Artifact of Out-of Class Learning

Fall 2014
Danny Oliveira
San Diego State University

FALL 2014 OUT-OF-CLASS REFLECTION

I attended the NASPA Western Regional Conference in Anaheim,
CA in November 2014. It was a great experience to attend a highquality conference such as this to enhance my professional
development. I was fortunate to have this opportunity in Southern
California because Anaheim is only two hours driving distance from my
home in San Diego and I was able to stay at a friends house while I
was in town for the conference, which made this a relatively
inexpensive opportunity to attend a NASPA conference. Although I
would have enjoyed the opportunity to attend this years Annual
Conference in New Orleans, the travel and lodging expenses were cost
prohibitive for me. Besides, I am concentrating my job search in
Southern California so the opportunity for networking with colleagues
in my own region made this an obvious choice between the two
options.
Attendance of this conference was an investment in my personal
growth, diversifying my education, and professional development as a
student affairs practitioner. The educational sessions that I attended
were helpful in addressing several of our program learning outcomes.
My first session of the conference, Transforming Lives of
Undocumented Students introduced me to federal and state
legislation that enables undocumented students to receive state
financial aid and/or qualify for state financial aid as well as some states
that require undocumented states to pay out-of-state tuition rates and

FALL 2014 OUT-OF-CLASS REFLECTION

others who prohibit undocumented students to enroll in public colleges
and universities altogether. I learned about some of the legal,
financial, academic and emotional challenges that these students face
in higher education and some of the strategies and solutions to
address these issues including the Titan Dreamers Resource Center
the first center in the CSU system designed to serve undocumented
students (PLO 6, PLO 8). My second session, Facing the RealPolitik of
Sexual Consent Coercion and Assault: New Research and its Implications for Reform,
discussed research and implications of a grounded theoretical study regarding how
students navigate sexual relations. Their findings demonstrate that assumptions
underlying laws, policies, and programs do not match lived experiences when it comes to
consent (PLO 1, PLO 9). My next session, Transforming College Access and
Persistence for Latino Males discussed the preparation and learning tendencies of
marginalized Latino males in high school and their entrance into higher education, the
educational satisfaction of Latino males after their first year in college, and their
engagement and involvement strategies that lead to their development and success such
as membership in Latino Greek fraternities (PLO 3). This conference helped me to
identify some areas for continued development (PLO 5) such as a deeper understanding
of social justice issues when I attended a session on The Modern Social Justice TeachIn and even more so during the conference closing session where the closing speaker
really broadened my knowledge of the LGBT community through her speech that
depicted the history of LGBT issues and activism in postsecondary education as she
described her journey through college as a student to her recent retirement as a Senior

FALL 2014 OUT-OF-CLASS REFLECTION

Dean of Students at UCLA. Her story of true leadership and advocacy for this
community was inspiring. She brilliantly described the transformation of a community
that was formerly marginalized, shamed, and shunned to the current movement towards
civil rights, social acceptance, and political clout that this community is undergoing in
our society today. Overall this conference was helpful in my learning of issues related to
underrepresented communities and strategies to support their development and success.
The NASPA Western Regional Conference was an important professional
development experience that enabled me to reach many of my professional goals
including attending as many professional development opportunities as possible. I
attended many education sessions at this conference and it was my second consecutive
NASPA conference. I attended the NASPA Multicultural Institute last year in Las Vegas.
The expansion of my professional network with my classmates in this cohort as well as
with other professionals that I interact with was met by spending social time with some
of my classmates in my cohort as well as some of the students in the first year cohort
from SDSU. I met other professionals from other institutions in our region at this
conference and I had an opportunity to connect with the NASPA Latino Knowledge
Community at their educational session describing the LKC Institute. I have further
developed my skills and strengths in order to become a highly competitive candidate for
positions by attending this conference and expanding my skills, awareness, and
knowledge of issues and legislation that affects undocumented students such as DACA
and the Dream Act.
My personal goals of remaining committed and fully engaged in my education
and personal growth and establishing solid working relationships with my classmates in

FALL 2014 OUT-OF-CLASS REFLECTION

order to ensure my success in the program while contributing to our collective
intellectual growth were both achieved by attending this conference and strengthening
relationships with my peers from SDSU. Lastly, this event provided an opportunity to
address my new personal goal that I adopted for this academic year, rekindling my
passion for my involvement in Nu Alpha Kappa Fraternity, Inc. While in Anaheim, I
stayed with my fraternity brother and current chair of our chapters Alumni Association.
We discussed plans for our upcoming 25th Anniversary Banquet among other initiatives
that we are currently developing in the resurgence of our Alumni Associations leadership
in Southern California for our organization.