Residence Life has outlined procedures for certain Resident Assistant responsibilities. This leadership role relies upon the unique personalities and strong diversity of our RAs. There are many opportunities for creativity and individual ownership of how one lives into the RA role. There are also elements of responsibility that are a small part of the a greater whole and therefore require more uniformity or procedure for how tasks are completed. The following section of the RA manual gives outlines pertinent procedures necessary for the RA role.
The Resident Assistant is responsible for working toward the development of a community where residents can grow in all aspects of their lives. Specific responsibilities of the Resident Assistant include the following:
1. Facilitate interaction between residents.
a. Develop and maintain an ongoing relationship with floor residents and respect the honor of residents by maintaining confidentiality.
b. Initiate contacts, make introductions, and stimulate conversation and activities among residents of the floor and the hall.
c. Be responsible for maintaining staff coverage (in-duty) of the hall as scheduled.
d. Facilitate floor meetings as needed.
e. Be aware of the special needs of residents. Report any extended illness or absences from the floor to your Resident Director/AC.
2. Model authentic faith and assist students in spiritual and personal growth.
a. Be a disciple of Jesus Christ to the residents of your floor, reflecting God's love to all types of residents, encouraging thoughtful and genuine Christian commitments, and modeling the life of a servant.
b. Support living area worship, Bible study, and other forms of spiritual development.
c. Encourage attendance at chapel and church services.
d. Be alert to the needs of students (i.e., loneliness, depression, homesickness, substance abuse, eating disorders, etc.) and make campus referrals as appropriate; discuss student needs with your Resident Director. Recognize & tell your RD/AC about warning signs and students who may be academically, socially, or personally struggling.
e. Within the context of relationship, challenge residents live congruently with their moral code and value system.
f. Hold a meaningful 1:1 conversation with each resident during first semester & most residents during second semester.
3. Assist students in integrating academic and extracurricular interests.
a. Stress the student's responsibilities in being part of the academic community (i.e., class attendance, keeping up with assignments, etc.).
b. Keep residents informed of co-curricular activities.
c. Encourage attendance at campus events such as plays, concerts, lectures, and sporting events.
d. Keep floor bulletin board current and attractive.
e. Engage residents in conversations about integrating learning from the classroom with learning from extracurricular events.
4. In consultation with Residence Life Professional staff, work to facilitate learning that fosters student development and life congruence with resident values.
5. Be a knowledgeable consultant, resource person, and referral agent for college services such as the The Center for Counseling and Wellness, Health Center, Center for Student Success, Student Housing Office, Calvin Food Service, etc. (see "Resources" section of manual)
6. Interpret and ensure compliance with college rules and regulations.
a. Fairly and consistently enforce residence hall regulations as contained in the Residence Hall Reference Guide, Residence Hall Contract, and the Student Handbook (see "Policies" section of RA manual).
b. Activate the college student conduct system by filing a detailed incident report after responding to policy violations.
c. Engage residents in conversations when noticing potentially negative behavioral patterns, and/or when rumors or suspicions about violating campus policies arise.
7. Assume responsibility for proper use and physical condition of facilities.
a. Report maintenance and cleaning needs of individual floors and public areas. Support building services.
b. Support enforcement of college and residence hall policies related to behavior in food service facilities.
c. Confront non-residents who make unauthorized use of hall facilities.
d. Confront students who are abusing or defacing college property.
8. Develop and maintain working relationships with other residence hall staff and be responsible for continual professional and personal growth.
a. Actively participate in RA training, All-Staffs, and weekly meetings.
b. Be supportive of other staff members and campus regulations within your living area and throughout campus.
c. Assist in the selection of new Resident Assistants.
9. Support fellow Residence Hall Leaders.
a. Attend Community Life Council Meetings.
b. Support Focus Position Leaders and RHET members through prayer, attendance at planned events, and promotion on floors.
c. Convene and facilitate the Social Events Team (SET). Be a liaison between the CLC and SET group. Work with the RHET Vice President to be liaison between the SET and RHET.
The Residence Life staff can serve and minister to residents in many ways. One of the most influential ways you can affect the lives of students around you is by serving as a very visible role model. The fact that you hold a staff position communicates to students that you possess certain characteristics that this institution considers important.
You will educate with your life. The students around you will be influenced by who you are and also by what you say and do. This applies to all areas of your life. Students will notice what is important to you by watching how you spend your time and by what you choose to talk about. Students around you can benefit greatly from observing your good study skills, social interactions, decision-making, self-care, and growth in your relationship with Christ.
Doesn’t this responsibility as a role model put a great deal of pressure on you to be perfect? Absolutely not! If you try to appear to “have it all together,” you may lose the opportunity to help someone who is struggling. This person may be too embarrassed or intimidated to approach you with a problem or question. It is more important to be real than to be perfect. Those around you can learn a great deal from watching you work through difficulties, wrestle with a tough decision, handle getting a bad grade, or ask for prayer for personal concerns. Don’t try to act like someone you are not, but show your residents that you are a human being with weaknesses. Show that you are growing and developing just as they are.
Be transparent. When you are willing to share the triumphs of your life as well as the struggles, you allow your residents to learn through your experiences and perhaps to grow along with you. Share your thoughts. Rather than just allowing your residents to see the final decisions and actions, share the thought processes that went along with them. Allow them to learn from the way you think. Pray. Ask God to give you courage to be transparent and to model a life that would point those around you to God.
Role Modeling. See above.
Confidentiality. A staff member has access to information about residents and fellow staff members that is of a confidential nature. It is very important that this confidentiality be maintained not only during the current academic year, but also in the future.
Punctuality. It is important to come to meetings and events and to turn in forms on time.
Staff-College Relationships. Undoubtedly there will be times when you disagree with certain policies established by the administration but which you must carry out. The professional way to react is through frank and private discussion with your supervisor, or a Director or Dean of Residence Life.
Inter-Staff Relationships. It is vital that the hall staff, as well as the entire leadership core, function as a team. When needed, discuss concerns with your supervisor. As an RA, you fulfill a highly visible leadership role on campus, and therefore we expect you to exercise discretion and wisdom in the way you pursue and maintain romantic relationships during your RA year. You are expected not to date any residents who reside in your own building during your RA year. Calvin’s Safer Spaces policy prohibits romantic relationships between people of unequal power. An RA has a degree of “power” over residents in their community, and therefore RAs are not allowed to be in romantic relationships with their residents. (See Safer Spaces Appendix B, point G : https://calvin.edu/about/safer-spaces/) You are also asked not to date other RAs in your same building (or on their same KE staff) during their year of service. RAs on the same team live and work very closely together, and when two RAs on the same team become romantically involved, it can be very disruptive to the RA team and the entire community.
Staff Meetings. Three hours each week should be set aside for staff meetings.
Your supervisor will have additional expectations for you, that will be discussed as a team.