at 8:40. Classes and study ran from 9 until 12:15. Dinner was served at 12:40 and classes and study resumed at 1:40 and ran until 4. The time from 4:30 until 5:40 was for students to get exercise from walking or other activities. Tea was served at 6:05. Students studied during the evening and lights were to be extinguished by 10:30. Students could ask to leave school grounds on Saturday afternoons, but the remainder of the weekend was meant for study. Principal Gilchrist led UNI for ten years. During that time, hundreds of students were “educated and taught in all parts of Iowa.”

Mission
Today, the primary mission of the University of Northern Iowa is to educate undergraduate students. The university is “Iowa’s only public university that is distinguished by its emphasis on undergraduate education.”

Major Developments
The beginning of the twentieth century was difficult for UNI as the state legislature of Iowa decided that there was to be no “duplication” or “overlap in fields of study.” The Bachelor of Arts degree, which UNI offered, was deemed too similar to a comparative program at the state college at Iowa City. Because of this “challenge”, in 1909, UNI’s name was changed to the Iowa State Teachers College. This further solidified UNI’s role as an educator of teachers. UNI would be renamed again in 1961 as the State College of Iowa and would officially be named the University of Northern Iowa in 1967.

Facts and Tidbits
Since 1910, the cost of attending UNI has risen by over 500 percent. There were a total of 89,863 living alumni as of the fall of 2003. 12,824 students currently attend UNI. 8 men have served as the University’s Presidents. The current president, Dr. Robert Koob, is an alum of UNI. UNI is home to the UNI-Dome. When it opened in 1975, the UNI-Dome “was one of only four air-supported fabric-covered large permanent structures in the world.” In addition to the UNI-Dome, UNI has two unique residence halls. Bender and Dancer Hall tower contain 13 levels and are the tallest buildings in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Reference sites:
http://www.library.uni.edu/speccoll/bh/bhtowers.html

http://www.library.uni.edu/speccoll/unihist.html

http://www.library.uni.edu/speccoll/famous.html

http://www.library.uni.edu/speccoll/homehistorical.html

http://www.library.uni.edu/speccoll/unifacts.html

http://www.uni.edu/pres/1996-2001strategicplan/fspmishn.html

The Dean of Students

The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education provides a framework and guidance for 28 functional areas in student affairs (Miller et al, 2003). One student affairs area that is not mentioned is the Dean of Students. Perhaps this area is not considered a functional area because of its lack of standardization. According to Komives, Woodard, and Associates, the Dean of Students “carries the burden of helping students while establishing and enforcing both community standards and institutional standards at the same time” (2003, p. 346). I chose the Dean of Students, specifically the role of the undergraduate Dean, as the focus of my functional paper because of the variety of responsibilities that fall within the purview of the position. Current research on the role of the Dean of Students is meager at best. It would be fascinating to find out how many colleges and universities have a Dean of Students. An online search for Dean of Students results in page after page of university web sites regarding their Dean of Students. Although the present day Dean of Students is rarely written about, I will attempt to enlighten myself and others by summarizing the vast history of the position, looking at possible job responsibilities, and highlighting competencies which are necessary to be a Dean of Students.

History

The origins of the Dean of Students are differentiated primarily by gender. Men became Deans of Men and Women became Deans of Women. According to Arthur Sandeen (2004), LeBaron Russell Briggs, the first “student dean” was appointed at Harvard College in 1890. Briggs was appointed by Harvard’s president, Charles Eliot. Eliot, in an effort to “manage his increasing work load” created a faculty dean and a student dean (Schwartz, 2001). Briggs’ success at Harvard inspired other colleges to create student dean positions. These early Deans of Men valued “personality as a part of the deans’ natural affinity for work with students” (Sandeen, 2004). Initially, Deans of Men did not champion graduate study, research, or publication (Sandeen, 2004). In an effort to dialogue with fellow Deans of Men, “Robert Rienow, the dean of men at the University of Iowa, wrote a letter to Thomas Arkle Clark, dean of men at the University of Illinois, suggesting a meeting that is now recognized as the founding of the NASPA: Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education” (NASPA History).

Women started to make strides in the early 19 th century as Deans of Women began to emerge. In 1833 Oberlin College was “the first institution to establish such a position in the form of a lady principal” (Herdlein, 2004). According to Holmes, in a survey sent out to 55 institutions in 1911, “44 had deans of women or women serving in that capacity” (as cited in Herdlein, 2004). According to Schwartz, deans of women, "laid the foundation of professional practice for higher education administration and student services, including graduate study, development of professional associations, research on students, professional literature and journals, and professionalization of the position of dean of women….Most of the significant and well-established practices of higher education administration and student services that exist today were put in place through the work of the deans of women" (as cited in Tuttle, 2004). Contrasting the early behaviors of the Deans of Men, Deans of Women “encouraged graduate study” (Schwartz, 2001). They also “published their own academic journals, and even produced a book on the topic (women deans) in 1915” (Schwartz, 2001). Women deans developed what could be considered the precursor to NASPA when the Association of Collegiate Alumnae was formed in the 1880’s (Schwartz, 2001). Women deans were also responsible for the creation of regional professional associations (Schwartz, 2002). Student Affairs as a viable profession was a direct result of these early Dean of Students positions (Sandeen, 2004).

In the mid 1900’s, the title of Dean of Men/Women was being phased out. Tuttle explains that “the rise of psychology as a discipline…the influence of Progressive education, with its focus on the individual student…and the call for an organization based on function, not gender” all contributed to the demise of gender-oriented positions (2004). “Esther Lloyd-Jones…is credited with suggesting the name "dean of students" for the new administrator in charge of offices serving both female and male students” (Tuttle, 2004). The transition from gender specific deans, to the current Dean of Students title, is written about for both Deans of Men/Women. The transition was filled with turmoil and allegations of gender bias. Schwartz states that Deans of Men became upper level administrators while women deans “found themselves with fewer and fewer responsibilities and eventually, many simply retired, heart-broken and defeated” (2001).

Present Day

Unfortunately, the literature up to this point in time has focused primarily on the history of the Dean of Student. Present day iterations are nowhere to be found except in slight paragraphs. Komives et al states that the function of the dean of students is to “respond to students, faculty, and staff, parents, community members, and others concerned with student related issues or concerns that arise on campus” (2003). Deans of Students can be in charge of several of the functional student affairs areas. Because there is not a defined role for the Dean of Students, I will simply list several areas which a Dean of Students might oversee. I will also provide practical examples. When placed into a hierarchical model where the Dean of Students is in charge of student life, several CAS functional areas appear. Student Judicial/Conduct, Counseling, Health and Wellness, Orientation, Campus Activities, Career Services, Residence Life and LGBT Programs are a few of the possible areas within student affairs that a Dean of Students could oversee. This view does not take into account the increased managerial factors which occur when a Dean of Students is also a Vice President. Our in class discussions have touched on the many areas that Jackie Balzer as interim Dean of Students at OSU is in charge of. One can assume that a Dean of Students who is supervised by a vice president would act as a parental buffer for the VP.

Competencies

It would seem that it is then necessary to establish competencies which can handle the pressures of dealing with multiple constituencies. Due to the non-categorical nature of the Dean of Students role, I have gathered a list of competencies based on Dean of Students job postings found on both the Chronicle of Higher Education and NASPA websites and from various Dean of Students websites. However, I believe it is not necessary to list all of these competencies because the Dean of Students is the quintessential generalist of the student affairs profession. Jackie Balzer has stated that she is part of a variety of student affairs associations and is connected to her peers via several listservs. Seemingly, a competent Dean of Students is an individual who has studied all of the functional areas of student affairs. Dean of Students are important because they can be called upon as campus wide resources of copious amounts of student affairs information. Stanford University gives us an example of the importance of finding the correct Dean of Students. Stanford University recently conducted a search for a new Dean of Students. The search lasted for almost a year. Stanford was so intent on hiring a competent dean that, after the first round of applications failed to produce a qualified candidate; they hired a search firm to find someone who was a perfect fit. What did Gregory Boardman have that made him the right candidate for the job? “He listens to students very well; he’s a great colleague and administrator. He’s a wonderful person and he has a good feel about him", said Stanford Vice Provost for Student Affairs Gene Awakuni (Stanford Report, 2004).

It is my hope that future time and energy will be devoted to understanding the present and future roles of the Dean of Students. Student Affairs professionals owe their professional existence to the men and women who were the Deans of Men/Women. Perhaps NASPA, ACPA, and/or CAS can be called upon to revitalize the study of this historically relevant position.

References

Delgado, R. (2004). Boardman jumps into role as new dean of students. Stanford
Report, .Retrieved Oct 19, 2004, from
http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2004/february11/boardman-211.html

Herdlein, R. J.J. (2004). Thyrsa Wealtheow Amos: the dean of deans. NASPA
Journal, 41(2), 336-355.

Komives, S., Woodard, Jr., D., & associates. (2003). Student services:
a handbook for the profession. 4th ed. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass.

Miller, T. (Ed.). (2003). The book of professional standards for higher
education. 3rd ed.

Washington , DC : Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education.

National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, (n.d.). NASPA history.
retrieved Oct 19, 2004 , from About NASPA Web site: http://naspa.org/about/index.cfm?show=5.

Sandeen, A. (2004). Educating the whole student: the growing academic importance
of student affairs. Change, 36(3), 28-33.

Schwartz, R. A. (2001). The Disappearing Deans of Men — Where They Went
and Why: A Historical Perspective. Annual Meeting of the American Educational
Research Association. Seattle , Washington .

Schwartz, R. A.A. (2002). The rise and demise of deans of men. The Review
of Higher Education, 26(2), 217-239.

Tuttle, K. (2004). The Historical Perspective of Women Administrators in
Higher Education. 2004 NASPA Alice Manicur Symposium.