Original question:

I was just wondering what advice people have for an RA (such as myself) coming on to a floor mid semester? I am fortunate enough to have a co-RA on the floor with me, but there is still a lot to take in! Any advice would be greatly appriciated! Samantha - Colorado State University

Here are the responses from the ResidentAssistant.com Experts:

Trey Reckling:

Talk to your co-RA and to your supervisor to understand how things have gone on the hall to this point. Some people come into the position at mid-year because of misbehavior or lack or performance by a former RA. This can make things very difficult on the person that follows. However, regardless of the situation, get to know the history of the hall without becoming too biased. Your co-RA may be quick to tell you which rooms have been the source of 'trouble.' Take this kind of information with a grain of salt. People make mistakes and hopefully learn from them.

Getting to know your residents is the most important of all. Help them get to know you as well. It may help to gather everyone together for a meeting, introduce yourself and share important and timely info that they may need.

You may hear about how you are different from your predecessor. Pay attention, sometimes this is how people tell you what they like and don't like about how things are going now. Just because they liked something done another way doesn't mean it was better, but sometimes it is. At times people just liked someone's style better because they were allowed to get away with violations.

Overall I would suggest you spending a lot of time listening: to your co-RA, your residents and your supervisor. Ask lots of questions and enjoy the opportunity.

Trey Reckling
Ombudsman
Savannah College of Art & Design

Holly Shikano

Hi! What a great question!

Starting mid year, or even a month or two into the semester can be a little crazy. Having missed fall training and the critical first couple of weeks of the semester can make the RA job seem more challenging. However, I think that starting now can be a neat opportunity too.

So, how to capitalize on your unique start date: 3 ideas.

First, catch up with staff:
Be sure you read the entire staff manual. Not being in training can impact how prepared you are for crisis and/or duty situations but can also limit your ideas about what programming you can do. Use the resources your college/institute provides.

Also, talk with your Hall Director/Area Coordinator about trying to get to know the current staff. Sometimes there are get to know you activities as part of fall training that help staff to know each other. As an RA you will need to rely and feel comfortable with folks on staff. Perhaps they can schedule a role play conflict situation time in the weekly staff meeting as a review for others and as a testing ground for you.

Second, get to know your residents:
This is the best advice for any RA and any time! If you seek out your residents and introduce yourself personally to them, it means much more then an email or a flyer ever could.

Try to schedule a time when your residents are normally around for them to drop by your room. ( I am assuming you have designated staff staff rooms, as most schools do, so even if they don't know you yet, they know where they can find you if they need you). Do a "Cafe RA" program and make coffee or hot cider/tea/cocoa. Students love hot beverages in winter (especially in Colorado) and that way folks have a reason to come by and hang out.

Third, be confident that your newness and energies can yield a great floor!
As you just started, you are weeks behind in the BURN OUT curve too! This means that you have the enthusiasm and energy, (one hopes) to really generate community on your floor. It takes effort in the first few weeks to set up a community, and now that your residents are settled into a routine, find out when they are free to do stuff. In some ways the opportunity to cater to the floor is made easier at this time of year.

And finally, Samantha-- Have fun! Being an RA is one of the most enjoyable, stressful, exciting, challenging and yes, absolutely rewarding jobs
you can ever have!

Write again if you have more questions, either to RA.com or to me directly! I would love to hear if you implement any suggestions.

Holly Shikano

Ray Gasser:

I think the transition in the middle of the semester is a difficult one for RAs because we typically aren't able to provide a lot of training and most people are pretty into what they are doing so sometimes the new RA is alone on this sort of endeavor other than the support of the Hall Director.

I would consider the following:
1. I would make sure you get sufficient training on your job from your hall director and staff. Specifically- emergency procedures and protocol, conduct/judicial system, rules/regulations, community building & programming, job expectations, and resources.
2. I would ask your hall director to pair you up with a returner who could act as a mentor to you as you are making the adjustment. I would say specifically that this should be someone other than your co-RA because then you really have two resources to pull from to help you with your transition.
3. I would ask alot of questions. Keep asking questions of your fellow RAs to see how they do things. You might get some ideas that will help you figure out how you want to work on your floor.
4. I would set up an initial floor meeting so you have an opportunity to introduce yourself. Your co-RA should be able to help you do this along with the support of your HD.
5. I would work on establishing individual relationships with your residents. Get to know them and give them the chance to get to know you. The earlier you can do this, the more they will see you as the RA.
6. I would stand firm on conduct and policy. Residents will typically try to say "well that's not how the last RA worked, he/she said we could do this...." Don't let residents play this game with you. Stand firm and you will have a much smoother transition.

I hope this helps a bit. Please let me know if you have follow up questions.
Ray Gasser
University of Arizona

Tom Ellet:

I think that you should really "expect" that the department of res life provide you with all of the training you possibly could need. You should meet with the Director, Asst, Area Coordinator, etc to go through the actual training program that was offered to all the summer trained RAs. You should expect nothing less. I think an abridged version is important as you need to now the goals and objectives of the goals that your program is trying to accomplish. Since you are from Colorado State, a place that I highly respect, I know you have people who care a great deal about the RAs... take advantage of the services and staff to help you be successful. Questions important for you to have answered include:

• Level of support
• How to confront
• How to build community
• What resources exist on campus
• How to deal with crisis
• programming - how to market and reach out to students
• Knowing how to facilitate conversation is also a priority for you to accomplish.
  
  I hope this helps.
  
  Tom
  
  

Here are the responses from the ResidentAssistant.com Experts:

Trey Reckling:

1. Don't smile till Christmas. It's old advice they give teachers in grad school. Not to be taken literally of course but it is a good point to remember that you can always ease up a bit but unless you set boundaries early, it will be much more difficult later
2. Be fair and consistent. Students are very aware of inequity. Having favorites or allowing special circumstances for certain people will undermine you.
3. Love the unlovable. It is easy to befriend the students that are socially skilled and communicate well. Those people that are positive and outgoing usually have little problem making friends. It is the other folks, the outsiders, that need extra love and attention.
4. Challenge by choice: no students should be made to participate in what you consider to be a fun activity. All you can do is allow them opportunities to interact. Sometimes you can help the more shy students to meet people by introducing them and inviting them to do things with you but you should not make them feel that they must.
5. Don't take it personally. Students will be students. They will break policies. It is not about you! They usually do it without any thought of disappointing their RA. At the same time, when enforcing policy, it is not about them. It is about their actions.
6. Learn your students names! You cannot develop a relationship with someone you do know the name of.
7. Beware permission by omission. If you see a violation of policies and do not address it, you have given permission. Expect to see more. At the same time, there is a time and place to confront. Some situations may be better addressed in private.
8. Stay healthy. You cannot save the world but you can make one small part of it a better place to live. You cannot be an effective role-model, friend, teacher, confidant or healer if you are not healthy. Get sleep and pace yourself.
9. Light small fires. Students will not change overnight. You may say something or have a program that doesn't actually impact them for some time to come. Do not expect to see fruits or your labor immediately. Do not expect anyone to personally thank you. If they do, cherish it and show your appreciation for the feedback. It doesn't happen often enough.
10. Enjoy your job. You have chosen to do what you do. You have asked for this opportunity. Some would say that you have been called to do this job. It is a very unique and rewarding experience. Do not expect others to understand what you do unless they have done something similar. Take pictures, take notes and have fun. Although some nights are long, the job is over soon. It may be something you relish for years to come.

Ray Gasser:

1. Begin developing relationships with your residents. By having a relationship with the residents, you build trust and respect for your role and they will be more responsive to your needs as an RA.
   
2. Develop community and encourage residents to build relationships amongst each other. When you have a community of people who know each other they are less likely to act out in the community because they don’t want to create grief or problems for their neighbors.
   
3. Encourage residents to study early on. Typically first year students stumble their first semester because they are using high school as their model for learning/studying. Students are going to need to push themselves harder and by doing so early, they will be less likely to fall behind.
   
4. Role model what you expect from your residents and community. If you expect students to study and obey residence hall guidelines, you should do the same. Students learn a lot from each other and if they see you starting the behavior they are more likely to follow along.
5. Learn the names of your residents within the first 1-2 weeks. The sooner you can call people by name, the more apart of a community they will feel.
   
6. Establish the ground rules early on during a floor meeting. By sharing the expectations of the residence halls early and what the community expects from each other beyond those rules, you will be on your way to ensuring each resident’s success.
   
7. Encourage your residents to get involved with hall government. Hall government provides residents with a voice in the hall and this is a great way to create a strong floor community.
8. Go to dinner with your floor. Everyone likes to eat and this is a great way to begin developing a repoire with your floor.
9. Ask the residents what they want you to do during the year. Discovering the types of programs that a resident wants to see on the floor will help you determine the type of programming you should do.
10. Have some fun with your residents. This will establish you as a peer amongst them and help you not be seen as just the RA and the enforcer of rules. Social activities/programs are a good way to have some fun (i.e. bowling, intramural sports, video games, shopping, etc.)

Tom Ellet:

1. Get to know all of your residents first names
2. Learn something to remember each of them by
3. Set the tone early by having students confront others
4. Don't be seen as an enforcer, rather as a respected peer
5. Don't compromise your position
6. Create a floor mascot
7. Create a weekly tradition or two (Tuesday night dinners or Sunday night
   floor standard discussions)
8. Bring your floor to the best three locations on campus (whatever they are)
9. Create a floor "song" be seen throughout the entire building
10. Try and learn the names of ALL students in your building

Gaving Henning:

1. Get to know each resident (more than just say hi) and talk with them, even briefly each week (be active, don't wait for residents to come to you the RA)
2. Memorize the names of each residents
3. Have a floor meeting the first or second night to establish expectations of residents' behavior and floor community
4. Get your residents to know each other (the avenue may be different depending on the community). It could be an informal food gathering, a formalized floor program, a hiking trip, etc. The RA will need to assess their floor to determine what is the best approach
5. Be available for residents - keeping door open
6. Establish peer support - find another RA(s) or former RA that you talk about the job with. Having a support person(s) that knows the job will help as you deal with stressful times. This person will understand what you are going through and can lend an ear or advice depending on what you need at the time
7. Establish peer support that isn't an RA. It is preferable is this person lives off-campus. This person will allow you to "escape" the job and the responsibilities when you need a little break. If the person isn't an RA you are less apt to discuss the RA life.
8. Determine how you will keep energized and sane. For some it is exercise, for some it is a hobby, for some it is something else. Determine early what this is for you AND practice it. Keeping your energized and sane will sustain you in the RA job for the whole year. This allows you to enjoy the job without feeling run down which ultimately not only helps you, but also your residents.
9. Establish regular meetings with your supervisor, if they haven't been established already. Your supervisor is key in helping you be the best RA you can be. Use him or her.
10. Have fun. While the RA job is a large responsibility, it will be more enjoyable and you will be better if you have fun at it.
    
    

Residence Life Professional Answers:

Gregg's TOP TEN Things to Know/Remember as a Resident Assistant!
10. Make time for yourself.
9.   Know the name of each resident on your floor.
8.   Program based on the needs of your residents.
7.   Document all incidents that occur (depression, alcohol, visitation, ect.)
    for the protection of you and the school.
6.   Keep your door open as much as possible, this helps build community!
5.  Follow-up, follow-up, follow-up!
4.  Be positive.  Try to keep smiling even when you feel like you can't.
3.  Respect your residents and they will respect you.
2.   Remember F.E.R.P.A. (Confidentiality of your residents)
1.  Balance school, the job, and personal life the best you can.  Communicate to  someone when you are struggling to accomplish balance.

Gregg Stewart
Residence Life Coordinator
University of Central Oklahoma

Here are 16 of my and one my colleague's top "10".  tim.

1.)  Remember to treat everyone one with respect
2.)  Remember to meet residents on their level
(developmentally)
3.)  Perception is 90% of reality
4.)  Let your residents see you as a person, just not their
RA
5.)  Study, study, study... Academics should come first
6.)  Take time for yourself.  Maintain relationships out of
your building and off campus
7.)  Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will your
community
8.)  Be intentional in purposeful in what you do.
9.)  Working as a team with your fellow staff members is
they key to success and your existence
10.)  Remember to enjoy the experience.  I will be one of
the most rewarding you will have.
11.) You will learn more that you think.
12.) Your supervisor is the best resource you have.
13.) There's no substitute for a good attitude.
14.) Freshmen mess-up and that's ok.
15.) Tough situations are an excellent time for learning.
16.) You have one of the most important jobs on campus

Tim Stockton
Assistant Director for Selection and Training
Indiana University

In response to your question about the top 10 things every RA should know, here are my thoughts...(these aren't in a specific order...just the 10 things I think are very important)

1. Get to know your staff - you don't have to know all intimate details...but know what each others strengths are and draw upon those strengths.

2. Remember you have back-up (other RAs, RDs, etc) - never go into a questionable circumstance without back-up.  Be safe and know there are other people you can count on for support.

3. Get to know your residents - this will not only help out in community buildling, but will help you assess problems that might arise.  Also, different residents respond to different things...knowing them will help you best know how to communicate with and interact with them individually and as a group.

4. Set limits with your residents - be honest with your residents about your needs, let them know when you will be around and that it's not always OK to knock at all hours of the night! ;)

5. Take personal time when you need it - we all need to recharge...it's important that we all do this so we don't burn out.

6. Ask yourself how you would deal with ethical dilemmas - think about how you would deal with those questionable circumstances before they arise.  Examples...if you're out drinking, what would you do if residents came in?  What if you are underage?  Do your off campus actions affect your on campus position?  Should RAs date residents?  Talk about these things before hand.

7. Know your biases up front - think about the types of people and situations you have biases toward and realize you may have to deal with them in your position.  Think about how you will be able to work through them if you come across them.  It's acceptable to have biases, but you need to act professionally and not let them rule your life.

8. Realize your supervisor is human - RDs, ADs, RHDs...are all good people, but they do make mistakes and may not always know the answer.  They also need time to recharge, just like you.  Help them out when they need it.

9. Program for the needs of your residents - if you're frustrated because you don't get hundreds of people at programs, maybe you're not programming for the right population.  Asking residents what they want and recognizing that fact might be a better way to go...not to mention they might help you organize if they're doing things they want to do!  Delegation is a good thing!! ;)

10. Don't try to live up to what other people are doing - everyone has their own style in the RA position, as well as has very different personalities they're working with.  "Keeping up with the Joneses" can be a good thing...but know that not everything one person does is going to work for you or with your population.  Put your personality in the position.  Hopefully this will keep you sane and energized.

Best of luck!  I hope this is the kind of information you're looking for.

Steve Crudup
Resident Director, O'Connor Hall
Dickinson Community
Binghamton University

The top ten things that I would want my RAs to know and remember are:

1. Know your resident's names
2. Know the school's policies
3. You are a role model - you are being watched by your residents
4. Be consistent
5. Have fun
6. Failing to confront a situation is giving silent consent
7. Operate from a position of genuine caring. Ask yourself: "What would
love do?"
8. Change happens over time: Light small fires and look for small victories
9. Keep yourself balanced and healthy
10. Remember you are a student first, an RA second.

Trey Reckling
Resident Director
Savannah College of Art & Design

The top 11 things that I believe an RA should know are:

Holly Habicht,
Residence Life Coordinator Georgia Tech