Volume 35, Issue 3

As part of a larger study, the researchers collected campus codes prohibiting hate crimes, which were then reviewed by one of the authors, an attorney with extensive experience in First Amendment case law, to determine whether the codes presented constitutional problems. Based on this review, the authors developed a model policy that is content neutral and does not use language that could be viewed as unconstitutionally vague or broad. This model can provide institutions with guidelines for drafting constitutionally sound codes.

The author examines the percieved attrition crisis in student affairs and reviews the literature on attrition in the field that has been reported to date. She explores overall career patterns, distinct factors that may influence decisions to leave student affairs, and some potential effects of attrition. She discusses implications for practice and offers recommendations for further research.

The debate over whether student learning provides a new focus for student affairs work or merely gives a new name to student affairs' traditional emphases is likely to be exacerbated by "Contributing to learning: The role of student affairs" and "Student learning outside the classroom: Transcending artificial boundaries." While both volumes focus on enhancing the student learning experience, their philosophical foundation and vision for the future are fundamentally different.

The most significant contribution this sourcebook makes to the existing literature is its focus on an underserved segment of the minority student population, those who have been regularly admitted. Although historically the vast majority of research concerning minority students focuses on the academically underprepared, more recently there has been a call for research that examines the full range of the community of minority students (Allen, 1992), including those with high ability. The disproportionate focus on underachievement in the literature helps create a distorted image of the community of minority students, and, perhaps unitentionally, tends to lower expectations for minority student achievement. Johnson and Ottens should be commended for their effort to expand the discussion of minority student retention. Their introductory comments capture well the importance of this topic.

Several chapters in "Critical Issues in Judicial Affairs: Current Trends in Practice" contain important insights into student judicial affairs as well as legal and policy issues that influence higher education. As with most multi-authored monographs, however, the relevance and quality of the writing is uneven, and some major topics are not covered fully. Mercer and the other contributors have presented several key issues in judicial affairs, identified several of the difficulties facing judicial officers on the nation's campuses, and predicted some of the issues that will face administrators and their campuses in the future. Even with its faults, however, this monograph is worth owning and will be of particular value to those with and interest in judicial affairs and campus legal issues.

Students' preferences concerning systems of juvenile justice were compared using gender and class standing as independent variables. The preferences of upper and lower division students differed significantly, with most upper division students opposing trial of juveniles in adult courts and most lower division students favoring the practice. The authors discuss the implications of students' general patterns of moral reasoning in relation to their service on campus judicial boards and in service learning projects involving juvenile offenders.

The purpose of this case study was to describe the impact of a multi-ethnic, multicultural program on participating students. The program was designed to immerse students in Mexican culture as a means of combating ignorance of and violence against members of ethnic groups at Fairfield University. Interviews, pretests and post-tests, and participation observation were used to determine whether the training program was responsible for changes in student perceptions and judgements. Four instruments were used, each of which provided a distinct vantage point for viewing developmental change. The study demonstrated that through personal contact changes in attitude can be effected.

The authors present the results of a study examining fear of AIDS and the level of AIDS knowledge and homophobia among student affairs administrators and faculty members. Student affairs administrators were found to have more knowledge and less fear of AIDS than faculty members. A discussion of these results and recommendations for practice are presented.

The author reviews the approaches of three commentators - a philosopher and academic administrator, a student affairs administrator and lawyer, and a law professor - concerning the chaning natur of institution-student relationships, discussing their shortcomings and common themes along with implications for practice.

Despite their race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual preference, students remain similar in one respect: their need to belong. Student affairs administrators are responsible for helping students make appropriate social transitions so that college degrees become realities, a task that is complicated when the student is and inner-city commuter.