Next week, I will be leaving Michigan yet again for the Annual ACPA Convention at National Harbor in my home state. In preparation for that, my old boss, Laura, asked if I would consider writing a statement of my beliefs about my work and life in student affairs. I was a little nervous at first, but decided to give it a go, and write my own, This I Believe. Since I will be sharing it publicly at the conference, I figured I'd share it with the blogosphere as a warm up. Here it is:
I believe in the power of one. One moment, one gesture, one kind word, one person can change a life. For me, Dr. Scott Johnson, my college academic advisor and professor at the University of Richmond, was “the one.” After four years drifting through my majors, involving myself in countless activities, and questioning everything, in April 2005 Dr. J asked me one question that profoundly changed the course of my life: “Ashleigh, what sets you on fire?”
Dr. J liked analogies. He wanted to know what it was about my college experience that motivated me to get out of bed every morning, to work so hard, to invest so much of myself into the campus community. And though many others had asked me about my college experience, no one had ever asked where I found my purpose, what “set me on fire.” At that moment, a light bulb clicked on in my head. In class, Dr. J referred to such occurrences as Ah Ha! moments- the instant in which everything falls into place. I answered him; “orientation.”
My involvement in my college orientation program was the beating heart of my undergraduate experience, and in that one moment, in response to Dr. J’s one, simple question, I finally recognized it as such. That day, I began searching for my first job in higher education.
There are very few career paths and choices that result in so many opportunities to both embody and experience the power of one than our work in education and student affairs. Our roles provide us daily opportunities to help, heal, teach, and empower. To liberate, counsel, encourage, and empathize. To, in some way, be the one that can make the journey through the maze-like college experience a little more navigable for our students.
To work in student affairs is to know what it feels like to celebrate with a student who has surpassed a major milestone in life, and hold the hand of a student whose world is crumbling; to give a student the extra push needed to take a big, but worthy risk, and pull a student back when the safety net relied upon is faulty; to be the advisor, confidante, administrator, and educator of students, sometimes all at once.
My life in student affairs has been a study in these contrasts thus far, but also incredibly rewarding. And in remarkable ways, my work with and for students brings the power of one right back to me. I have learned more from my students about life than I could have imagined when I made the decision to enter student affairs, for which I am incredibly grateful.
One moment, one gesture, one kind word, one person can change everything.
Every day, my work with students affirms my path and motivates me to continue learning, developing, and becoming a better person. Every day I hope in some way, I help students do the same; to affirm their paths, to motivate them to continue learning, developing and working toward better selves and a better world. I believe this is my calling. I believe in the power of one.
Dr. J liked analogies. He wanted to know what it was about my college experience that motivated me to get out of bed every morning, to work so hard, to invest so much of myself into the campus community. And though many others had asked me about my college experience, no one had ever asked where I found my purpose, what “set me on fire.” At that moment, a light bulb clicked on in my head. In class, Dr. J referred to such occurrences as Ah Ha! moments- the instant in which everything falls into place. I answered him; “orientation.”
My involvement in my college orientation program was the beating heart of my undergraduate experience, and in that one moment, in response to Dr. J’s one, simple question, I finally recognized it as such. That day, I began searching for my first job in higher education.
There are very few career paths and choices that result in so many opportunities to both embody and experience the power of one than our work in education and student affairs. Our roles provide us daily opportunities to help, heal, teach, and empower. To liberate, counsel, encourage, and empathize. To, in some way, be the one that can make the journey through the maze-like college experience a little more navigable for our students.
To work in student affairs is to know what it feels like to celebrate with a student who has surpassed a major milestone in life, and hold the hand of a student whose world is crumbling; to give a student the extra push needed to take a big, but worthy risk, and pull a student back when the safety net relied upon is faulty; to be the advisor, confidante, administrator, and educator of students, sometimes all at once.
My life in student affairs has been a study in these contrasts thus far, but also incredibly rewarding. And in remarkable ways, my work with and for students brings the power of one right back to me. I have learned more from my students about life than I could have imagined when I made the decision to enter student affairs, for which I am incredibly grateful.
One moment, one gesture, one kind word, one person can change everything.
Every day, my work with students affirms my path and motivates me to continue learning, developing, and becoming a better person. Every day I hope in some way, I help students do the same; to affirm their paths, to motivate them to continue learning, developing and working toward better selves and a better world. I believe this is my calling. I believe in the power of one.
No comments:
Post a Comment