1

Strengths Narrative
(Learning Outcomes #2, #3, #6, #8 & #10; Artifacts B, C3, D, E, F )
My time in the Student Development Administration program has been the most

transformational period of my life. I have had many challenges and successes that have
sculpted me into the person and professional I stand as today. When I think of who I am
and what ultimately encompasses my strengths, it was courage of the heart and Self
Authorship that allowed me to persevere (Baxter-Magolda, 2001). Encouraging the heart
is something I hold very highly and was taken from the ideas presented in The
Leadership Challenge (Kouzes & Posner, 2012); it goes right along with the theme of
Self Authorship. It is with heart that I do the work I do every day, and it is with empathy
and compassion that I will be the best version of my personal and professional self. The
program helped me determine my own beliefs and to become the author of my own life
(Baxter-Magolda, 2001).
What feeds my heart and soul in this work, is the experiences I get to help
students through on their individual journeys through the meaning making process of
college. I thrive and grow from hearing the personal narratives of my students and learn
from every interaction I encounter. I am able to role model behavior as a relational leader
and really understand students and their many identities, values, and motivations.
Something else that I have found a great passion and strength for has been Daniel
Golemans model of Emotional Intelligence (Goleman, 1995). I took MGMT 5335
Leading with Emotional Intelligence and had a completely transformational experience. I
was incredibly honored that the professor told me I had a gift for the work. I found the
courage and power that exists in vulnerability and empathy. There is something about

being able to connect with people on a very deep level that shows a very different kind of
leadership.
Meaning Making: Learning Outcome #2, #10, Artifacts B, D
Before I came to the SDA program I vaguely understood some of the issues
students face through my own experiences and observations. I did not realize the depths
of their experience and the many facets of different factors that students can face. Since
starting the program my knowledge around Learning Outcome 2, understanding
students and student issues, has grown immensely and has improved my practice as a
professional. I have learned that meaning making is essential to helping students
navigate the experience of college and critical to their holistic development. As students
encounter issues their experience is altered and so is their understanding of the world.
Through Artifact B, my personal and professional mission statements, I have made a
commitment to helping students through their unique process of meaning making. I
believe that meaning making is the heart of what student affairs professionals do, and that
if we are intentional in our interactions, we can better serve our students.
My presentation from Adult Learning EDUC 5130 Artifact D also demonstrates
an element of LO 2. This presentation was created to relay the knowledge I gleaned
around promoting spirituality on campus and the benefits it has for students in their
college experience. I believe spirituality is just one piece of meaning making, but an
important one regardless of faith or denomination. When I think of the broad category of
spirituality there are many aspects that play into the work we do with students, and the
goal of my presentation was to show how professionals in the field could utilize it.

3
Finding my passion for helping students through their meaning making process

has really helped me identify my passions in the field. I started the program after having
worked as a full time professional in the field. However, at the time I did not realize what
it meant to have a professional identity. Learning Outcome 10, establishing and
enhancing professional identity, did not develop until I had some of the knowledge and
skills given to me through the SDA program. As I learned more about meaning making
for students and grew in my awareness I was able to continue learning about the different
aspects involved in topic. Artifact B, my personal and professional mission statements
show how I made meaning from my own experience in the Student Development
Program to articulate my beliefs and mission as a student affairs professional. I plan to
continue developing my mission and my professional identity as I proceed through the
field.
Relational Leadership: Learning Outcome #3, #6, Artifacts C3, F
I use to think of leaders in terms of people who were really charismatic and
assertive. When I thought of skills they would have, empathy was not the first thing that
came to mind. Being in the program has helped me broaden my scope of what it means to
be a leader. I have learned that leadership is less about the position and more about how
we affect people. Taking leadership courses throughout the program has really impacted
my formation of Learning Outcome 6 Developing and demonstrating skills in
leadership and collaboration, into a strength. Artifact C3 my Leadership Philosophy
made in EDUC 5700, highlights the development of my leadership style and the capital I
hold as a leader. In learning about different leadership models and qualities I have been

able to firmly identify myself as a leader and to better exercise the skills and knowledge I
hold.
Since identifying the type of leadership that resonate with my values and
experiences I have been able to add the dimension of Learning Outcome 3 Exhibiting
professional integrity and ethical leadership in professional practice, into my
professional identity. My professional letters of promise Artifact F, best highlight how
LO3 has manifested in me. As a relational leader my integrity and ethics are extremely
important in my ability to work with others, be it with students or my colleagues. I am
very humbled by the values and the characteristics my fellow student and my current
supervisor have expressed in their letters.
Empathy & Reflection: Learning Outcome #8, Artifact E, F
Empathy has always been a trait that runs strong in me. Every time I have
completed Strengths Finder, my top strength is always Empathy. I think due to my love
of stories and reading, I learned from a very early age to take on the feelings of others
and to perceive a situation with great accuracy and thought. I have cultivated and owned
this trait more than anything else during my time at Seattle University. I believe it was
the emphasis placed on cura personalis, or care for the whole person, which ultimately
gave me an environment to cherish this trait and see it as a true asset. Classes such as
COUN 5100 Fundamental Counseling Skills and MGMT 5335 Leading with Emotional
Intelligence were invaluable to me and my ability to interact with others. Learning
Outcome 8 Communicating effectively in speech and writing, has been greatly
informed by the skills I gained in empathy and listening, learned in those two classes.
Proof of this skill is highlighted in my Letters of Promise Artifact F. Caity Hoover as a

current student and John Paul as my current supervisor have witnessed firsthand how my
communications are made more successful through my use of empathy.
Another demonstration of LO8 would be from Artifact E my service project for
COUN 5070 showing my Jesuit Context and Commitment. This project was created with
a team in which I worked with three students from the Masters in Counseling program.
We completed research and created materials for The Wellness Studio, a program ran by
Full Life Care. The project required we communicate effectively as team, with our site
lead, and through our materials. It also required that we display a great amount of
empathy in creating a project that was considerate and sensitive to the participants. It
was one of the best and most rewarding projects I have been able to participate in and
really demonstrated for me the larger community context that comes from a Jesuit
education.
Conclusion
I am very proud of the person and professional I have become over the course of
my time at Seattle University. My strengths represent the very best of me, and what I
strive to bring to the field. While these are my strengths, I believe these are areas that I
can always improve on because my context will always be changing. I look forward to
the professional path I have ahead of me and I hope to exemplify the best of the SDA
program in my future endeavors.

6
REFERENCES

Evans, N. J., Forney, D. S., & Guido, F. (2010). Student development in college: Theory,
research, & and practice (2nd edition) San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass
Kouzes, J. M. & Posner, B. Z (2012). The leadership challenge (5th edition). San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass