Date of Award

Fall 11-21-2026

Document Type

Dissertation in Practice

Degree Name

Ed.D. in Higher Education

Organizational Unit

Morgridge College of Education, Higher Education

First Advisor

Laura E. Sponsler

Second Advisor

Sarah Hurtado

Third Advisor

Laura Randolph

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

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

Keywords

Letter writing, Student affairs staff, Student affairs, Remote & flexible work, Remote work policies, Academic capitalism, Ideal worker norms, Higher education, COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic had a tremendous impact on many industries and completely revolutionized how people lived and worked. This pandemic transformed higher education and spurred the emergence of remote work policies, which profoundly affected the lived experiences of student affairs professionals in higher education. Social distancing mandates and the need to maintain continuity of service in higher education advanced remote work policies. Yet, alongside the policies, remote work arrangements provided flexibility, enhanced well-being, and productivity across the workforce (Chan et al., 2023; Chatterjee et al., 2022; Dembicki, 2022; Tapani et al., 2022). Research supports the idea that student affairs professionals are highly dedicated to students’ holistic development and demonstrate their commitment by working long hours, late into the night, and on weekends, often at the expense of their personal obligations (Sallee, 2016). The literature also supports that student affairs culture has deeply embedded ideal worker norms, or productivity norms (full commitment, continual availability, prioritization of work, and absence of personal commitments), that drive staff to consider their work first, to prioritize in-person work, and to view their work and themselves as highly relational (Isdell & Wolf-Wendel, 2023; Sallee & Renn, 2023).

This study utilized a qualitative narrative inquiry method and policy analysis with 16 participants from 10 four-year universities, conducted via letter writing, to better understand the lived experiences of student affairs professionals and examine the impact of policy implementation on their personal and professional lives and their perceptions of their organizations. Participants reported that the autonomy afforded to leaders in implementing remote work policies yielded negative perceptions. Upon evaluation, policy frameworks across the 10 universities shared common characteristics. The benefits of remote work frequently conflicted with participants’ perceived sacrifices of in-person presence, community, and connection. Universities instituted uniform policies and should consider equity in policy design. Furthermore, remote work policies enabled the adoption of new work practices and the redefining of traditional approaches to work. Recommendations for higher education leaders include designing policies to improve staff retention, moving away from “one-size-fits-all” policies, and providing support and training for supervisors to develop and manage hybrid workforces.

Copyright Date

10-2026

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Shana N. Alston

Provenance

Received from Author

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

193 pgs

File Size

1 MB

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