Hello Champions! I hope everyone is having a great day so far!
Today I wanted to give you a little bit of an inside look into life inside of a Residents Hall. Especially when it comes to the role of both Residential Assistants(RA) and also Resident Directors(RD). I am headed into my second year as an RA this school year and I am super excited to be working in University Hall again. Fall of 2021 I was an RA in Dickinson Hall and in the Spring semester of 2022 I was moved to University Hall. I have loved working in both of these buildings, but I for sure have enjoyed University Hall a bit more due to the fact that this building does have an elevator.
An RA is able to do many different things in this role. The most important aspect of our job is being there for our residents. From day 1 that RA’s move in, we work to create connections with the students in our sections. Our goal is to give students someone that they can come to with whatever problem they might face. So be sure to tell your students on move in day to find their RA’s room! I know I personally give out my phone number to my residents if they ever need it. I am usually always running around campus, so if they can’t get a hold of me while I am in my room, they always have a way to contact me.
One of the other biggest parts of our role is when we are on duty. Every night there is an RA on duty in all of the Residents Halls. This person holds the RA phone for the duration of their shift. If anything happens from 7:00PM to 8:00 AM the next morning, your students can call the RA phone! The RA on duty is there to help your student! Even if it is to report a noisy neighbor, encourage them to call!
Also RA’s host events throughout the semester! All students are welcome to attend any of the events that RA’s host. These events are completely created by the RA’s so there are always different types of events happening. One event I hosted in Dickinson was called “Let’s Taco Bout Sex”. For this event I had our Dining Hall cater(food is always an attraction for events that students love) and I also brought in Kelly Palm from Health Services to talk to students! This was a great way for students to ask any questions they might have and also answer questions and win prizes that Kelly brought for everyone to have. Another event that I did in University was giving out succulents and cactus’ to students. I did this right before finals started and I was able to check in with University Hall residents about the end of the semester. The biggest goal is to get students engaged!
An RD is my boss. I have the best RD ever(I am 100% biased). Not only is he able to be a resource for us as a staff, but he is also a resource for students too. If students in the hall are having any sort of problem, they can reach out to their RD. There are many more RA’s compared to RD’s, but while RA’s are also students, RD’s are a professional staff. Meaning that their full time job is being there to run your students Residential Hall and also to be a resource for both RA’s and students.
I strongly encourage you all to tell your students to locate both the RD’s office in their building and also locate their RA’s room. These people are great resources, and they are there to help your student in any way that they can! That includes roommate conflicts! Conflicts with roommates can happen. It’s okay! We as RAs get trained to handle roommate conflicts!
I also encourage all of your students to apply to become an RA!(They can get both free housing and also a free meal plan). But I have to give credit to our NSO program. Without me joining NSO last year, I would not have become an RA. So I will also encourage your students to become Orientation Leaders.
I want you all to remember that us as the Residential Life Staff are here to help your students! We want them to have a great time while at Westfield, and we will do whatever we can to make sure that happens.
-Lindsey
Lindsey Bak
Student Coordinator of the Champions Network
Residential Assistant – University Hall
Class of 2023