A Higher Calling: How Christian Student Affairs Administrators Integrate Their Faith While Working at Public Community Colleges

Author

Danielle J. WardFollow

Campus Location

Dallas Campus (Online)

Date of Award

1-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Department

Organizational Leadership

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

Committee Chair or Primary Advisor

BJ McMichael

Second Committee Member or Secondary Advisor

Ryan Davis

Third Committee Member or Committee Reader

Mark McCallon

Abstract

Abstract

The cornerstone of the student affairs field was the intentional focus on holistic student development, their mind and spirit. The problem addressed was that many student affairs professionals felt ill-equipped and uncomfortable discussing and expressing their personal faith at some institutions of higher education. As a result, some were hesitant about integrating faith at work, personally and professionally. The study sought to identify faith's role in Christian student affairs administrators who worked at public open-admission community colleges and the administrators’ perceptions of how their personal faith integration at work impacted their relationships with students and colleagues. The paradigm for this research was rooted in spiritual leadership theory, which states that leaders engage in the work because they want to, not because they are required to do so. The findings show that spiritual leadership is values-based and centers around purpose, calling, forgiveness, and loving others. The qualitative, narrative research data collection method utilized an 8-question pre-assessment electronic survey (see Appendix A) and one 60-minute semistructured virtual Zoom interview, which each participant completed. The data were coded with NVivo, transcribed with Otter A.I., and analyzed, which yielded the themes. A notable finding was that all participants regularly engaged in some form of spiritual discipline, including praying, reading their Bible, journaling, and attending church. Another key result was their faith or relationship with Christ was a means of personal accountability. As a result, they were highly cognizant of their behavior, especially in times of conflict, and wanted to ensure that it aligned with their faith. Additionally, all participants believed that they were engaged in their life’s calling, and connecting with other Christians on campus was desired among most participants. In conclusion, integrating faith at work was vital to the participants as it permitted them to bring their authentic selves to work. Their faith influenced their leadership style, which impacted their communication with team members and colleagues, and they relied on their faith to help navigate how to respond to conflict.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Recommended Citation

Ward, Danielle J., "A Higher Calling: How Christian Student Affairs Administrators Integrate Their Faith While Working at Public Community Colleges" (2025). Digital Commons @ ACU, Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 852.
https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/etd/852