Three students from Educational Administration's student affairs master’s cohort won first place in a case study competition at the NASPA Region IV-W Conference in Beaver Creek, CO November 8-12. NASPA is a professional organization for student affairs administrators and students interested in student affairs.
Second-year students Krystal McCain and Travis Fuller, and first-year student Jaclyn McHugh worked together on the case study. On Tuesday evening of the conference the team was given their case: Take the role of an advisor and examine a student experiencing difficulties pursuing a major in music because of parental pressure to seek a major in business. The team spent the evening creating a 10-minute presentation for an intervention with the student using student development theories. They presented their case the next morning, and all three students had a meaningful experience.
“Sometimes, in the moment, you don't always think about the tools and theories that you have at your disposal, and it’s always a good idea to get in the habit of taking what we have learned and looking for ways to use it to help students,” said McCain.
“I loved working with my teammates," said Fuller. "We're all very different in our approach to theory and practice. Though differences necessarily entail tension, we were able to successfully navigate them, eventually crafting a proposal that uniquely reflected each of our strengths. As an aspiring professional, learning to work with others, to dispassionately appraise opposing viewpoints, and to reconcile personal differences into a cohesive whole, are all instrumental skills to develop.”
“As this was the first student affairs conference that I had attended, it provided a means for me to be involved and engaged in the conference and helped me get my feet wet with NASPA,” said McHugh.
Other EDAD students attending the conference were second-year cohort members Kyra Flatow, Samantha Kennelly, and Ryan Patterson. They enjoyed spending time listening to speakers, attending sessions, networking and exploring Beaver Creek.