James Barber

As editors of this volume and members of the research project "Hip Hop as a Transcultural Phenomenon," we would first like to thank the Swiss National Science Foundation for funding the project as a whole, and by extension the present volume.Further gratitude is in order to the University of Bern, for providing the team with a valuable institutional infrastructure and positive environment in which

This book explores how college students address life challenges and develop the self-authoring capacities needed to deal with the ambiguities and complexities of life after graduation. Based on the in-depth interview portion of the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education, this book draws on almost 1,000 interviews with a diverse cohort of 315 students from six institutions over 4 years. It traces these students’ journeys, documenting the wide variety of pathways they followed, the range of contexts in which their experiences took place, the liberal education outcomes associated with these experiences, and the factors that affected quality and impact. The authors critique current student development theory and offer a new interactionist model to guide future study in the field, inviting readers to adopt five habits of mind to guide their praxis and practice to promote student development. This valuable resource is written for educators working in higher education institutions – both faculty and student affairs professionals – who want to help students get the most out of their college experience.

This chapter discusses the implications of the findings of the Wabash National Study (WNS) and serves to connect foundational and emerging ways of thinking about undergraduate college student development in the 21st century. The authors share their individual and collective insights on how they have evolved as researchers over the course of the study and offer a summary of key WNS findings. This chapter argues that conceptualizations of development must be both identity conscious and power conscious, in line with the Interactionist Model of College Student Learning and Development. Finally, the chapter offers an invitation to readers to adopt five habits of mind to guide their praxis and practice in working to promote student development.

Abstract: This descriptive qualitative study identified variability patterns in students' self-authoring capacities during college. To do so, we developed a procedure for examining shifts in students' self-authorship positions between each of four years of college; these were identified through annual interviewswith 131 students from six colleges or universities. Although virtually all students developed toward self-authorship, steady development each year was relatively rare, and occurrences of both stasis and regression were quite common, suggesting that development is more variable than consistent or linear. We also explored differences by race/ethnicity and gender and discussed implications for educators.

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Graduate school curricula provide the baseline knowledge for professionals in the field of higher education and student affairs (HESA). Before beginning their careers, student affairs practitioners build their core competencies around a variety of relevant topics including, quite significantly, college student identity and diversity. ACPA–College Student Educators International (2018) offers an online syllabus clearinghouse as an open-access resource for faculty seeking to develop courses in HESA programs. Although 20 of the 29 clearinghouse syllabi that align with the courses discussed in this chapter mention religion, spirituality, or related topics, the type of inclusion ranges dramatically from a substantive element of a course, including readings, assignments, and discussions, to a mere mention of religion as one in a list of elements of student or campus diversity.

The history of alcohol on college campuses is as long as the history of American higher education. Commencement exercises were often rowdy, alcohol-fueled affairs, leading to drunken behavior by town and gown alike. This chapter explores some primary issues related to alcohol use and abuse among American college students, and ponders the challenges associated with confronting a deeply entrenched cultural norm. Despite the prominence of alcohol and other drugs as perennial challenges to campus leaders, the foundational documents of the student affairs profession offer surprisingly little reference to alcohol use and abuse or interventions to target irresponsible behavior resulting from substance use and abuse. Alcohol use is not only an issue on college and university campuses; it is also embedded in our national culture and shared history.

This descriptive qualitative study identified variability patterns in students' self-authoring capacities during college. To do so, we developed a procedure for examining shifts in students' self-authorship positions between each of four years of college; these were identified through annual interviewswith 131 students from six colleges or universities. Although virtually all students developed toward self-authorship, steady development each year was relatively rare, and occurrences of both stasis and regression were quite common, suggesting that development is more variable than consistent or linear. We also explored differences by race/ethnicity and gender and discussed implications for educators.