The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 45, No. 3 - 30

Christina Stauffer * Dillon Kimmel

an even more compelling case for the direct
role of HRL educators in student learning.
Tuition costs have continued to rise faster than
aid available to students, while enrollment has
grown more than 30% since the beginning
of the century (Ma, Baum, Pender, & Welch,
2017). At the same time, the number of nonacademic administrators and professional staff
on college campuses doubled between 1987
and 2012, at least in part due to new government regulations and increased demand by
students for better services (New England
Center for Investigative Reporting, 2014). And
while there remains no consensus as to what
factor has most contributed to the rise in the
cost of college, some experts continue to blame
"administrative bloat"-including the increase
in student affairs positions-for this cost (Hiltonsmith, 2015). These factors create an environment where student affairs units are under
increased pressure to demonstrate their value
to the institution and their impact on students'
learning (Keeling, 2004).
Not only is it important for student affairs
professionals to demonstrate their value
because of accountability pressures, but research shows they have much to contribute
to students' learning outside the classroom.
Student engagement, the time and energy
students put into their college experience both
in and outside the classroom, has continually been shown to lead to positive educational
outcomes for students (Mayhew, Pascarella,
Bowman, Rockenbach, Seifert, Terenzini, &
Wolniak, 2016; Terenzini & Pascarella, 2005).
Researchers increasingly acknowledge the role
of student affairs professionals-who often
maintain ownership of many student engagement experiences-in student learning, point-

30

Developing CMs requires a deep
understanding of how students
learn and how to design and assess
learning by the professional staff
charged with implementation
(Kerr et al., 2017).
ing to their expertise in issues facing students
and ability to create positive and inclusive environments as key skills in impacting student
learning (Mayhew et al., 2016; Ambrose,
Bridges, DiPietro, Lovett, & Norman, 2010).
In the mid-2000s, leading student affairs
professional organizations recognized the
need for further clarity and structure around
how to organize student affairs divisions
around student learning. The result was Learning Reconsidered (Keeling, 2004) which again
called on all higher education organizations,
units, and individuals to center their efforts
and financial resources on programs and personnel to contribute to student learning.
Learning Reconsidered II (Keeling, 2006) expanded on this call, providing higher education
leaders practical strategies for the design and
assessment of learning goals and outcomes
in a co-curricular format. The document suggested that learning beyond the classroom be
structured in such a way that students could
articulate why learning is important, have
opportunities to practice relevant skills, and
over time develop mastery of learning goals
in order to apply the skills learned in different
environments such as the classroom, campus
leadership experiences, and employment set-

THE JOURNAL OF COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY STUDENT HOUSING
The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 45, No. 3

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 45, No. 3
