Wrap-Up of the 2014 Phyllis L. Mable New Professionals Institute

The 2014 Phyllis L. Mable New Professionals Institute was held June 8–10 at Washington University in St. Louis. We created NPI to address the knowledge and skills emerging professionals desire as they serve thousands of students collectively on a daily basis. This institute is named in honor of Ms. Mable, a highly respected educator and leader in student affairs for the past four decades.

Our featured speakers were Jill Carnaghi and Peter Magolda, editors of our book, Job One 2.0: Understanding the Next Generation of Student Affairs Professionals. Carnaghi has served as ACPA President and has been recognized as a senior scholar. Magolda is a highly-respected scholar of ethnographic studies of college students and critical issues in qualitative research.

The curriculum focused on identifying and discussing the complexities faced by student affairs professionals and featured a highly interactive learning environment using presentations, case studies, discussions, and small group work with institute faculty to accommodate a variety of learning styles.

As one attendee said, 

“I would absolutely recommend NPI to my colleagues! It's great to chat and reflect with those who are going through relatively similar experiences. I learned about other institutions and unique first job experiences. I loved the small groups and thoroughly enjoyed the conversation and connection with others.”