The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 2 - 116

Craig W. Beebe * Torry Brouillard-Bruce * Carolyn Golz * Stephen K. Harrison * Shigeo J. Iwamiya

As noted previously, one challenge to the
early attempts at understanding housing professional competencies was the ambiguity
inherent in competency frameworks drawn
from the larger student affairs field. DeCoster
and Mable (1980) highlighted three critical
items that must be identified in order to understand the value of the residence hall experience to college students: the philosophical
basis for student learning, factors that affect
the housing professional's ability to achieve
stated organizational objectives, and methods
for facilitating specific educational outcomes.
Building on DeCoster and Mable's (1980)
proposition, Ptomey (1990) identified rolespecific tasks of the housing professional,
premised on the notion that recognizing
role-specific tasks is a critical first step to developing a "well-rounded program, educationally and managerially, for their institutions"
(p. 6). Through multiple rounds of rankings
by an expert panel and qualitative feedback on
ranking decisions, Ptomey identified 129 skills
that SHOs highlighted as likely to be important to the profession in the following 0-5 years
or in the following 10-20 years.
Ptomey (1990) did not refer to these
functional capabilities as competencies, but
rather as tasks, presumably to be undertaken
by housing professionals with an assumed
level of professional competence that existed
separate from the actual responsibilities required in conducting the daily operations of
a housing department. Where Ptomey's research proved important was in its paradigmatic shift of competencies from higher order,
macro-level functions (e.g., interpersonal
communication, appreciation of diversity) to
micro-level, functional skills. In discussing
116

strategic methods for improving the effectiveness of student housing operations, Ptomey
specifically identified "particular competence
in process elements such as information
systems and housing assignments" (p. 119) as
a systemic resource. Further, Ptomey pointed
out that these resources should be leveraged
and nurtured, including short- and long-term
development plans, to help housing staff
advance the particular functional competence
required for effectively carrying out critical
departmental initiatives.
Brandel (1995) evolved the conversation
around housing professional competencies by
asking SHOs about the knowledge and skills
to which they hold themselves accountable as
department heads. Previous student affairs
research focused on senior student affairs
officers' (SSAOs) perspectives on competencies for graduate students, entry-level staff, or
student affairs staff broadly, but seldom was
focus placed on the nuances of competencies required of SSAOs themselves (Kretovics,
2002; Lovell & Kosten, 2000; Ostroth, 1981;
Pope & Reynolds, 1997; Saunders & Cooper,
1999). Similarly, early research into SHO
competencies was scattershot, variously considering those required of pre-career and early
career professionals as well as generalized,
career-long competencies.
Extending the work of Dunkel and Schreiber (1992) and aiming to advance the development of the NHTI competency framework
established in 1992 (see Dunkel et al., 1991),
Brandel (1995) surveyed 519 senior housing
officers to understand their perceptions of the
level of expertise required to achieve mastery
of the 50 National Housing Training Institute competencies. Brandel's resulting rank-

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The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 2

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