Talking Stick - July/August 2018 - 67

student affairs are somewhat limited, and term limits could force out
qualified staff without a next step in
the field. Student affairs professionals
don't need added reasons to leave the
field behind.

Arunkumar: Term limits can be
demoralizing to the individual and
could lead to them feeling like they
are expendable and not a part of the
team. Since the hiring cycle for the
next-level position is not congruent with the end of the term limits,
qualified hall directors might find
themselves without a job at the end of
their term limit. Additionally, with the
hall director being the only entry-level
position with a term limit in student
affairs, it might dissuade candidates
from pursuing housing as a career.

Hargett: The downside for the individual is the likely pressure of needing
to search and the increased likelihood
of settling for a position to avoid being
jobless. Setting a term limit within
the profession would be a challenge,
too, because the number of positons
bottleneck as individuals seek advancement. There is natural attrition
because there isn't a system for finding
positions for the vast number of entrylevel professionals to advance.
The downsides for the institution
could be numerous. The most obvious
to me is the possibility of creating a
revolving door that would revolve more
quickly than it already does. Considering the amount of money spent on
recruiting professionals, the expense
could grow exponentially if schools
systematically implemented term
limits. Another downside could be that
schools might not have the necessary

historical perspectives or might be unable to establish tradition or best practices because every few years there's
someone new offering feedback in
hopes of changing things. Additionally,
the flexibility wouldn't be there if you
have a rock star employee who is finding their niche in a particular area. You
couldn't capitalize on their interest and
experience then and could risk ending
the relationship prematurely. As Kathy
mentioned, implement a system of
mutual agreement for both parties. 
Camille Perlman is the managing editor for
Talking Stick at the ACUHO-I Home Office.

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Talking Stick - July/August 2018

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