Experiences of Student Affairs Professionals in Facilitating Co-Curricular Leadership Development Programmes in South African Universities

Despite the important role that student affairs practitioners play in supportinguniversities to produce well-rounded graduates, few studies have beenconducted on their lived experiences. This article examines the challengesconfronted by these professionals in interacting with student leadersand facilitating leadership programmes in South African universities. Aqualitative methodology was adopted and semi-structured interviews wereconducted with 20 student affairs practitioners responsible for facilitatingstudent leadership development programmes. A focus group discussionwas also held with six student affairs experts. The findings point to a lackof seamlessness in the structure, staffing, and operation of these programmes,as well as a lack of university support to professionalise student affairs.Furthermore, student leadership development programmes werefound to lack proper theoretical grounding. Key words: Student leadership development programmes, students,student affairs professionals

Challenges Faced by Student Affairs Practitioners in Embedding Indigenous Knowledge into Student Leadership Development Pedagogy. A Case for Zimbabwe

The drive to mainstream indigenous knowledge into student leadership development in Zimbabwean higher education has recently gained currency. Student leadership development has a Eurocentric historical background and it has continued on this paradigm in the post-independence era. Framed on decolonial theoretical framework this study interrogates the challenges that are faced by student affairs practitioners in their efforts to include indigenous epistemologies into student leadership development programmes. The research was designed as a case study that employed qualitative methods of data collection and analysis focussing on student development practice at three state universities in Zimbabwe namely Bindura University of Science Education, Chinhoyi University of Science Education and Great Zimbabwe University. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with student Affairs practitioners and analysed through NVivo qualitative data analysis software. Research findings indicate that student affairs practitioners face a myriad of problems which hinder the mainstreaming of the knowledge of the local indigenous people into leadership development. These problems include lack of training to empower them with skills to include indigenous epistemologies into student leadership training, lack of funding and policy guidelines. Theorising on this complexity the research recommends the designing of leadership programmes that imbue indigenous epistemologies of the local people in student development such as hunhu/ubuntu values.

Urban Teen Summit: A Community and School Collaboration for Developing Student Leaders of Color

The purpose of this study was to identify the strengths and challenges that emerged from the first 3 years of a high school student leadership development program located in an urban setting. This study was developed as an instrumental case study of one student leadership development program serving urban public high schools in South Central Texas. Feedback was solicited from 10 current and former participants regarding the successes and challenges they encountered within this program. Three themes emerged from these interviews: personal voice, a sense of responsibility, and building community relationships. Discussion is included regarding considerations for secondary administrators about the potential utility of this model in helping develop student leaders of color in urban settings.

Student Leadership Development as a new trend of Higher Education in Kazakhstan

In this paper, some specific issues of student leadership development in Kazakhstan universities were consid-ered. The authors draw attention to the fact that leadership development is now becoming an integral part of the undergraduate and graduate educational programs. This paper reviews different leadership approaches and theories to analyze the question of student leadership development and gives the historical classification of leadership studies in the USA. Likewise, in the paper, a brief review was given to the experience of Toraighyrov University in implementing a specific leadership development program, which is designed with taking into account the cultural, professional and educational uniqueness of the region. The researchers of the article offer another alternative way for leadership skills development — creation of a leadership school in the form of non-government organization. Based on the theoretical research conducted by the authors, the main ways of formation of leadership qualities and necessary skills due to several objective and subjective circumstances were identified.

University Education

This chapter illustrates model student leadership development programs offered at institutions of higher education and discusses leadership competencies needed to succeed in today’s global job market and our diverse society. Highlighted programs are rooted in developmental theories, such as Chickering’s psychosocial theory; function within proven frameworks, including the social change model of leadership and leadership challenge; and include service-learning projects to optimize transformative learning and ethical leadership. The chapter concludes with areas for further research related to the sustainable impact of leadership development programs, as well as content and delivery methods of student leadership development programs that are tailored for diverse learners.

Graduating With Honors in Resilience: Creating a Whole New Doctor

Background Although coaching programs have become a prominent piece of graduate medical education, they have yet to become an integral part of undergraduate medical education. A handful of medical schools have utilized longitudinal coaching experiences as a method for professional identity formation, developing emotional intelligence and leadership. Objective We developed A Whole New Doctor (AWND), a medical student leadership development and coaching program at Georgetown University, with the aim of fostering resilience, leadership, and emotional intelligence at the nascent stage of physician training. To our knowledge, ours is the only program that is largely student-managed and uses certified executive coaches in the medical student population. Methods Cohort 1 of AWND started in October 2016. For each cohort, we hold a kickoff workshop that is highly interactive, fast-paced and covers coaching, complex thinking, reflective writing, and a coaching panel for Q&A. Following the workshop, students work with coaches individually to address self-identified weaknesses, tensions, and areas of conflict. We believe the program’s student-driven nature provides a new structural approach to professional development and leadership programs, offering students a simultaneously reflective and growth-oriented opportunity to develop essential non-technical skills for physician leaders. Results Of the 132 students in the program, 107 have worked with one of our coaches (81%). Student testimonials have been uniformly positive with students remarking on an increased sense of presence, improvements in communication, and more specific direction in their careers. Conclusion Our pilot coaching program has received positive feedback from students early in their medical training. It will be important to further scale the program to reach an increasing number of students and quantitatively evaluate participants for the long-term effects of our interventions.