{"id":996,"date":"2014-04-16T01:54:35","date_gmt":"2014-04-16T01:54:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hoodcomstudies.com\/theblueandgrey\/?p=996"},"modified":"2014-04-16T01:54:35","modified_gmt":"2014-04-16T01:54:35","slug":"its-that-time-again-ra-recruitment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theblueandgrey.com\/index.php\/2014\/04\/16\/its-that-time-again-ra-recruitment\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s that time again: RA recruitment"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jennifer <\/a>Forester<\/p>\n

The Resident Assistant (RA) selection process concluded just before spring break on March 7, when potential applicants received their initial offers from the Office of Residence Life.<\/p>\n

The extensive process, which aims to select RAs for the 24 coveted spots, is described as \u201cintense\u201d by Area Coordinator (AC) Travis Eichelberger.<\/p>\n

The process begins in February, just after the start of the spring semester. During this time, current RAs are asked what their future intentions are, such as whether they are even returning to Hood, whether they would like to be an RA again or not, and if so, if they would like to work in a different building. They are subject to evaluation and are not necessarily guaranteed an RA position next year.<\/p>\n

Current RAs assist in the selection process by recommending students they believe would be good for the position, and invitations are sent out to those students. Students interested could also fill out an application from Residence Life.<\/p>\n

In addition, applicants are required to submit a resume and three references before the interview process.<\/p>\n

Students who were interested were required to attend at least one information session. An AC and RA are present at these sessions to answer the students\u2019 questions.<\/p>\n

According to RA Emily Kuykendall of Memorial Hall, the AC will then leave the information session so the applicants can talk to the RA \u201cone on one before making a serious choice\u201d and \u201cask honestly what the job is like.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, potential applicants were interviewed individually, and then participated in a group interview that Eichelberger calls \u201ccarousel.\u201d<\/p>\n

To keep the individual interview as unbiased as possible, a random AC and RA who have no preconception of the applicant interview them so as not to unfairly influence the process.<\/p>\n

The one hour interview consists of \u201cskill-specific questions, scenarios,\u201d and serves to gauge the applicant\u2019s knowledge of the position, Eichelberger explained.<\/p>\n

Kuykendall said that the interview helps determine the \u201ctrue intentions of applicants, who may just be interested in the free room.\u201d It also helps \u201cweed out people\u201d and \u201csee their enthusiasm.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mandatory group interview, or \u201ccarousel,\u201d serves to see how well applicants work with others and is made up of group activities. It is evaluated by current RAs and ACs, who don\u2019t let their personal feelings bias the process.<\/p>\n

Kuykendall said that group interview is \u201cintimidating because the current RAs watch you,\u201d but if you\u2019re a genuine and good applicant, there is \u201cnothing to worry about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following the group interview, the ACs compiles a \u201crough comparison\u201d of how the applicants did, according to Eichelberger. This comprises of the applicant\u2019s individual interview evaluations by the RA and AC, three evaluations from carousel, their GPA, resume, references, and application itself.<\/p>\n

The ACs then sit with Zach Luhman, the director of Residence Life, to build a potential RA list, Eichelberger said.<\/p>\n

Each AC is in charge of eight RAs, who are chosen based on their \u201cinteraction with each other and students,\u201d Eichelberger said. RAs need to be diverse, \u201cfor any type of student to come to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once the returning RAs are in place, the ACs hire new RAs \u201cto fill [the] gaps,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

The applicants receive their job offers and invitation letters via mail. These notify the applicants whether they were selected for hire or not.<\/p>\n

If an applicant is selected, they are notified of the building they will be working in but not the floor. According to Kuykendall, this is \u201csubject to change.\u201d An applicant may also be selected as an alternate, who is chosen to fill the position of an RA who declines the position.<\/p>\n

The ACs then wait and see who accepts or not, and fill the empty spots with alternates, Eichelberger said.<\/p>\n

Kuykendall said that it is \u201calways interesting who is chosen,\u201d because \u201cthe process keeps you guessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Right before the end of the spring semester, the Area Coordinators meet with their eight member RA staff to set guidelines and expectations for the coming year. This also gives a chance for the four RAs of each building to exchange contact information and get to know each other before they begin working together the following semester, Eichelberger said.<\/p>\n

Eichelberger said that the goal for RA selection is to build \u201cdiverse staffs,\u201d which encompass various elements and genders. They must be \u201crepresentative of the students\u201d who live in the building.<\/p>\n

\u201cOut of 150 people who live in the building,\u201d there should be \u201cat least one that a student can relate to,\u201d Eichelberger said, referring to the importance of the RA position.<\/p>\n

An RA, according to Eichelberger, must be a person with \u201cinitiative\u201d and a \u201clevel of maturity to enforce policy.\u201d RAs must \u201cbalance an act between being an authority figure and a peer.\u201d<\/p>\n

The four RAs who are put together in a building encompass different personality types, and must form a strong team based on their strengths and weaknesses<\/p>\n

In the middle of the summer, the RAs are notified what floor they will be working on, which indicates whether they will be working with first-year students or upperclassmen.<\/p>\n

Two weeks before the beginning of the fall semester, the RAs endure a week-long training session, prepare the building for students, post flyers, create room name tags, and help with summer orientation, Eichelberger said.<\/p>\n

Eichelberger is in his third year at Hood, and notes that there are \u201cconstants every year\u201d involving the RA selection process. There is always \u201clarge interest from first-years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He encouraged students to reapply even if they weren\u2019t hired, because that does not necessarily mean that they are unqualified, but that there are simply not enough RA positions. He also encouraged male students to apply, because there is a \u201cstrong[er] female pool as opposed to males.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said that every year is a \u201cbalancing act\u201d between returning and graduating RAs. He noted that this year, as opposed to years past, there are \u201cnot a lot of graduating RAs,\u201d but more returning juniors.<\/p>\n

Eichelberger also spoke about the difficulty of choosing an RA staff for the future Assistant Director of Residence Life, who has not been hired yet. He said that they had to \u201ckeep in mind the personality type\u201d of the potential person they hire so as it does not clash with the RA staff that has been selected, and to \u201cbe prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n

The candidate would be the replacement for Danielle Weaver, the former assistant director of Residence Life and the Area Coordinator of the apartments and Meyran Hall, who left the position in January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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