Residence life and education, residential curriculum and curricular approaches, student housing, and technology.
This blog series features different writers responding to the prompt, "What is the future of the RA role?" Read More From The Series By Colin Varnet, Student Staff Member Okay, but hear me out. The phrase “Let’s get rid of RAs” may come across as provocative or even absurd to those familiar with the vital... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ So if you’re anything like me, these past few months have been a bit…stressful at best. There’s nothing quite like the crushing reality of having to now either get a job or go back to more school, with graduation caps and uncertainty looming in the distance.... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ As the year plugs on, and a staff feels more comfortable, the list of challenges changes from introducing yourself and getting to know your coworkers to how to maintain a strong work environment and contrary to popular belief–not getting too comfortable! Maybe you’re really good friends... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Oh joy, you made it through the first semester. Hopefully it went well, and hopefully you were able to build relationships with your residents, and they were able to build relationships with each other. That being said, the Spring semester can be completely different than the... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Everyone has their own perspective. With different values, opinions, and backgrounds, it’s reasonable that some topics are difficult to discuss without descending into madness. Whether it’s a topic such as…a heated national election for example, maintaining civil dialogue is important, and especially so on a university... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Quick, think of the worst policy-related incident you can respond to. Chances are, some event like a massive dorm party or maybe a vandalism event came to mind. These, however, have nothing on the more emotional side of the job. Such as, when is it proper... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ I’m sure we all (student staff and professional staff alike) have our fair share of opinions and stories regarding a residential curriculum (or RC, sometimes called a residential learning or engagement model). Some love it, and some not so much. But why? The educational/programmatic model has... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Adapting to university life is a challenge every incoming freshman faces. Exciting times as a new adult, with a new sense of independence can be seen as a positive, however they come with newfound responsibilities which often leave someone lonely. An RA’s job is therefore even... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ The thought of a looming crisis can be daunting for any RA or student staff member. We all know that all-too-familiar sinking feeling as the duty phone starts ringing. No matter how confident one might be before an incident, in an emergency, having a clear-cut plan... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Chances are, if you’re reading a blog post preparing for being an RA before you have even started training, your mind is probably already in the right place. That being said, you might want to know a few tips, tricks, and strategies to help you get... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Balancing the responsibilities of being an RA with the often overwhelming demands of academic life can be a challenging endeavor. Being an RA comes with unique duties and expectations, while your work at school often requires substantial time and focus...sometimes too much. This can be a... Continue Reading →
~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~ Anyone who has worked in residential life, from student staff to professional staff of all levels, have most likely come across training and strategies regarding students and how to build connections with them, but how effective are they really? Here, the fundamental aspects of a resident... Continue Reading →
