Integrative Theme: Areas of Improvement (LO #3, LO #7, LO #8, LO#9 Artifacts A, G, H, J) The integrative macro-theme for my Areas

of Improvement narrative is Technical Leadership in Student Affairs. The theme of leadership is a skill that I have sought to grow in throughout my time in the program. I entered the program feeling that I was not a leader, and did not know the first step to becoming one. Through various courses, internship experiences, and an employment change, I feel that I am leaving this program with a better conceptualization of what leadership is for me. I define technical leadership as my ability to move beyond theory and into practice, and in particular, to use the technical skills of evaluation and financial governance to improve my best practices as a leader in my future professional roles. Learning Outcome Dimensions Leadership in Action is demonstrated by LOs #3 and #8. The key dimensions for LO #3 include exhibiting ethical leadership in professional practice, justice and equity in leadership and establishing a theoretical basis in my leadership style. As seen in Artifact J, my group and I were tasked with creating a workshop for undergraduate students at SU. This opportunity challenged me to move from developing confidence in my leadership ability and into establishing identity (Chickering and Reisser, 1993). I feel confident in my ability to lead and facilitate discussion groups, workshops, and presentations using the skills gained in this leadership opportunity. In order to best exemplify LO #3, I must continue to understand how my salient identities intersect with my leadership style and the students I serve. As an emerging professional who hopes to serve underrepresented populations, I am often challenged by my privilege as a white, female, who has various forms of capital (familial, dominant culture and linguistic, and more)

that many of the students I serve do not possess. The challenge of leading a population that my identities do not represent will always remain present. To best serve these students, I must utilize my privilege to advocate for the needs of the students I serve and move from a place of authority to a place of allyship (Waters, 2010). While not easy, this is a goal I will strive for my entire career. In LO#8 the dimensions include communicating effectively in writing and articulating skills from practice into written word. In Artifact A, the reader can see my transformation in meeting these dimensions. Through self -authorship (Baxter Magolda & King, 2004), I was able to define what aspects of my identity and experiences I wanted to convey in my resume. While it is easy for me to sell my abilities short, I feel that this artifact demonstrates growth in my ability to express my leadership experiences and abilities. Meaningful Evaluation is important to me because of the necessity of evaluation in improving ones work and establishing best practices. This is established in LO #7. The three dimensions of this outcome are: utilizing assessment and evaluation to improve practice, utilizing technology to improve practice, and utilizing research to improve practice. My experience in evaluation is developing, and I gained valuable experience in this as demonstrated in Artifact E and Artifact H. In Artifact E, my SDAD 566 internship, I was able to meet all three of these LO dimensions through my research and evaluation of ISC transfer student success. In Artifact H I was able to conduct a meaningful evaluation of my own skills and competencies through the NASPA/ACPA competency analysis. This evaluation allowed me to take an in-depth look at where I am at as a student affairs professional, and how I can move into a more confident leader in the future. By utilizing Scholssbergs (1984) transition theory, I am

able to articulate how I perceive the transitions within my professional development and how to move through these transitions. Financial Governance is the missing piece from my SDA educational experience. Financial governance can be defined in LO# 9. The dimensions of financial governance include developing and implanting budgets and utilizing financial resources to improve student experiences. It has been my experience that in order to implement new trainings, programs, or events within a department, the financial resources must be available. Though my artifacts and experiences to date dont directly exemplify this sub-theme, I have realized that in order to gain additional funding for a project, one must present a strong case as to why the money is needed. In EDUC 513, I developed a research proposal (Artifact G) that can be used to advocate for increased funding to transfer student services. Demonstration of Development in the Learning Outcomes Past Prior to the SDA program, I had little competency in these areas. I did not feel that I could be successful in a leadership role, and did not understand the value of research, assessment, and financial governance. These may be some of the less fun aspects of student affairs, but they are vital to enhancing best practices within departments and institutions as a whole. Present In SDAD 570 and 571, I had many opportunities to reflect on my leadership style as well as theoretically effective leadership styles. In particular, I have found Kouzes and Posners (2012) The Leadership Challenge to be one of the most helpful resources in guiding how I approach leadership opportunities and how I will manage the dimensions of Leadership in

Action. Artifacts E and H demonstrate two different aspects of Meaningful Evaluation. Evaluation of current programming and student experience is crucial to continue meeting student needs, but it is also important to assess myself and if I am pushing myself to be the best student affairs professional I can be. These evaluations tie into Bronfenbrenners (2005) elements of process, person, and context. In order to make evaluation meaningful these elements must exist and provide the framework for the evaluation. While the benefits and limits of budget have been discussed in all of my professional experiences within this program, I have not had direct experience with Financial Governance. I have chosen Artifact G, my mock research proposal to demonstrate this theme, but the majority, if not all, of my artifacts would not be possible without Financial Governance. This is why Ive chosen it as an area of improvement. Financial resources have a direct impact on the limits a program or department has to grow and develop their services and resources. Future I hope to eventually become a director or dean of a division, and in order to do this, will need to have mastery of these technical leadership skills. In my first professional job after graduation, I will seek experience in these areas through my professional job as well as my professional association memberships. As I will no longer gain experience through internships, I hope to join on-campus taskforces and committees to gain a more holistic understanding of how other departments manage technical leadership. To further develop my competence in LO#9, I will continue to stay current with higher education law cases, and state and federal mandates that relate to higher education. As financial aid and student rights become an ever increasing topic of concern for student affairs professionals, it is crucial that I remain current in local, state, and federal laws and policies.

SDAD 580 has provided me the knowledge base to access and comprehend the foundations of the issues so that I can remain informed in the future.

References Baxter-Magolda, M., Hall, M.H., & Parks, S.D. (2009). Authoring your life: Developing an internal voice to navigate lifes challenges. Thousand Oaks: Jossey-Bass. Bronfenbrenner, U. (1986). Ecology of the family as a context for human development: Research perspectives. Developmental psychology, 22(6), 723-742. Evans N., Forney D., Guido F., Patton L., Renn K. (2010). Chickerings Theory of Identity Development. Student Development in College (pp. 64-81). San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass. Evans N., Forney D., Guido F., Patton L., Renn K. (2010). Schlossbergs Transition Theory. Student Development in College (pp. 212-226). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Kouzes, J., Posner, B. (2012). Encouraging the heart. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Nash, R.J. (2010). What is the best way to be a social justice advocate? Communication strategies for effective social justice advocacy. About Campus, 15(2), p.11-18 Waters, R. (2010). Understanding allyhood as a developmental process. About Campus, 15(5), p.2-8.