The advising and supporting competency focuses on, quite literally, the advisement and support of students.  It focuses on the skills and information necessary to effectively advise and support students in a variety of ways (ACPA & NASPA, 2016).  I have spent the last year advising the Aspiring Student Affairs Professionals (ASAP) organization, a task that has taught me an incredible amount about effective (and ineffective) advising.

            As a background, ASAP is a very interesting student organization.  Its key members are some of the most involved students on campus, who simply do not have the time to add another meeting to their busy schedules.  These are students who are engaged with the organization’s online presence and are “members” in the eyes of the Office of Campus Activities, but rarely attend meetings or events.  This year, an average meeting boasted five students, four who served on the executive board.  In the beginning of the year, the students set out to target the needs of a highly-involved group and change how ASAP would engage its members.  This resulted in a cluster of ideas about changing meeting times and finding new, less involved members.

            For the first semester, I was the only graduate adviser of ASAP, working to “assess the developmental needs of students” (ACPA & NASPA, 2016, p. 10).  I had weekly one-on-ones with each student, trying to find the balance between challenge and support as an adviser.  I struggled to differentiate these meetings from those I have with my tour guides, whom I supervise.  I quickly developed a very hands-off approach to advising.  I will always be actively engaged in conversations and will be a resource and sounding board, but I was very adamant that I was not part of the student organization, and therefore should not be making any decisions about what the group should do.  I adopted the mantra “I advise, you decide”, which was not necessarily a hit: the president constantly asked me to make decisions for the group, and struggled to understand why I was quick to put the decisions back on them.

            After the first semester, it became very apparent that ASAP had plateaued.  After much effort to make meetings more accessible and engaging, their membership still floated between one and three.  Their frustration was difficult to see, but I knew that it was not my organization to fix.  I constantly threw ideas at them, and during our one-on-ones I tried to bridge the gap between what they knew would be effective and how to actively do the work.  The new, second graduate adviser and I planned a daylong retreat for the beginning of spring semester, to try to re-focus the energy of ASAP.  We first spent a great deal of time trying to “assess the organizational needs” of ASAP (ACPA & NASPA, 2016, p. 11) and what we believed they could accomplish.  We were very careful to do no harm and only suggest things that we knew were within their realm of ability.  At the retreat, we facilitated a three-year planning session, where we encouraged the students to think critically about where they would like to be in one, two, and three years.  We guided them through the activity, but made sure that they understood each step in the process and that the ideas were their own (a copy of the “ASAP 3-Year Executive Plan” is attached above). 

            As we approach the end of the semester, the organization is still struggling.  Three of the four executive members are graduation, and with that comes a sense of senioritis.  We have struggled to maintain momentum in setting up the organization for next year.  The seniors have “checked out” and are less inclined to do their work, at a time when many of their roles are greatly needed.  The president (the only junior) still has the motivation and drive for ASAP, but is working as a one-person show at times.  I have struggled as an adviser because I fully understand where the seniors are coming from, especially as they all interview for student affairs graduate programs.  However, I struggle again to balance the line of supervisor versus adviser—it is not my job to sit each of them down and say “you need to do x, y, and z.”  I have worked to individually motivate them, but sometimes it does not work effectively. 

            After a year of advising, I struggled to decide whether I would rate myself as proficient or exemplary.  My choice to choose the latter came down to my weekly one-on-ones  with the president.  Each week, we discuss any updates either of us has: typically, they have project updates, big-picture topics, and things the organization should start thinking about.  I provide updates only as necessary; for example, I would let the president know if I had approved a form for their travel, something that they, as a student, do not have the ability to do. We then discuss the plan for the executive meeting that week, followed by a review of their goals for ASAP and how the work they are doing is lining up with their one, two, and three-year plans.  In the beginning, the president was the least accepting of my hands-off approach.  They constantly asked me to do things like send emails, asked for my decisions on almost everything, and consistently questioned why I was so “disengaged”.  I knew they were coming from a place of care—at one point, they said, “I want your opinion because you are part of this team.”  And they were right: I am part of their team, but they are the organization, and I had my time in plenty of organizations as an undergraduate student.

            I say all of this because at some point, they understood what I was saying.  Now, our meetings are incredibly productive.  They use me as a sounding board, and I have seen an amazing amount of development.  When I ask them what they think or what their next step is, I can see that the wheels begin to turn.  I notice that they take ownership over more and listen to my opinion with a grain of salt, always relying on their ideas and instinct.  It is this trend and change that makes me feel that I have developed enough to be considered exemplary in advising and supporting.

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