If anyone is an avid Oprah watcher or if you have ever caught a show you probably know what I am referring to in my Blog Title. Oprah, on her talk-show, speaks about people having an Ah ha moment; a moment in your day where you gain some incredible insight to the simplicity of life's message and your purpose.
As I sat listening to today's morning keynote speaker, Juana Bordas, I had an Ah Ha moment. Juana Bordas is the President of Mestiza Leadership International, CEO of the National Hispana Leadership Institute and author of "Salsa, Soul, and Spirit: Leadership for a Multicultural Age". So for those of you not fortunate enough to be here with us I'll give you some of the highlights to her message this morning:
1. We need to meet our students WHERE THEY ARE. Millennial students care about social responsibility, civic engagement, inclusion, participation, respect and equity. So what are we doing as higher education professionals to provide opportunities for them to develop in these areas? And while there are plenty of characteristics in each generation that counter another, it is important to build bridges to work with our students and each other to appreciate and embrace these differences, create teachable moments and opportunities for self-growth and self-awareness.
2. It is never too late to ACCULTURATE. If you’ve never take a behavioral science course, you may be a little lost. Acculturation is a response to assimilation, where individuals are taught or pressured to forget their culture, name, language, and tradition in an attempt to take on the dominant culture. Acculturation, on the other hand, is where members of one cultural group adopt the beliefs and behaviors of another group and still maintain their own cultural distinction. How can we do this as Higher Education professionals? First we can adopt the philosophy and symbolism behind the Sankofa, a West African bird that looks backward, respecting insight and knowledge acquired from the past (tradition) as it moves forward (tomorrow). Second, it is very important to understand THAT IN ORDER TO HONOR THE CULTURE OF OTHERS, WE MUST FIRST HONOR OUR OWN. We must ask ourselves the hard questions, who are we? and how did we get here? and embrace the answers we find in our search. This will help us to develop and embrace a more authentic self that can better help us connect and create important dialogue with our colleagues and students. After we have done this, we must seek diversity partners (whether students or colleagues) that can teach us about the differences we have in a celebratory manner.
3. Leadership is Conferred. We all know the old age question of whether or not someone can be born or leader or if it is taught. Sure individuals must possess leadership qualities to hold positions of power but what truly creates strong and great leaders are those that have followers that respect and believe in them regardless of their title. How can we become such a leader? Simple, WALK YOUR TALK. Students and staff will want to follow you because you lead by example and show your values and character through your actions and not simply through your words. If you value diversity, sustainability, leadership development beyond a program or surface level it will show. People will buy into your philosophy and want to follow you. We can not keep waiting for others to become those leaders. If we truly believe in the value of higher education and our practice, we must take the charge given to us to helping ourselves and students become better women and men.
4. Moving from the “I” to “WE”. As we become more diverse in our society, there is a greater need to understand and become aware of our connectedness to others and the world around us. In American society so much value is placed on the I. The American Dream and success is defined individually. For example, “I am graduating with a Master’s degree” and with statements that indicate that something is “their problem” and not shared. But is our success dependent on the hard work and on the backs of others before us? I doubt anyone could disagree. All of us at some level are privileged with having someone who invested in us, believed in us, or encouraged us to keep doing our job. So we must share our successes with others by showing those who are a little less privileged, that they can do the same. We must look at the future with the same vigor and responsibility that those before us did for the next generation. In addition, student affairs professionals must make a commitment to create and nurture a community that is cooperative rather than competitive, focused on relationships, encourages sharing rather than being inquisitive/intrusive and values harmony, group consensus and is other centered. It may sound like a utopian society, but it can happen. Just look at how the higher education landscape has change in the past few decades. We must work with our students and listen to what they need and also draw from the traditions from the past to create a more diverse and socially just higher education system.