We value student learning and development as essential elements of student affairs practice. Understanding and applying theories of learning and development helps to develop the whole student and support the recognition of each individual student’s uniqueness. To that end, we value:

• The application of student development theory not only for professional use, but also as a tool for self-understanding and personal development.
• The ability to apply student development theory effectively, ethically, and appropriately in a variety of professional capacities, including – teaching, advising, programming, counseling, policy development, leadership, and other areas of student affairs practice.
• The ability to critique individual theories as well as the overall body of theories and to promote research that leads to new theory formulation.
• A synthesis of formal theory, emerging theory, and personal voices as aspects of student development theory.
• The inclusion of theories from other professional fields of study such as typologies, counseling theory, and learning styles.
• The inclusion of theory describing the experience of traditional aged college students as well as the more general body of theory regarding adult development.
• The inclusion of diverse views of development, including human development theory and theories and perspectives about diversity and diverse populations.
• Examining social identities, multiple identities, and other intersecting domains of development.

Our shared goal and responsibility is to inspire hope that our greatest human potential will emerge through the understanding and living of multiculturalism, as described through:

• respecting differences among people, and acknowledging the complexities within ourselves and other;
• recognizing that we each have a race, gender, sexual orientation, class, ability, ethnicity, and so forth, which contributes to our own personal identity and our mutual interconnectedness;
• engaging in a process-oriented life journey that stimulates personal growth, development of voice, and self-knowledge;
• creating an inclusive and safe environment where multiple perspectives can be explored and expressed;
• fostering a community of active and interdependent learners committed to the intentional expression of constructive dialogue and action;
• understanding that this commitment requires courage to deal with conflict and dissonance;
• challenging ourselves and others to think critically about multiculturalism;
• sustaining a commitment for action towards the elimination of oppression and the promotion of equality, justice, and freedom; and taking on the responsibility to become change agents working for social justice, thus nurturing hope for a better world through multiculturalism.

  Last Revised: July, 1998

Student Affairs professionals are responsible providing leadership to their institutions in creating programs, policies, and experiences that will enhance students' learning experience.   Leadership means working with others effectively to accomplish change. The program supports and teaches leadership values such as:

• Promoting leadership practices that value inclusion, empowerment, ethical principles, purposefulness, and process.
• Working collaboratively with others toward shared change.
• Working in partnership with students, faculty, academic affairs offices, other student affairs and administrative affairs offices across campus.
• Advocating for campus change that enhances the student learning and developmental experience.
• Understanding self and others so that each person's capacity for leadership and change can be developed.
• Fostering civic engagement in the program, in the assistantship/work site, and in the profession.
• Understanding and critiquing organizational systems and human behavior within organizational settings.
• Transforming campus organizations   to adopt philosophies, structures and practices that are supportive and inclusive of diversity.
• Managing and supervising in ways that develop talent, promote collegial organizational structures, and foster all units to be learning organizations.
• Modeling ethical relational leadership with students and colleagues on campus.

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We believe that effective student affairs professionals are not only skilled practitioners but also able consumers and conductors of scholarship and research.   Thus, the CSP program strives to develop scholar-practitioners, or professionals who combine their practice with the ability to assess their work in meaningful and constructive ways.

Successful scholar-practitioners are able to:

• Understand foundational theory and contemporary research that provide direction for student learning and development.

• Expand existing knowledge about the student experience, the college environment, and student outcomes through conducting original research.

• Assess their programs and lingering questions guided by appropriate theory and research as well as sound methodological approaches; and

• Practice continuous quality improvement in their work by keeping current with cutting-edge research in the field and regular individual and organizational assessment.

• Conduct all assessment and research using the highest of ethical practices guiding the use of human subjects.

• Conduct all assessment and research showing awareness of theories, instrumentation, and samples appropriate for the study of diverse students.

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Ethical behavior in our graduate learning community and in student affairs practice is a shared responsibility.   Students, faculty, staff, and student affairs educators are expected to embrace principles of professional ethics and to engage in meaningful ongoing dialogue that support the development of ethical practices through:

• Striving to be people of character and integrity who practice and promote ethical practices in our individual lives and in our communities of practice.
• Respecting differences among people, and acknowledging the complexities within ourselves and others .

• Understanding one's power as it relates to developmentally appropriate advising, supervising, teaching, and mentoring.

• Ensuring responsible stewardship of human, financial, and facility resources.
• Representing oneself authentically and ethically in all interactions with others in all locations of professional practice.
• Maintaining policies and practices that are implemented in a manner congruent with original intent.
• Using ethical research practices protecting the use of human subjects in assessment and research.
• Encouraging one another to develop ethical decision making skills through case studies, modeling, and ongoing dialogue.
• Challenging colleagues when practices become inconsistent with ethical principles.
• Modeling and promoting ethical practices as multi-dimensional in nature, including; following practice conduct rules, promoting good and celebratory behavior, and being faithful to social justice.
• Advancing one's   practice skills and synthesizing current research literature while contributing to the good of our profession.
• Following professional standards for practice as set forth by national associations including American College Personnel Association (ACPA), National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), American Counseling Association (ACA), as well as appropriate higher education and specialized student affairs associations.

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