Sometimes it is hard to explain to people what would possess anyone to become a resident assistant, especially for those folks who have no idea what the position entails. The truth is RAs wear many hats, and have many different job responsibilities. An RA is a social planner and event coordinator responsible for social and educational community building, making sure that residential students are making connections, establishing relationships outside of the classroom and developing a sense of community at USM.
The RA is a dependable resource for residential students. RAs are trained in how to respond to policy violations, conflict mediation, preventing and responding to interpersonal violence, alcohol and drug abuse, sexual assault and many other challenging situations. Resident assistants serve as mediators between roommates and floor mates and perform conflict mediation when needed. An RA sometimes serves as a tutor, helping residents get through homework or late night study sessions.
Resident assistants are also a shoulder to cry on (and sometimes they themselves need a shoulder to cry on). For many residential students college is their first time away from home, which often can be terrifying. An RA is also a first responder, responding to situations and emergencies that may be nerve-wracking to even the most experienced professionals. RAs are also the voice of authority, making sure that residents abide by the rules and regulations of the state, university, and department of residential life.
RAs are integral members of a college campus. They are student leaders with an enormous amount of responsibility and oftentimes residents and even professional staff forget that an RA’s most important role at the University is to be a successful student. From my experience as an RA for the last three years, I can tell you firsthand that you often feel like you are in the trenches. You spend hours of time dedicating yourself to your floor, and after many late nights and early mornings on duty you start to wonder if what you are doing is making a difference. The way I look at it is becoming an RA is an honor, and each year I am given two options: either make a difference in the lives of my residents or don’t. But, this may be the only time in my life where I am given the opportunity to change lives every day, so why not give it my all?
As an RA you rarely get people who say, “Thanks for documenting me last night! I really appreciated you making me dump my beer down the drain!” But there comes a time in every RA’s “career” when you realize what you did actually made a difference, and it’s this monumental moment when you know you are doing a good thing. As a third year RA I know that these moments are few and far between and I know what it is like to feel unappreciated. Many RAs will tell you that we
don’t do this job for the pay, but for the opportunity to make a difference in a student’s life. So if you think your RA is making a difference, or if you have had an RA who has made a difference in your life, tell them, or simply say, “Thanks!” It will mean the world to them.
April O’Leary is a senior business student.