It's Never Too Early to Get a Head Start!

I know, I know, you haven't even finished finals yet, so what am I doing talking about next fall? As the returning RAs & GHDs can attest, training is an intense and busy time. The most successful staff members that I supervise are the ones that come into the training period organized and with a clear plan of what they would like to accomplish throughout the year. So I thought I would take some time to outline some of the things that you can do over the summer to help prepare to have a great year.

For RAs:
Floor Theme: In order to create a coordinated and welcoming atmosphere for your floor, you may choose to utilize a theme to tie all of your preparations together. For example, the 1st Floor of Jennings West last year started the year with a Jungle theme. All of the door tags and bulletin boards fit into this theme. You could even take it a step further and plan your first program according to the theme!

Door Tags. Remember when you came on to campus for the first time and there was a nametag on your door? Well, the RAs on each floor are responsible for creating those. It helps our residents feel welcome from the moment they step into the building. Door tags do not have to be complicated, but they must be neat and appropriate. For example, if you don't have good handwriting, you may choose to utilize a computer for all or part of this task. The difficult piece is that you won't have a list of your residents until you arrive on campus in the fall; however, you can still do a significant amount of this work before you arrive. Be sure to plan to do a door tag for your GHD as well.

Bulletin Boards. Each of you will have at least one bulletin board that you will be responsible for throughout the year. Most of you will have at least two; Beaty RAs will have 4 (2 on each floor)! Now is the time to start thinking about what you want to put on your bulletin boards. You can check out the resource links on the left side of this page for some ideas if you need them. Many RAs choose to use one bulletin board as a "Get to Know your RA" space and use the other to highlight some campus resources & programs, but be creative! Returning RAs: Finals week is a great time to get into the office and work on the die cuts, etc. Just remember that you will have to take them home with you for the summer as we do not have any storage space.


Message Board. Some RAs choose to utilize a message board on their door that lets residents know where they are. For example, you might have a round piece of cardboard divided up into sections (At class, at the desk, here, sleeping) and a spinner that you can use to point to what you are doing. Decide whether or not you would like to utilize one of these tools, and if you do, this is another thing you can create over the summer.

Contact Information. Be sure that we have your correct email address and telephone number in case we need to contact you over the summer. Make sure you save my email address & phone number somewhere in case you need to get a hold of me. Email is the primary way that we will communicate with you over the summer, so please be sure your email inbox isn't full and that you are checking your email periodically.

Mark the training date on your calendar in big, bold letters. Staff training begins on August 10, 2009. You MUST be here on that day. Training begins at noon and you are expected to be on time. You may be able to get into your room a couple of days prior to that depending on how our buildings are looking; watch your summer email for updates.

Things to Think About. Here are some questions you should think about over the summer. Each RA does things a little differently but having a sense of where you are going is important.
1. Do I want to give out my cell phone #/facebook profile/AIM screen name to my staff and residents?
2. What days and times am I most alert (so that I can sign up for those desk shifts)?
3. How will I organize myself during training so that I can pay attention and take information away from the sessions?
4. Are there any weekends I will need off during the fall semester? (Bring those dates with you so you can request them when you get back)
5. How will I handle it when problems arise with my residents? With my staff?

Stay Safe and Have a Great Summer. This might be the most important thing of all -- enjoy your summer and your time off or classes or internship. Be ready to hit the ground running when you come back!

For GHDs:
Understand How Your Role is Different that the RAs. You won't have bulletin boards that you need to do, but you will need to ensure that all the BBs in your area get done. You will also have an office to organize. What office supplies will you need? How will you file things?

Know when to Report to Training. Training for GHDs begins on July 31, 2009 in the afternoon. You will probably be able to get into your apartment 1-2 days before. If you are coming from out of state, those days will probably be extremely busy as you take care of driver's license, insurance, banking, etc. You will have very little time during training to take care of these errands.

How Do I Want To Communicate with My Staff Over the Summer? If you want to send emails to your staff over the summer, that's fine. (I will send you a staff roster very soon). Just remember that our staff have many other things going on so be wary of what you ask them to do for you before they get here.

Things to Think About. Here are some philosophical questions for you to ponder over the summer. Don't forget, you will get some training in many of these areas:
1. Am I comfortable with my staff coming by/hanging out in my apartment?
2. Do I want to give out my cell phone/facebook/screen name information to my staff?
3. What sorts of personal information do I want to share with my staff?
4. What kinds of things can I do from the beginning to help staff feel welcome and begin building a staff team?
5. What kind of relationship do I want to have with my fellow GHDs? With my supervisor?
6. How will I organize my notes and my files about each of my staff members?

I certainly think this post has gone long enough. Let me know if any of you have any questions! Returners: feel free to post your comments on some things that you do over the summer to help yourselves get ready for fall.