Speech pathology, educational counseling and leadership assistant professor, Pietro Sasso has helped co-edit a new textbook, titled Today’s College Students: A Reader on College Students, that is now available for purchase on Amazon, after being published in mid-December.
Sasso said the main goal of the book is to study identity in college students. Sasso has access to the book as he has already started using the book in his own classes.
However, due to the book’s very recent publication date, it is not yet used in many other classes.
The book was co-edited by Sasso and Professor Joseph L. Devitis, a retired professor from Old Dominion University in Virginia.
The two helped contribute several chapters to the book, although it has 55 authors overall.
Speech pathology, educational counseling and leadership assistant associate professors, Tina Paone and Jose Mandolado, who are also both involved in the study of school counseling, were contributors to the text, along with three University graduate students.
A press release describes the book as one that “looks at a wide variety of student groups and identities on college campuses and explores the connection between extra-curricular campus activities and learning.”
“There is nothing else out there that breaks down student populations like this,” said Sasso.
The book is divided into several parts about students.
“There are four parts to the book, student diversity, student equality, student life, and student development and it is made up of 29 chapters overall,” said Sasso.
“It details various student populations, such as those of different races and different identities, such as LGBT students.
Other chapters focus on disabled students, transfer students, and students with mental health issues, among others. Much of the book focuses on research and statistics,” said Sasso.
Sasso said it also includes research on service learning and equality and how this affects students.
Sasso and Devitis were inspired to create this textbook about two years ago, when they realized that most college textbooks did not discuss diversity.
The two professors said that most college textbooks tend to focus on the standard residential student who is usually a member of a fraternity or sorority, although this profile only fits about 10 percent of students nationwide.
Sasso said the professors found themselves wanting to see what it was that other students went through, how college impacted people of all races, genders, and identities.
Sasso believes that the book is intended for two audiences, both students and teachers.
He thinks that students who want to know more about other students would find it interesting, and he has already integrated it into his own curriculum, in a master’s program that focuses on student affairs.
The book is a reflection of his own field of study, where he focuses on student affairs and college counseling.
Paone became involved with the writing of the book after Sasso mentioned the need for a chapter on whiteness and diversity, which is her field of research.
She helped write a chapter called “Identifying and Addressing Whiteness in a University Setting: Promoting A System of Success for All,” along with two colleagues from Villanova University.
She does not yet use the book in any of her classes.
“Although I haven’t exactly used the book yet, I plan to review it to see if it would fit into my course,” said Paone.
“The book is especially useful for educators and student affairs practitioner with its focus on each population,” said Vice President for Student Engagement and Enrollment Services at Old Dominion University, Ellen J. Neufeldt.
Neufeldt believes that the book helps with the understanding of students.
“Understanding students is how we build success for them as well as our institutions,” said Neufelt.
“This book has much breadth and depth and gives a rich exploration of student identity, diversity, equity, and campus life,” said the Associate Vice President and Dean of Students at Colgate University, Scott C. Brown.
IMAGE TAKEN from cololines.com
