PERSONAL REFLECTION 1

Personal Reflection: Identity Development

Ayra Valerie Agluba

Department of Educational Leadership, California State University, Fresno

 2

Joining HEAL and choosing higher education as my career, the expectations of learning

about student development theories have always been exciting to me. Growing up I did not know

higher education existed as a field until I came to college, despite this, it was the field that has

had the largest impact on my college experience. Throughout my academic career, everyone

around me emphasized the importance of receiving a degree that serves not only me but others as

well. Being a first-generation student I learned to develop and value learning from colleagues,

faculty, and friends.

My first generation identity is very salient to me an informs the community cultural wealth

As a first-generation student, it has been the most important identity that I carry

I often reflect on wWhy did I chosechoose this field.field? Well, I have a passion for
connecting with othersseeking others,
and tapping into their personal source has helped me

identify my own power source as well. I’m interested in being involved with students’ access and

success, hoping to dedicate my time and commitment to helping student

s with minortized backgrounds
minorities
. Being in this field means facing the challenges of working with the

population that needs the most support, believing that every student deserves access to an

education that allows them to develop the best versions of themselves and be successful in all

their goals. Exploring different theories and analyzing policies and procedures that advance

student development is essential to the work I want to pursue. This course has been interesting in

ways that I get to think about the importance of how theories are implemented and built upon

one another.

The readings within this course have been valuable and impactful for my career as I think
applyuse
about different theories that I would possibly throughout my work. In my experience
 3

across different rolesin higher education, I learned how programs/initiatives are created and built

upon student development theories.

These policies/procedures, collaborative partnerships, and research are espec
In
Student development in college: Theory, Research and Practice , (2016),
Chapter 1 of book
(2016)
Lori D. Patton, Kirsten A. Renn, Florence M. Guido, and Stephen John Quaye define

student development as a philosophy that guides student affairs practice serving as a rationale for

services and programs within an institution. Most institutions today use student development

theory to connect multidisciplinary fields which represent perspectives within social sciences,

humanities, and education (Patton et. al., 2016).

Within the chapter readings, I particularly enjoyed learning about the Critical Race

Theory perspective. It emphasizes the “centrality of race and racism and challenges white
, p.
supremacy in the law, education, politics, and other social systems” (Patton et. al., 2016 ).

Working for a student minority, I’ve gained different perspectives on how these students feel and

still experience microaggressions every day. It is the accumulative acts of hostility, ignorance,

and discrimination that can negatively impact the experience and development of students.

Reflecting on my own experiences, these have affected my development, and with this, my goal

is to serve students who have these negative experiences. My personal experience has taught me

to surround myself with people that make me feel less alienated. For me, these environments

were multicultural programs and organizations. Within many of these institutions, students need

to be engaged in educationally purposeful and meaningful activities that interact with different

cultures and peers with different racial/ethnic backgrounds. This is such an important aspect of

students' development within their cognitive, psychosocial, and interpersonal experience that

they will carry during their college experience as well after college.
 4

The intersectionality framework is a perspective that many theorists use to examine

different student development theories (Patton et. al., 2016). Understanding that intersectionality

is not a student development but can be used as a tool to understand the context in which

individuals develop within an institution (Patton et. al., 2016). It is the idea that encompasses the

complex meaning within lived experiences, recognizing the “relationship between identity and

intersecting systems of inequality” (Patton et. al., 2016). I think this is such a powerful

framework for student development. Growing up I was surrounded by cultures and beliefs

different from my own, and by attending college I was encouraged to identify and value both the

commonalities and differences of all human experiences. As I went through my college

experience I valued my own cultural competency/identity that is built on a lifetime of

experiences.

The exposure to a diverse environment was an instrumental aspect in shaping who I am

today. I have taken an active role in preaching towards promoting resilience and minimizing

barriers to degree attainment within student minorities. During class, Kim’s Asian American

Identity Development Model stuck out to me the most. It highlights the idea of racial identity and

addresses the “social and psychological consequences” of being racially minoritized (Patton et.

al., 2016). As an immigrant myself, I felt like I was a guest in someone else’s house, and this

affected me mentally. I think it’s important for higher education professionals to acknowledge

how ethnic identity is so much more important to recognize and understand. We need to be

challenged and consider our roles as accomplices in tackling the reproduction of unfairness

within institutional negligence. I hope that in my future career as a leader, I can give others an

experience I have been privileged to receive, making students feel accepted and welcomed.

Hoping to take the lessons I have learned and those that I will learn in the future and continue to
 5

improve the college experience of many college students in future generations going forward. I

truly appreciated how these developmental theories build upon one another making each idea

and phenomenon better, remembering that my experience and identity are important too!

References

Patton, L. D., Renn, K. A., Guido, F. M., Quaye, S. J., & Evans, N. J., (2016). Student

development in college: Theory, research, and Practice (3rd Ed.). Jossey-Bass.