Category: Volume 21

Fostering Critical Hope (Part 3 of 3) Moving Forward with Hope & Love | Shea

written by: Heather D. Shea, Ph.D., 2023–2024 ACPA President

TW: mentions gun violence

This is the final installment in the three-part series for Developments exploring the concepts and application of critical hope from my presidential address at the ACPA 2023 convention. In the first part of this series, I discussed the mobilization of resources and care in the aftermath of the February 13th tragedy at Michigan State University. In the second part, I wrote about how we might foster critical hope. Today, I am revisiting both themes one year after the tragedy at MSU. In the final installment of this series on critical hope, I reflect on the journey from the aftermath of tragedy to the path forward with love and hope.

As a student affairs educator, I’ve witnessed the varied responses to crisis on campus, understanding that individuals cope differently. Yet, amidst the tension between current reality and our aspirations lies the essence of hope. It’s not about ignoring challenges but rather embracing them as opportunities for transformation. As bell hooks expressed, hope arises from witnessing positive transformations amid struggle. We must not merely admire hope from afar but inhabit it fully, living within it. In the face of crisis, we have a collective responsibility to assess reality and be adaptable, iterative, and non-linear as we explore possibilities for a better future filled with love.

There is clearly tension between our current reality and what we see as possible in our world. That isn’t an argument against hope. That IS hope. As a creative non-linear thinker, I have hope and can imagine those possibilities from here, even if the path to get there is unclear. We’ll need to create those paths together.  I’m not naïve, I know in today’s reality we are in a different place, and that reality informs our collective work toward a shared vision—as bell hooks said in her 2013 book Teaching Community: A Pedagogy of Hope, “my hope emerges from those places of struggle where I witnessed individuals positively transforming their lives and the world around them.”

Barbara Kingsolver, one of my favorite authors, says in her book, Animal Dreams, “The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof.  What I want is so simple I almost can’t say it: elementary kindness. Enough to eat, enough to go around. The possibility that kids might one day grow up to be neither the destroyers nor the destroyed. That’s about it. Right now, I’m living in that hope, running down its hallway and touching the walls on both sides.”

Drawing inspiration from Kingsolver’s words, I find solace in the simplicity of hope rooted in kindness and sustainability. As I conclude my term as your ACPA president, I am committed to continually nurturing critical hope within our student affairs and higher education community. Along with the continuing and incoming leadership we are living in our critical hope. Our hope that we will overcome this despair and fear from outside attacks, our hope that we will create more sustainable futures in our field, and our hope that ACPA will be a hope others can live in as well. We work to transcend despair and fear, envisioning a future where ACPA, especially as we celebrate our 100th anniversary—serves as a reminder of our resilience and dedication to transformative change over time.  I invite you, dear reader, to contemplate what ACPA must evolve into to embody this critical hope for you and those around you. Together, let us forge a path forward, guided by love and empowered by hope, towards a brighter tomorrow.

review part 1 | review part 2

Message from the Editor | Boettcher

Hello, ACPA!

In just a few days, many of us will meet in Chicago to learn, (re)connect, and celebrate with friends and colleagues. Here at Developments, we have something to celebrate as well. In addition to a great set of articles, I am very excited to welcome our new Editorial Board Members! Associate Editor Samantha Babb is the Associate Director for Community Engagement at Washington University in St. Louis. Ricardo (Ric) Montelongo is an Associate Professor in Educational Leadership at Sam Houston State University. Ric has agreed to serve as both Associate Editor and Reviewer for Developments. And Mary Dueñas is an Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and will be joining Developments as a Reviewer. While Developments has a reputation for quick responses and helpful feedback, our new additions to the team will provide additional perspectives as we support authors in sharing their work.

This issue of Developments includes articles about student affairs attrition (myth or fact?), the importance of boundaries and the future of student affairs. There are articles about student-centered programming, rural students, and students’ transitions into FT practitioner roles. There is an article about accreditation and a wonderful profile with Kathleen Deignan in which she reflects on nearly 50 years in student affairs. We know you will find something to think about, talk about, and share as you move through the spring term.

If you have ideas you’d like to develop into an article, a case study you’d like help preparing for the next case study issue in December, or any questions, please reach out to me at your convenience. Enjoy this issue and safe travels during the spring conference season.

Michelle L. Boettcher
Editor, Developments

A Message from the Executive Director | Moody

Every chance I have to say “Happy 100th Anniversary, ACPA!” is a glorious moment that I am humbled to be able to share. It is certainly an amazing time to be a part of this great association, but an even greater honor to be one of the leaders to help us reflect on our history, celebrate our present, and imagine our future. Being Executive Director at this particular time provides with me with close access to the stories of our founding in 1924, the dramatic maturation of the organization over time, the leaders who have left their individual and collective marks on ACPA in recent decades, and an insider’s view to the ways we intend to celebrate this milestone anniversary.

As one of the leaders who helped bring the 100th Anniversary Artifact Document to life in honor of our history, it has been remarkable to me to continually uncover the importance of our values throughout our history. Although the wording may have changed over time, as one would hope they would do, these values are clearly present in the same thematic spirit since the convening of our nine women founders back in 1924. ACPA and its members have always allowed our values to guide our work, our thinking, our hearts, and our focus on humanity throughout our first 100 years. I believe this is why many ACPA members – past and present – identify our association as their “professional home.” The concept of home and family can be challenging for many, yet the framing of ACPA as many folks’ professional home provides a clear connection between mind, heart, and soul that I rarely hear people refer to when it comes to other organizations. For the words “professional” and “home” to be placed together as a meaningful phrase is substantial in and of itself, as home is often where we are allowed to be our safest and most authentic selves while professional settings are typically not thought of as concerned much about the individual or their wellbeing. When you have a few moments to spare, I invite you to listen and/or watch ACPA members talk about the meaning and importance of our association in their lives in the video created just for the 100th anniversary celebrations, A Journey Through Time: Celebrating 100 Years of ACPA (approximately 49 minutes).

Finally, while we are remembering, honoring, and celebrating our history and our people in this present 100th anniversary year, I also ask that we simultaneously imagine how we will build upon the opportunities and challenges of our first century in preparing to begin our second. There is tremendous enthusiasm among our membership for this historic year and for gathering together at the ACPA24 Convention in Chicago, and I want us to be equally excited and engaged in preparing for our 101st year…and our 102nd year…and our 105th year…because there is still much work to be done in higher education to transform our systems, our programs, and our paradigms to more closely be in alignment with our values. This important work does not finish when our 100th anniversary ends. In fact, this year is just the beginning of how future leaders and members will remember how we continued to contribute to the bold transformation of higher education when ACPA reaches its 150th anniversary in 2074 and the 200th anniversary in 2124. We have come a long way since our founding in 1924, and we are only just at the start.

Again, Happy 100th Anniversary ACPA!

Chris Moody, Ed.D.
ACPA Executive Director