Your Kid Belongs Here: Navigating Neurodivergence for Parents, Faculty, and Staff

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Katie Rose Guest Pryal’s bookYour Kid Belongs Here pushes back on ableist systems affecting neurodivergent (ND) children, college students, and the rest of us. Drawing on personal stories as a parent and expertise as a scholar, Pryal shows how exclusion is less about a child’s differences or behavior and more about the norms that institutions enforce. The book argues for a cultural shift: from viewing neurodivergence as a deficit to embracing it as a difference that enriches learning communities.

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Here’s the Story: “Unraveling to Become”

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In this episode of Here’s the Story, “Unraveling to Become,” Neil E. Golemo and JT Snipes sit down with Frank Shushok Jr.—mentor, professor, and living example of what’s possible in student affairs. Frank shares how mentors, dyslexia, and one bold conversation with a Baylor Regent helped him reimagine his future, ultimately leading him from nearly not graduating high school to the presidency of Roanoke College.

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Twenty Years of the MSL: Leadership, Learning, and the Future of Expanding Leadership & Opportunity

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This episode of Student Affairs Now celebrates the twentieth anniversary of the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (MSL), one of the most influential research projects in student affairs and leadership education. Host Heather Shea talks with longtime colleagues and collaborators John Dugan and Kristan Cilente-Skendall about the study’s origins, impact, and evolution. Together they reflect on how the MSL has shaped our understanding of leadership, learning, and social responsibility across higher education and beyond. The conversation also explores their new venture, the Center for Expanding Leadership and Opportunity (CELO), and its role in advancing equity and human development for the next generation of learners.

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Current Campus Context: Chaos, Cuts & College Sports

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In the latest podcast episode of Current Campus Context, Heather Shea discusses four critical issues affecting higher education: declining international student enrollment due to immigration policies, redefinition of professional degrees impacting student loans, ongoing budget cuts affecting staff, and shifts in college athletics regarding athlete compensation. The experts explore implications for institutions and student affairs.

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Shaking the Table: Survival and Healing Amongst Identity Center Practitioners 

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In this episode of Student Affairs NOW, host Heather Shea talks with Dr. Jonathan A. McElderry and Dra. Stephanie Hernandez Rivera about their forthcoming book Shaking the Table: Survival and Healing Amongst Identity Center Practitioners. They discuss what it means to “shake the table” in higher education and why centering the voices of identity center practitioners is especially urgent amid increasing resistance to DEI work. The conversation explores themes of survival, healing, and the power of storytelling to sustain those doing this labor of care and resistance. The episode also offers a glimpse into their upcoming second volume, Still Shaking the Table.

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Here’s the Story: “Ship-Shape Shirley”

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When a residence hall went off the rails during the pandemic, Craig Allen didn’t send emails or wag his finger—he showed up with pizza, t-shirts, and presence. Hear how those small acts sparked a culture shift and reminded his team of the real power of connection.

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Strong Integration and Systemness: Practicing Interconnected and Relational Leadership in Higher Education

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Given the challenges higher education is facing right now, we need models of leadership that are mission-driven, student-centered, and nimble and adaptable. Dr. Brian Bruess, is the first president of both the College of St Benedict and St. John’s University. He is leading what they call strong integration and putting systemness into practice to bring a more interconnected and relational way of leading.

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The Connected College: Leadership Strategies for Student Success

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In The Connected College, Elliot Felix talks about breaking down silos through a more connected structure and strategy for student success. He is joined by Dr. Daniel Maxwell, who has decades of student affairs experience to bring The Connected College to practical applications for student affairs leaders to improve the quantitative and qualitative student experience through more integrated approaches.

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Here’s the Story: “Living without the ‘Should'”

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Learning to release the pressure of the "shoulds" and leaning into authentic desires is not easy feat. This episode explores the courageous decision of releasing the rules and making the decision to embrace a life worth living. 

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Campus Racial Climate: Past, Present, & Future

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This episode was inspired by the recent article by Drs. Shaun Harper and Oscar Patrón, Three Decades of Campus Racial Climate Studies and 25 New Directions for Future Research, which builds on the foundational work of Dr. Sylvia Hurtado. Together, their scholarship has profoundly shaped how we understand race, racism, and belonging in higher education. We’ll discuss how campus racial climate research has evolved over the past 30 years, what challenges and opportunities remain, and where this critical field is headed next.

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