Artifact K Portfolio Reflection

Prior to Presentation April 11, 2014

In framing the purpose of portfolio and reflecting upon the primary questions I want it to answer
(for myself and for others), I thought of the following: How am I different today, than I was yesterday?
What values, morals, and ethical principles guide my past, present, and future professional practice? In
which areas do I display a natural talent and skill, and in which do I still need further development? What
impact has the !" program and eattle #niversity had on $ettering me as a person, and how have I
contri$uted positively to influence my own communities? I have produced an initial portfolio su$mission
that will $egin to answer these deep and reflective questions%
&he process of gathering artifacts that $est showcase my growth and development throughout the
!" program proved challenging for multiple reasons% 'irst, the sheer amount of materials I have produced
through academic and co(curricular e)perience left me with hundreds of pages to scour and organi*e%
econdly, I have $een known to struggle with a certain amount of perfectionism and e)pecting (even a first
draft) to contain the highest level quality I am capa$le of producing% 'inally + and connecting to my
concerns with perfection + I had a difficult time articulating and reflecting upon areas of strength for me, in
comparison to areas of development% &his process has reminded me that self(recognition is an ,area of
further development- for me.
"nother challenge I ran into while compiling artifacts was my concern a$out recurring themes% 'or
instance, the ma/ority of my artifacts relate to or have aspects of social /ustice education, which is fitting
given my personal and professional passions% 0ne thing I will need to further reflect upon, however, is how
to prove that I am a well(rounded professional whose passions happen to lie in social /ustice education and
issues of equity% &his questions serves as an area for further thought and development in my portfolio
process%
0ne of the most important lessons I learned throughout this process is to use time effectively%
1alancing portfolio along with my own self care, graduate assistantship, three courses with large amounts
of work, an independent research pro/ect, and greater eattle community involvement proved to $e a
challenge% #pon receiving faculty review (and $efore my final presentation), I intend to more productively
space out my time and dedicate large amounts of time to deeper development of the artifacts%
I find it particularly poignant that the first su$mission of my portfolio falls with the culmination of
the first set of !" 2review !ays, which were vital for my decision to attend eattle #niversity% How fast
time has flown since I found myself falling in love with the mission and values of eattle #niversity. "side
from overwhelm and e)haustion, the primary feeling I am left with throughout this process has $een
gratitude% "s I compile photos, review faculty feed$ack I have received over time, and watch prospective
students get to know one another, I reali*e how deeply moved I have $een as a result of my time here%
Post Portfolio Personal Narrative: April 27, 2014
I am feeling pretty weird coming down from portfolio + it3s like it all was a dream that happened
too fast + like the rest of my graduate school e)perience. It feels strange now that I ma not worried a$out
various artifacts or working on the presentation anymore% It3s done and over with. I also feel that, as much
as I prepared, the presentation did not go e)actly how I thought it would% I know that it3s over now, $ut I
wish I had left the presentation feeling a little more confident that I had ,nailed it%-
&he other thing a$out portfolio is that it calls into sharp focus the question of ,what3s ne)t?-
$ecause it is a demonstration of how I will apply what I3ve learned to my future professional goals% 2erhaps
it was the timing of the presentation or the fact that I had not recently eaten, $ut I could not seem to
articulately answer the specific, hard, and practical questions a$out what my underlying mission for my
work is, and clearly this is something I need to give more thought and attention to% I have a general idea of
what I want to $e doing, $ut haven3t thought as much a$out why or how since "rtifact 1, our personal and
professional mission statements%
0ne of the questions I struggled to answer on the spot dealt with the why and the mission $ehind my
commitment to social /ustice% If I sit here and think a$out it, the answers come more readily% I care a$out
social /ustice work $ecause I do not want people to suffer in my complacency% I understood a long time ago
that I am connected to other people in a way that cannot $e undone + my actions and inactions will impact
their suffering and oppression% I alone am not responsi$le for oppression, $ut have to understand how I
operate within its systems in ways that harm others%
1ut the main question that has $een on my mine since portfolio that I have to answer for myself is:
What is the $est and most fulfilling way for me to engage in social /ustice and advocacy work? Is it on the
,ground,- so to speak, outside of higher education and deep within ur$an communities? Is it through
releasing my own musical and literary creativity and inspiring others to share their stories in a way that
makes $roader impact? Is it through volunteering and learning a$out the issues and oppressions I know less
a$out through my own self(directed education? Is it within higher education, working alongside student
advocates seeking to make positive change in their campus and within their communities?
&he answer for me is ,all of the a$ove%- I have full $elief that I can do all of these things within my
lifetime, not only $ecause I have the resources and capital to do so, $ut $ecause I have the drive as well%
When I get $ack to the root of who I am as a person, who I was as a child and who I continue to $e + the
root value is empathy% I know that I must strive to find the $alance $etween a deep sense of care for the
world3s pro$lems and my own self(preservation% I know that I must learn to find purpose and engagement
in the daily acts that feel as though they are not serving my higher mission + we all have to do things we
don3t like. I am on my way, even if the specific path is not clear to me now%
SDA Portfolio Students Assess!ent


Na!e of Student: 4ichal ,45- 5ones

Na!e of "#air: 6lenna 7hang
Date: "pril 89, 8:9;

$verall, includin% &ot# t#e portfolio and t#e portfolio conversation, #o' 'ell do (ou feel (ou
de!onstrated acco!plis#!ent of t#e SDA pro%ra!s learnin% outco!es:
"o!plete Acco!plis#!ent ) 4 * 2 1 +ini!al Acco!plis#!ent
"o!!ents ,prior to April 2) presentation-:
While undertaking the time(intensive process of selecting artifacts for my portfolio, I knew which !"
learning outcomes would $e the simplest and most difficult to articulate and strongly represent% &he most
strongly articulated learning outcomes are areas in which I have strong passion and e)perience< and the
learning outcomes that were more challenging to demonstrate represent my greatest areas for further
development%
"s reflected upon in my learning outcome narrative, the most naturally articulated areas involve
relationships (personal and professional< inter and intra personal), social /ustice education, and leadership
and colla$oration% &he areas for development + and those that I struggled to represent in portfolio + involve
practical skill application such as research, assessment, law, finance and governance%
&he artifacts I selected accurately summari*e my knowledge + its strengths and gaps%
"o!!ents ,after April 2) presentation-:
In presenting this very important culminating pro/ect, there were times when nerves took over. In preparing
for the presentation, I took a lot of intentional time to answer the questions provided from the faculty, $ut
did not anticipate some of the additional questions the committee provided% While I eventually got to
answering the questions successfully, it took me longer than e)pected% I knew the contents of my portfolio
well, $ut had some difficulty ver$ally articulating what they meant% "s an introvert, processing time is
something that I need in order to clearly and articulately share my thoughts, and this is an area of growth
within =earning 0utcome >?%
"nother piece of feed$ack given to me $y the committee was to consider the specifics + my portfolio
speaks more $roadly a$out my commitment to social /ustice $y is lacking in how this value manifests or
will manifest in my future work% I have written a$out this more in the a$ove personal narrative reflection%
.ualit( of
/ntries0Artifacts and
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"learl(0Directl(
illustrated t#e outco!e
Deep01nsi%#tful reflection
Nu!erous insi%#ts
articulated
So!e'#at illustrated t#e
outco!e
$&vious0Apparent reflection
So!e insi%#ts articulated
1ndirectl(0Re!otel(
illustrated t#e outco!e
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3e' insi%#ts articulated
SDA $utco!e 41:
#nderstanding the foundation and
emerging nature of the tudent
"ffairs profession and higher
education

) 4 * 2 1
SDA $utco!e 42:
#nderstanding students and student
issues

) 4 * 2 1

SDA $utco!e 4*:
@)hi$iting professional integrity and
ethical leadership in professional
practice

) 4 * 2 1
SDA $utco!e 44:
#nderstanding and fostering
diversity, /ustice and a sustaina$le
world informed $y a glo$al
perspective and the 5esuit 7atholic
tradition

) 4 * 2 1
SDA $utco!e 4):
"dapting student services to specific
environments and cultures

) 4 * 2 1
SDA $utco!e 45:
!eveloping and demonstrating skills
in leadership and colla$oration

) 4 * 2 1

SDA $utco!e 47:
#tili*ing assessment, evaluation,
technology, and research to improve
practice

) 4 * 2 1
SDA $utco!e 46:
7ommunicating effectively, in
speech and in writing

) 4 * 2 1

SDA $utco!e 47:
#nderstanding issues surrounding
law, policy, finance and governance
) 4 * 2 1
SDA $utco!e 410:
@sta$lishing and enhancing
professional identity
) 4 * 2 1