Speaker: Ra'Sheda Forbes, Vice President for Access, Diversity and Inclusion
What led you to pursue a career in Student Affairs?
Ra'Sheda Forbes: So what led me to pursue a career in student affairs? I would say that it had a lot to do with my own college experience. I was a very highly involved student. Um during college, I was engaged in multiple student organizations. I occupied leadership positions on campus, but that really wasn't the experience of other students, particularly my friends around me. Um And that kind of held true for students who identified as being racially diverse students, our first-generation college students, students who were really um struggling to get through college financially. And so I remember kind of venting to my mentor who was an assistant dean of students and talking to her about how I was frustrated that other students wasn't having the same experience. And then she said, well, have you ever thought about a career in student affairs that, that we need people like you who want to make a difference in the student experience to work at institutions of higher education and help students succeed. And that really set me on my pathway to pursuing um a student affairs career.
What is the most rewarding part of the work you do?
Ra'Sheda Forbes: So I would say that the most rewarding part of this work is really um having the opportunity to interact with students, seeing students go on to live successful lives. See students make memories here as an institution, seeing students um build relationships that will serve them a lifetime. It really is what makes this work um really special.
Is there a quote you can share that is especially meaningful to you as it relates to your work?
Ra'Sheda Forbes: I don't know if I would say there's a quote that I use to necessarily guide me in this work. But I know that one thing that as higher ed practitioners that we always talk about is the value of a college degree. And I really hope that is to be truthful. I can see it in my own life. I can see it in the life of those that are around me. And so because of that, um it really, it really magnifies how I do the work. It really forces me to make sure that everything that we're doing is to make sure that students are successful.
If you could give a piece of advice to someone who was newly entering a career in student affairs, what would it be?
Ra'Sheda Forbes: So if I had to give one piece of advice to new individuals entering the student affairs world or the higher education world, what I would probably say to them is don't give up. That first year may be um a really hard year because there are some long nights and days. But I see the work that we do as a calling that not only are our current students um needing us, but future generations are needing us. And so going to this work knowing that it's hard work, but it's also heart work and we'll see the fruits of our labor. Um on graduation day when students um get involved in student organizations, when students come back for homecoming, um when students send you a note to tell you that you changed their life and it's really all worth it in the end.
