As of late, the higher education world and various outlets have been buzzing about “Safe Spaces”, “Free Speech”, and other related topics. I am not going to insert myself into this discussion nor am I going to express my viewpoint. I do however wonder if Academic Support offices are “Safe Spaces” for students?
I understand that as ASP professionals our primary purpose is to support students academically. We help students identify strengths and weaknesses; we help students develop weaknesses into strengths; we help students develop and implement processes that work for them; and we help them develop effective learning tools. We help students on academic probation build their confidence and achieve their goals. We also help students prepare for and overcome the bar exam hurdle, the first, second, or third time around. As ASP professionals, we are an important part of the lives of the students we engage with.
When I say “Safe Space”, I mean are we individuals students might seek out for non-academic support as well? Are our offices a place where students feel welcome, included, unjudged, and supported? For me, my answer is an emphatic YES! Aside from the key aspects of my job, I also build relationships with my students. I would be ineffective at my job if I did not help students feel a sense of community and humanize the law school experience and profession. I challenge my students and support them because I care about them. I occasionally share my experiences with similar challenges students encounter to normalize their experiences. I listen carefully, actively engage, remember the discussion and ask about how students are doing. I may also use some of the information the student shares to help bring some of the exercises and assignments we work on together to life. I do recognize that not every student might feel a connection with me initially or ever but I do my best to ensure that each and every student feels that I am personally invested in their journey, looking out for their interest, will work with them to achieve their goals, and relish in their successes.
This week has been particularly challenging for several of my students. I have heard about stressful interviews, coping with illness, the challenges of meeting deadlines, and the stress of time management and balancing work and school. Students also wanted to have serious discussions and vent about the events in the news and their reactions to them, classroom discussions or the lack of discussion about the news, reactions of classmates to discussions on the topic, feelings, etc.… Others discussed job search, insecurities about grades, family, financial challenges, and successes and accomplishments. I also fielded questions about when the library and computer lab open and several questions prefaced with “This might be a stupid question but…” or “You might not be the person but…” I am grateful for a background in student affairs which has equipped me to manage many of these situations and direct students to resources.
While some of the week was spent encouraging, empowering, and redirecting students, my students are well aware of my expectation that we will be back on track next week. (Goldie Pritchard)
