Educating the whole student requires addressing spiritualdevelopment and is best accomplished through anintegration of academic and student affairs.

Role of Spirituality and SpiritualDevelopment in Student Life Outsidethe Classroom

Jennifer Capeheart-Meningall

College is a critical time when students search for meaning in life andexamine their spiritual beliefs and values. During this time, students areasking questions about meaning and morality, belief and behavior(Garber, 1996). How do students learn to conscientiously connect whatthey believe and how they live? According to Garber, “The years betweenadolescence and adulthood are crucial, moral meaning is being formedand central to the formation is a vision of integrity which coherently con-nects belief to behavior personally as well as publicly” (p. 20). Indeed,“true education is always about learning to connect knowing with doing,belief with behavior . . . ” (p. 43). The challenge for colleges and univer-sities is thus to educate students holistically. This requires providing pro-grams and activities that emphasize social, physical, intellectual, career,psychological, cultural, and spiritual development. One of the most sen-sitive and potentially controversial—and the subject of this chapter—isspiritual development.

Spiritual development is an integral part of overall student developmentand learning. The role of student affairs in spiritual development is criticalbecause of the commitment to provide purposeful programs that addressthe integrated whole of students’ development and learning.

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Spirituality and Spiritual Development

According to Tisdell (2003), “Spirituality is one of the ways people con-struct knowledge and meaning” (p. 20). Tisdell is not discussing religion,defined as a shared system of beliefs, principles, and doctrine related to anorganized community of faith. Instead, spirituality defines how people con-struct knowledge through meaning-making and awareness of wholenessand the interconnectedness of all things, including unconscious and sym-bolic processes (Tisdell, 2003).

Discussions of spirituality in the academy often involve transformativelearning. This learning considers “what students know, who they are, whattheir values and behavior patterns are, and how they see themselves con-tributing to and participating in the world in which they live” (Keeling,2004, p. 10). By this, we encourage intentional, engaged, and empoweredlearners who integrate knowledge, skills, and experiences to make meaningthroughout their lives. Consequently, spirituality can direct daily living thatconsistently exemplifies self-integration, which is holistic, involving phys-ical, psychological, and social aspects of the individual, bringing all aspectsof life together in relation to others in his or her world.

Jablonski (2001) said, “Spiritual development is a form of deeper learn-ing because it touches on students’ encounter with transcendence and ulti-mate meaning in their lives” (p. 19). Spiritual development, an ongoing andcontinuous process, is about students’ personal quests for clarifying and ful-filling personal destiny. Although difficult to measure, spiritual develop-ment provides opportunities to have deeper and sustainable learningexperiences in college.

Love and Talbot (1999) utilize five interrelated processes to definespiritual development: “Spiritual development involves (1) an internal pro-cess of seeking personal authenticity, genuineness, and wholeness as anaspect of identity development, . . . (2) the process of continually tran-scending one’s current locus of centricity, . . . (3) developing a greater con-nectedness to self and others through relationships and union withcommunity, . . . (4) deriving meaning, purpose, and direction in one’s life,and . . . (5) increasing openness to exploring a relationship with an intan-gible and pervasive power or essence that exists beyond human existenceand rational human knowing” (pp. 364–367).

Love and Talbot’s (1999) process of spiritual development consistentlysupports student development theory that advocates integrating all aspectsof students’ learning. Students’ histories, social interactions, families, reli-gion, values, and so forth provide the framework to make meaning of newlyacquired information. “Adults, some of whom are students, constantly ac-quire information, examine its implications, apply it to areas of understand-ing and action that are personally significant, and reframe their insights ascircumstances evolved through a process of transformative learning”(Keeling, 2004, p. 11). Tisdell (2003) notes that integrating life experiences

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and developing a critical reflective process of self, coupled with the academiclearning environment, will facilitate knowledge construction in both studentsand educators. Love and Talbot’s (1999) process of spiritual developmentbecomes the bridge between the life currently being lived and the life stu-dents are developing through the integration of new knowledge with old.

Student and Academic Affairs Collaboration inSpiritual Development

Students are in a continual process of growth and change, regardless of col-lege attendance; however, the question is what influence the college expe-rience has on that change. The collaboration of student and academic affairscan have a positive influence by providing a seamless opportunity to “pro-mote, challenge, validate, and build on new and previous learning” (Maki,2003, p. 2). This type of learning, which is considered transformative, basedon intentional partnering, can shape students’ learning and development inproductive ways.

Spiritual development is critical both to the integrated development ofthe student and to the fulfillment of our responsibility to educate the wholestudent. Attending to spiritual development through student and academicaffairs’ programs and services will vary based on the collegiate setting, orga-nization, and priorities. Notwithstanding, focusing on spirituality and spir-itual development can result in learning outcomes that lead to personal andsocial transformation in students. The National Study of College Students’Search for Meaning and Purpose–Summary of Findings (Astin and others,2004) noted the following initial outcomes to be positively associated withspirituality:

• Physical and psychological health, including self-esteem• Optimism and a sense of personal empowerment• Civic responsibility, including charitable involvement and social activism• Empathy, understanding and caring for others, including the importance

of reducing pain and suffering in the world, feeling a strong connectionto all humanity, compassionate self-concept

• Racial or ethnic awareness and tolerance, including the importance ofpromoting racial understanding, attending racial or cultural awarenessworkshops, the ability to get along with people of different race or cul-tures, and growth in tolerance during college

• Academic performance, including graduate-level degree aspiration andintellectual self-confidence

• Satisfaction with college, including a sense of community on campus, theamount of contact with faculty, interaction with other students, and over-all college experience

• Religiousness, including religious commitment and involvement [pp.10–12]

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This preliminary list solidifies the importance of including spiritualdevelopment in the work of student affairs. These outcomes not only aidstudents in their quest to obtain a degree but also provide a deeper learningexperience. Thus, student and academic affairs must work to transcendboundaries that hinder the creation of out-of-classroom programs and activ-ities that enhance students’ undergraduate experience. Incorporating spiri-tual development will require new ways of thinking, a review of campuslearning environments, an analysis of patterns and methods of programdelivery and systems, and possibly a divisional realignment to honor edu-cating the integrated whole of the student.

Infusing Spiritual Development in Student LifeOutside the Classroom

Approaches to operationalizing spiritual development into student and aca-demic affairs programs and services include the following:

• One, spiritual development involves an internal process of seeking personalauthenticity, genuineness, and wholeness as an aspect of identity development.This developmental aspect can be achieved by incorporating student valuesclarification and goal setting into initial orientation programs. Learning com-munities, counseling sessions, judicial processes, leadership programs, andfirst-year career development activities can also engage students to identifythe values and principles that govern their behaviors. “All campus educatorsshould ensure the establishment of reflection and other meaning-makingopportunities for students to examine the breadth of their learning (e.g.,through portfolios, advising, journals, life planning, mentoring programs)”(Keeling, 2004, p. 29). Assisting students to live and behave in congruencewith their own principles will strengthen the connection between what theybelieve and how they behave. Chavez (2001) states that “living reflectively isperhaps the most foundational of all the principles I live by; it affects my abil-ity to live by all of the others [principles]” (p. 73). As educators, we mustwork to design our campus environments where reflective analysis is preva-lent. This type of reflection allows students to make meaning out of what theyare learning, what they believe, and what they are doing.

• Two, spiritual development involves the process of continually tran-scending one’s current locus of centricity. Learning to live a balanced life iscritical in assisting students to develop spiritually. Chavez (2001) indicates,“Balance involves living in balance with all life forms, and living in healthyways every day” (p. 74). Programs and activities that teach students life-management skills in all aspects will assist them in achieving balance (forexample, wellness programs, time and stress management, building healthyrelationships).

• Three, spiritual development involves developing a greater connected-ness to self and others through relationships and union with community.

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“Shared purpose, shared commitment, shared relationships, shared respon-sibility—the need for community is a primal yearning and a practical neces-sity in our lives and in our society” (McDonald, 2002, p. 3). Programs andservices that offer activities that affirm diversity, establish and hold studentsaccountable for conduct, celebrate campus traditions, and join various con-stituencies together will help build community. Volunteerism and commu-nity service programs are other activities that correlate strongly withbuilding a unified vision of the campus and surrounding community.

• Four, spiritual development involves deriving meaning, purpose, anddirection in one’s life. Programs and services that allow students to exploreinterests and skills, personal goal setting and calling, and self-explorationand -understanding will encourage students to fulfill their life’s purpose.Activities such as support groups, residential dialogues, campus ministries,career explorations, and life planning allow students to solidify their searchfor their own purpose.

• Five, spiritual development involves increasing openness to exploring arelationship with an intangible and pervasive power or essence that existsbeyond human existence and rational human being. Any program that ad-dresses spirituality and spiritual development has the potential to strengthenstudents’ educational gains. Specifically, campus ministries, religious stu-dent organizations, and lectures on various religions are examples of activ-ities that support this developmental element.

Conclusion

It is incumbent on student and academic affairs administrators to acknowl-edge the impact of out-of-classroom experience on educational gains.Students involved in out-of-classroom programs are more positive abouttheir overall collegiate experience, more satisfied with their social lives, havemore contact with faculty, and are more likely to graduate than other stu-dents (Kuh, Schuh, Whitt, and Associates, 1991). Because students spendmost of their time out of class, it is crucial for institutions to deliberatelydesign programs for transformative learning. Including spiritual develop-ment enhances the educational experience of the student and promotesholistic learning. To the extent that educating the whole student is possi-ble, incorporating spiritual development underscores the potential to facil-itate transformative learning.

References

Astin, A., and others. “Spirituality in Higher Education: A National Study of CollegeStudents Search for Meaning and Purpose.” Higher Education Research Institute,University of California, Los Angeles, 2004. http://www.spirituality.ucla.edu. AccessedApr. 28, 2004.

Chavez, A. F. “Spirit and Nature in Everyday Life: Reflections of a Mestiza in HigherEducation.” In M. A. Jablonski (ed.), The Implications of Student Spirituality for Student

Affairs Practice. New Directions for Student Services, no. 95. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2001.

Garber, S. The Fabric of Faithfulness: Weaving Together Belief and Behavior During theUniversity Years. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1996.

Jablonski, M. A. (ed.). The Implications of Student Spirituality for Student Affairs Practice.New Directions for Student Services, no. 95. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2001.

Keeling, P. R. (ed.). Learning Reconsidered: A Campus-Wide Focus on the StudentExperience. Washington, D.C.: American College Personnel Association and NationalAssociation of Student Personnel Administrators, 2004.

Kuh, G. D., Schuh, J. H., Whitt, E. J., and Associates. Involving Colleges: SuccessfulApproaches to Fostering Student Learning and Development Outside the Classroom. SanFrancisco: Jossey-Bass, 1991.

Love, P., and Talbot, D. “Defining Spiritual Development: A Missing Consideration forStudent Affairs.” NASPA Journal, 1999, 37(1), 361–375.

Maki, P. Learning Contexts Inside and Outside of the Academy. Washington, D.C.:American Association of Higher Education, 2003.

McDonald, W. (ed.). Creating Campus Community: In Search of Ernest Boyer’s Legacy. SanFrancisco: Jossey-Bass, 2002.

Tisdell, E. Exploring Spirituality and Culture in Adult and Higher Education. San Francisco:Jossey-Bass, 2003.

JENNIFER CAPEHEART-MENINGALL is vice president for student affairs at theUniversity of South Florida in Tampa.

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