andreaceller

[andreaceller]

Photo Credit: Mely Iracheta

[andreaceller]

About Me

My name is Andrea Eller, a native Houstonian and a current Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Master’s student. I attended Texas State University for my undergraduate and was very involved throughout my college experience. I held elevated positions within my sorority, Delta Zeta, gave campus tours as a University Ambassador, and worked with students as a Peer Mentor. At the time I was receiving exposure to diverse aspects of student affairs without even realizing it. This is where my interest in higher education began, although I was not certain of the capacity in which I wanted to work at a university.

I graduated from Texas State University in May 2015, and immediately after began my career in education. I spent time as a substitute teacher while getting certified, an intervention teacher, and a fourth grade math and science teacher. My experience working with low income and historically marginalized student groups sparked an interest in college access and equity programs, and provided clarity for what I wanted my focus to be. My goal now is to continue working to close educational gaps with students as they make their transition from K-12 into higher education. I am interested in the ways students with these experiences navigate and succeed in college, as well as the programs and resources available to them.

#highered internship

[andreaceller]

Purpose of Internship

The purpose of my internship was to gain tangible experience working with college level students and navigating working at a higher education institution. Interning at UEP fulfilled my interests by exposing me to a variety of student populations and the programming implemented to improve their educational experience at the college level.

Through my time at UEP I practiced programming, strategic planning, group facilitation, and providing resources for minority, low-income, former foster youth, first generation, and DACA students. I not only saw how to implement programs, but also the importance of considering theory to practice when designing success initiatives for specific under served groups. This internship site was my top choice because I felt that it aligned with my previous experience of mentoring, advising, and knowledge of K-12, while also incorporating the skills I wanted to develop ie. administrative, programming, social justice.

Internship objectives as outlined in my internship contract were as follows:

• Student Affairs and the higher education profession

• Strategic planning

• Programming

• Student advising

• Project management

• Group facilitation

• Supporting a diverse range of college-aged students

• University and community resources for minority, low-income, former foster care, first-generation, and DACA/Undocumented students

[andreaceller]

What is The Urban Experience Program?

My internship took place at the Urban Experience Program at the University of Houston. This program originally began in the 90’s to serve male youth from the inner city in Houston, with a mission, “... to empower students with academic, personal, and professional development resources that propels student success”. UEP believes in taking a holistic approach to student development, realizing that success in college is not only defined by academics. Some of the success domains UEP focuses on are civic engagement, financial, social, academic, and career readiness.

Due to success of the initiatives in place, UEP has grown to serve multiple student populations and hundreds of students. There are pillar programs in place that uniquely serve and provide tailored opportunities to a variety of student populations; some of these include DACA, first generation, former foster youth, and middle squeeze. UEP also hosts the B.E.S.T (Black Excellence Scholars Training) Program which provides academic support and professional development to African American students to promote excellence. Additionally, UEP is partnered with HISD for Teach Forward Houston. Teach Forward is another pillar program in which education majors receive direct academic support from the College of Education and UEP, moving through their degree as a cohort and receiving job security after graduation. Each of these programs has specific workshops and opportunities for student involvement.

UEP also provides this support in the summer through Summer Bridge. This program is an opportunity geared towards first generation students. The purpose of Summer Bridge is to provide real help that is applicable for students who are facing additional challenges being a first generation student. The student leaders of UEP host workshops and guest speakers from departments on campus to provide relevant information that incoming freshmen may not get at a typical orientation. This is an overnight, immersive experience so it provides an opportunity for future cougars to acclimate to UH culture and help set expectations as to what college life will really be like.

In addition to programs and workshops that benefit students, UEP also provides community and leadership opportunities for undergraduate students. Summer Bridge as well as many of the workshops are created and facilitated by student leaders throughout the school year. Student leaders also have the opportunity to work with UEP members, as well as walk in students to provide relatable assistance. This is a unique opportunity for the students leaders, as many departments do not give a large amount of freedom and responsibility to their students.

[andreaceller]

[andreaceller]

Inclusive Practice

Being inclusive of a variety of student groups is a pillar of higher education. The basis of much research, initiatives, and programming is to provide equitable opportunity to all students. Striving for inclusivity not only takes place at higher level administrative levels, but also within office spaces and events.

Thinking about inclusive practices when planning for campus activities is a crucial step to planning that many people may not think of. It is important at the administrative level to always consider making events friendly for students with disabilities or other needs.

UEP as an office is very much an agent for inclusivity. While they do focus their efforts of special populations, they would never turn a student away that needed assistance. They also recognize that a student does not have to identify with a special population in order to have a need. This was something important for myself to realize, as through my master’s career much of the focus has been on special populations and underrepresented students.

#uh education equity uhuep

[andreaceller]

Advising and Supporting (NASPA)

A main pillar in my internship was advising and supporting my student leaders. In my undergraduate experience all of the advisors I encountered were neither useful or personable enough to make an impact on my education. I attempted to provide tailored knowledge to all of my students, so that the advice I gave was actually useful and utilized.

I used my own experience of what I did not receive in my undergrad, to hopefully provide beneficial information to my students. 

One thing I found increasingly important through advising was needing a concrete knowledge of UEP as a program, as well as campus in general. Being an online student I did not know much about campus physically, but taught myself because I was receiving questions about where buildings were, etc. This was an unexpected barrier that came up, but was a useful learning tool. This experience translates into knowing your organization where you work, outside of just your department. 

[andreaceller]

Assessment, Evaluation, and Research (NASPA)

In education data drives decision making. Before policy or programs can be implemented, proof is needed. Before my internship one of my questions I was hoping to get answered was, “How do colleges and universities evaluate programs, and how do they gather data for evaluations?”. 

I was surprised at the amount of exposure I got to assessment and evaluating data. Inputting and reviewing Summer Bridge surveys not only helped me with my technical and computer skills, but also with interpreting data and finding opportunities for growth. Each time I went through the evaluation surveys I was asked to look for themes that the students mentioned, both positive and negative. This was in order to address any shortcomings in the program as well as celebrate the positive impacts. I found that it took looking at the surveys multiple times to find trends, and when I went through them with my supervisor new trends still emerged. This emphasized the importance of analyzing data more than once, and gaining more than one perspective. 

I also sat down with Dr. Jones and looked at her annual goal setting plan. It reminded me very much of the SMART goals and evaluation system I use as a teacher. This emphasized that evaluation is an ongoing learning process that all levels of an organization experience. Through my internship I got more insight as to how individuals and programs can utilize evaluation and assessment data to make changes. 

#smartgoals

[andreaceller]

Leadership (NASPA)

Leadership to me has always been a living skill. Effective people grow as a leader a little bit more with each new experience they have. I have always found it true that anyone can be a leader, and that you do not need a title to step into that role. 

My internship allowed me to test my leadership in new ways, working with older students, collaborating with more experienced program coordinators, and being an example and advisor for freshman students. I saw myself getting more comfortable giving directions and advice to students before the need manifested itself. I also rediscovered the importance of growing leadership in others. I loved guiding my undergraduate student leaders to solutions or answers to their own questions. They were all such an incredible group of talented students, and to see their growth was meaningful for me. 

The undergraduate student leaders also embodied the idea that you don’t have to have a significant “role” or “title” to exude leadership qualities. 

Another aspect of leadership I witnessed was institutional hierarchy, and how that affects program decisions. Never having worked in higher education, I was unfamiliar with the logistical issues that can often come up when making plans for students. 

#leadership

[andreaceller]

[andreaceller]

Being an ambassador helps me explore different ways to promote the program and be involved on campus by volunteering and going to events. I like that it gives me professional skills.

Javier C.

[andreaceller]

Applied Knowledge

The greatest area I applied my knowledge was in thinking about critical issues facing higher education and how those issues affected the groups I was serving. Coincidentally, I have been taking my critical issues class the same semester as my internship. Undocumented/Daca students made the American Association of State Colleges and Universities list for top issues facing higher education in 2017 ( AASCU Government Relations, 2017). College affordability and social issues also made the list. Time and time again I saw students being faced with these issues. One thing I really admired about UEP that was a little less traditional was their invasiveness. I learned it is okay to be very transparent and aggressive in a positive way when trying to make solutions for students. 

What was interesting to me was the intersectionality of many of these issues, and the ways I saw them affecting certain groups more often than others. In my experience, students with certain identities also faced many other similar challenges. Because I was in critical issues the same time I was surrounded by these students in person, I was able to compare and contrast suggestions from the readings and discussions to what I saw happening in reality. UEP was successfully implementing many strategies that addressed the needs of these students.

Another very important take away for me in this regard is that students often do not know what they need or are missing. It helps as a practitioner to have a concrete knowledge of theory and institutional policy, in order to suggest effective solutions for students. 

#affordability #socialissues knowledge

[andreaceller]

Students were exposed to volunteer opportunities on campus through a presentation by Metropolitan Volunteer Program, an organization on campus. They even had the chance to make blankets for a homeless shelter!

#volunteer

[andreaceller]

Professional Ethics

This quality is extremely important when working in education, because a lot of sensitive information is in your reach. This was my first time working with DACA/undocumented students. Through interacting with these students I learned a lot more about needs and fears this population has that can hold them back from participating in a traditional college experience. One of my students compared coming out as DACA to coming out as LGBTQ. He had known people who lost friends over it, or who kept it a secret because they were afraid of repercussions. 

For an office to serve DACA and undocumented students openly can potentially pose challenges. There are many contradicting opinions about DACA students, if and how we should support them, and the services they should get on campus. Working closely with these students and even interviewing them for another class’ project 

#DACA

[andreaceller]

Summer Bridge’s theme was superhero! Finding and utilizing your personal strengths for success, and seeing your weaknesses as opportunities for growth. 

[andreaceller]

Organizational Leadership

Organizational leadership requires the ability to look at the logistical and interpersonal needs of an organization.The nature of UEP as a program is associated with organizational leadership and accountability, because its’ goal is to create growth and provide community among several marginalized groups. The goal is to affect change to these students’ college experience, ultimately affecting greater social change. 

Organizational leadership does not have so much to do with a status or title, but a person’s ability to navigate the culture of an organization and use their collaborative skills to affect the change they want. In my experience, organizational leadership was broken into two parts, logistic and interpersonal.   My logistic and administrative abilities were developed through programming, implementation, and group facilitation. Working with summer bridge students, and everyone in the UEP office gave me the opportunity to think about effective planning and implementation. I had to consider the number of students, budgets, booking of spaces, etc. At the beginning of my internship I was unaware of institutional barriers and restrictions that affect logistics of programming for students. Through assisting with planning, and facing some small challenges, I have become better prepared to think about aspects that can affect the success of programs. 

For example, during bridge there were several instances in which a room that was booked had other people in it, a door was locked, small inconveniences that can turn into greater problems. There was also a comment made by an incoming freshmen that was derogatory towards one of the student leaders. Not many people heard it, however it made the student leader uncomfortable. Instead of just stepping in and taking care of it for her, I had a private conversation about the way she felt was best to handle it. We came up with a solution together, and then she implemented the solution. I guided her in her leadership towards a desireable outcome, but did not take care of it for her, which is relevant to this ISAP skill. 

 When I am in the position to be in charge of a department or program, the most valuable lesson I learned is to always prepare for the unexpected, and think of how situations can play out in multiple ways.

#leadership

[andreaceller]

Our summer bridge program allows for a deeper connection to college life by teaching incoming freshman the necessary skills and resources to help them reach their academic and personal goals.

Dr. Raven Jones