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2011 NASPA Case Study Competition
New Professionals
*Case Study: Online Opposition
Online Opposition: Setting
Institutional characteristics
Name:
Type institution:
Enrollment:
Undergraduate:
Graduate:
Location:
Selectivity:
Student characteristics
Age (average):
Undergraduate:
Graduate:
SES (%):
Low:
Middle:
High:
Resident Students (%):
Race/Ethnicity (%):
African American
Latino/a
Asian American
European American
Native American
International
Race unreported
Gender (%):
Male
Female
Prefect College
Private
7500
1000
Suburban
Very selective
20
35
15
70
15
75
4.2
2.6
7.2
72.7
0.3
1.8
11.2
58
42
* Case Study: Online Opposition was written by Ms. Emily Long, and Ms. Kristen Whitney, University of Central Florida, Orlando for the 2011
NASPA Case Study Competition at the 2011 NASPA Annual Conference, Philadelphia, PA, March 12-16.
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Online Opposition: Characters
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Trisha Jones is African American, and a freshman at Prefect College.
Matthew is Hispanic and a sophomore at Prefect College.
Dr. Whitney is a tenured faculty member that teaches in the Physics Department.
Dr. Tran is the Dean of Student Affairs.
Mrs. Sommers is the Director of Counseling Services. Joshua Levy is European American, and a
junior at Prefect College.
Online Opposition: Case Narrative
Riveting behavior
On Monday, Trisha logged on to her computer and proceeded to check her online social sites.
As she logged on to Peopleread, she had several notifications on her page from a person named Joshua
Levy. In these messages were offensive remarks that demeaned Trisha’s character. After reading the
messages, Trisha immediately wrote back and responded “please leave me alone- I don’t even know
who you are!” The profile of Joshua Levy had no identifying information.
Trisha left her room to meet her boyfriend, Matthew, for lunch. On the way to the dining hall,
she noticed a man following her. Every time she turned around, he would either stop and look away or
try to duck behind a wall or tree. Trisha began to walk faster to the dining hall. Once she got to the hall,
she could no longer see the stranger who had been following her. Trisha told her boyfriend, Matthew,
about the man. Matthew told her to not worry about it; she was probably just freaked out from the
online comments.
Trisha went back to her room and logged back into Peopleread. She had one new notification
from Joshua Levy: “Don’t hurry back to the site, I’m watching you.” Trisha did not know what to do.
She closed her laptop and locked her door and remained in her room for the rest of the day.
Difficult situations
Dr. Whitney had noticed some issues with one of his students, Joshua Levy. Joshua had seemed
lonely and isolated. Whenever Dr. Whitney reached out to Joshua after class lectures, Joshua would
remain quiet and uninterested. Joshua’s grades had slipped; he was failing. Dr. Whitney knew that
Joshua was planning to enter the physics program, which each student had to apply. In order to b e
accepted, you had to maintain a 3.5 GPA as well as be in good standing with the college.
* Case Study: Online Opposition was written by Ms. Emily Long, and Ms. Kristen Whitney, University of Central Florida, Orlando for the 2011
NASPA Case Study Competition at the 2011 NASPA Annual Conference, Philadelphia, PA, March 12-16.
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Dr. Whitney called Dr. Tran, the Dean of Student Affairs. Dr. Whitney told Dr. Tran about the
concerns for Joshua. Dr. Tran told Dr. Whitney that she would try to contact some of her staff
members in the division about the student.
Mrs. Sommers, the Counseling Director, had a heavy caseload this semester. Recent across-theboard budget cuts have caused her to only have two other psychologists in the department. With 20+
students on regular check-ins and completing sanctioning requirements in collaboration with Student
Conduct, time and support was limited. Keeping track of all of the students and their issues was
difficult, at best. Although Mrs. Sommers was committed to not allowing her office get out of control,
she was extremely worried about her ability to handle all of the students. She was particularly worried
about Joshua Levy. He evoked patterns of anti-social disorder in which he did not have empathy for his
actions to others. She did not want to give up on Joshua Levy. However, his lack of commitment to
therapy and a change in behavior caused Mrs. Sommers great stress.
An unexpected conflict
Trisha was walking with Matthew to his physical science class. Trisha noticed that the stranger
was following her again. Matthew and Trisha ran away from the stranger and were able to duck behind
a bush. They both watched as the stranger had a confuse look, as if wondering where they had gone.
The stranger continued walking. Matthew told Trisha to go back to her room and wait for him until
after his class. Before entering his class, he assured her that they would speak with campus security
together.
During class, Dr. Whitney noticed that Joshua and another student, Matthew, were having a
disagreement that was starting to turn into a full-blown argument. From Dr. Whitney’s viewpoint,
Joshua almost seemed to be enjoying the confrontation with Matthew. Matthew continued to get
more upset while Joshua replied to Matthew’s comments with laughter and snide remarks. As Dr.
Whitney approached both students, he overheard Joshua say, “Well, I love watching her squirm.” After
which, Matthew punched Joshua in the face. Dr. Whitney stepped in, pulled both students apart kicked
them both out of the class. Before both students left, Dr. Whitney instructed them that they would
need to report back to his office in an hour to talk about the fight. Dr. Whitney immediately filed a
report to the Dean’s Office regarding the incident.
Three hours later, Dr. Whitney sat at his desk perplexed and exhausted. His meeting with
Joshua and Matthew had turned into a big issue. After asking both of the students about what had
happened in the classroom, Dr. Whitney was most appalled by Joshua’s explanation. Joshua told Dr.
Whitney that a student by the name of Trisha had sparked his interest after he had seen her in the
dining hall. He proceeded to tell Dr. Whitney that he found out where she lived and the classes she had
taken by her profile on Peoplereader. He described the whole situation like it was a game. Dr. Whitney
was unsure what to do.
* Case Study: Online Opposition was written by Ms. Emily Long, and Ms. Kristen Whitney, University of Central Florida, Orlando for the 2011
NASPA Case Study Competition at the 2011 NASPA Annual Conference, Philadelphia, PA, March 12-16.
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That night, Trisha was walking home from class when a man attacked her from behind. The man
told her he loved the attention of a stranger in her life. Trisha begged for the man to leave her alone.
He began to stroke her hair and then told her that he would always be watching. The man hit Trisha in
the face and ran away. Once Trisha got her bearings, she ran back to her room and called campus
security.
The next day, Dr. Tran sees the report on her desk from campus security about the attack on
campus. She also has an e-mail from one the faculty members, Dr. Whitney, about Joshua Levy and the
meeting between them yesterday.
Online Opposition: The Charge
You are scheduled to meet with Dr. Tran, the Dean of Student Affairs in the next 3 days. What is your strategy
for the meeting and for resolving the situation?
*2011 NASPA Case Study: Online Opposition
Appendix A: PeopleReader messages between Trisha Jones and Joshua Levy
Joshua Levy:
Hi Trisha. I don’t know who u think u are but you are a slut. Taunting me and being provocative is
making me tick.
Trisha Jones:
Please leave me alone- I don’t even know who you are!
Joshua Levy:
Don’t hurry back to the site. I’m watching you.
* Case Study: Online Opposition was written by Ms. Emily Long, and Ms. Kristen Whitney, University of Central Florida, Orlando for the 2011
NASPA Case Study Competition at the 2011 NASPA Annual Conference, Philadelphia, PA, March 12-16.
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*2011 NASPA Case Study: On-line Opposition
Appendix B: Excerpt from Joshua Levy’s Application to Prefect College
Do you have any criminal history? X Yes ___ No
If yes, please explain below:
Misdemeanor: Disorderly Conduct / Disruptive Behavior
Findings: Guilty, Sent to State Counselor on Grounds of Mental Illness.
I grew up in a difficult situation. I told few about my childhood and tended to not trust others. My father was
abusive while my mother was very passive. I choose to not befriend others in order to protect myself. I enjoyed
finding pets in my backyard, such as squirrels and rabbits. I was able to control my pets by inflicting pain on
them. By the time I was 13, I had killed several of these pets. I felt that the animals were the only thing I could
control in my life. Since these occurrences in my early childhood, I have reversed those behaviors and am a
upstanding citizen in good standing. I want to be upfront and honest about my past because I feel like I am the
perfect candidate for Prefect.
*DISCLAIMER: All applicants with previous criminal history will be subject to review
from Community Standards and Responsibility.
* Case Study: Online Opposition was written by Ms. Emily Long, and Ms. Kristen Whitney, University of Central Florida, Orlando for the 2011
NASPA Case Study Competition at the 2011 NASPA Annual Conference, Philadelphia, PA, March 12-16.