where the political, personal, and professional collide
This blog is a space for reflection, critique, and possibility—exploring intersectional feminist leadership, higher education, identity, and the systems that shape our lives. Through storytelling and analysis, I write about power, belonging, and what it means to lead and live with intention in complex times.
The Day After: What September 12 Taught Me About Student Affairs
Twenty-five years after September 11, 2001, I have been thinking a lot about what I want to say about this anniversary. I am 52, which means nearly half of my life—and almost all of my professional life working in higher education—has been lived in a post-9/11 world. There is much that could be written about…
A Career Shaped by Life, Not Just Ambition
Rethinking ambition, advancement, and the lives we build along the way. What if your career was never supposed to look like a ladder? This is part of what we explore in today’s episode of Student Affairs NOW, “Mid-Level as a Final Destination”—and rewatching it preparing to post hit particularly close to home for me. Early in…
Who Am I Abroad?
Travel, Power, and Practicing Feminist Leadership in Motion This reflection comes the day after our third LCTE pre-departure meeting, about 45 days before students board a plane for Europe. At this point in the process, excitement is building, logistics are becoming real, and anticipation is high. But this is also the moment to pause and…
Current Campus Context: Responding to Power with Perspective
On April 11, the federal government issued a letter to Harvard University outlining a series of deeply troubling and ideologically charged demands. Framed as a condition for maintaining Harvard’s financial relationship with the government, the letter calls for, among other things, the elimination of DEI efforts, the centralization of authority in “non-activist” tenured faculty, and…
Advocating for Access: TRIO, Higher Education, and the Fight for the Public Good
From March 16 to 20, I participated in the COE Policy Seminar in Washington, D.C., advocating for TRIO programs. Despite challenging political circumstances, the seminar highlighted the power of storytelling and bipartisan support for TRIO. I left with optimism about strengthening partnerships in higher education and reaffirming our commitment to accessible education as a public…
Navigating Transitions in Association Involvement
From Mattering to Meaningful Change It’s been a little over a week from my time at the ACPA 2025 Convention in Long Beach, I find myself reflecting on transitions—those moments of change that reshape our identities and challenge our sense of belonging. Having now completed my term as ACPA Past-President, I am moving into a…
More Than a Space: Why the Closure of the UIWC Matters
Reflecting on the Closure of the University of Idaho Women’s Center and the Importance of Intersectional Identity-Based Spaces It’s with a heavy heart that I reflect on the devastating news that the University of Idaho Women’s Center (UIWC)—one of the longest continuously operating Women’s Centers in the nation at 52 years—will be closing later this…
Why Authentic Masculinity is a Feminist issue
by · Last week, Dr. Keith Edwards, author of the book Unmasking: Toward Authentic Masculinity was the keynote speaker at the Student Activism Symposium. Over 500 people gathered in Wells Hall and listened to him speak and also attended workshops on the topic of masculinity. We co-presented a session with the title “Why Authentic Masculinity is…
A Name of One’s Own
“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet” William Shakespeare in “Romeo and Juliet” (this blog post was written in October of 2019) Legally changing one’s name after divorce requires persistence, money, patience, and more hours of labor than I would like to count. Today, two years (to the day) after my divorce was…
crisis pregnancy centers (not what you think they are)
(collectively written by the WSS staff and cross posted from WSS Zine) January 22, 2023 would have been the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Instead of celebrating nationwide reproductive freedom, today, we’re using our Zine Thought of the Day space to raise awareness about crisis pregnancy centers, and a specific organization, brought to our…
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