Abstract:

Higher education historians agree that the earliest direct antecedents to today’s student affairs professionals were deans of women (DOWs) and deans of men (DOMs), administrative positions that first arose in the 19th century. While DOWs were expected to supervise women students within newly coeducational environments, they professionalized the role—and the field of student affairs—by building professional networks, conducting scholarship, and pursuing graduate education. This historical study used archival records to explore the earliest student affairs graduate program, a professional diploma for DOWs at Teachers College, Columbia University, started in 1914. Findings explore the development of the diploma program throughout its lifespan, including its origins and the Teachers College context, diploma name changes, the first program-specific courses, and curricular changes. The Teachers College DOW professional diploma program ran for 30 years, ending after the 1944–45 academic year. This research provides insight into the history of student affairs as a field of study and illustrates the field’s long-standing values and philosophy, particularly the importance of supporting and advocating for minoritized students (ACPA, n.d.). Student affairs scholars and practitioners can use this history to better understand and articulate the context and purpose of their work today.

摘要：

高等教育历史学家一致认为，当今学生事务专业人员最早的直接前身是女院长 (DOW) 和男院长 (DOM)，这些行政职位最早出现于 19 世纪。虽然 DOW 被期望在新的男女同校环境中监督女学生，但她们通过建立专业网络、开展奖学金和追求研究生教育，使这一角色和学生事务领域专业化。这项历史研究利用档案记录来探索最早的学生事务研究生课程，即哥伦比亚大学师范学院 DOW 的专业文凭，始于 1914 年。研究结果探讨了该文凭课程整个生命周期的发展，包括其起源和师范学院背景、文凭名称变更、第一门特定课程以及课程变化。师范学院 DOW 专业文凭课程运行了 30 年，于 1944-45 学年结束。这项研究深入了解了学生事务作为一个研究领域的历史，并阐明了该领域长期存在的价值观和理念，特别是支持和倡导少数族裔学生的重要性（ACPA，nd）。学生事务学者和从业者可以利用这段历史来更好地理解和阐明他们今天工作的背景和目的。