Resident Assistants
Your Resident Assistants (RAs) are here to help you feel at home at CBU!
What are Resident Assistants?
Resident Assistants (RAs) serve as the paraprofessional staff to Residence Life. That’s a fancy way of saying these are the people who will live with you, make sure you’re taking care of yourself, invite you to fun activities when you need a break, and yes, they’ll be enforcing the rules – but in a really friendly, supportive way!
CBU Resident Assistants receive extensive training and serve as information sources and peer advisors. They are chosen to help CBU because they’ve “been there and done that,” usually with a lot of success along the way. They understand the pressures of college life and can help you find your way through a tough semester of classes or finding the right group of friends. Their job is to create a safe, positive atmosphere for our community, and we think they’re pretty great. Well, we think they’re pretty great except for when they remind us to clean our room and get to CHEM lab on time!
Frequently Asked Questions
What am I required to attend as a RA?
- Resident Assistants are required to attend and must fully participate in both the fall and spring RA training sessions.
- Staff meetings and one-on-ones with supervisors at least twice a month.
What are some typical responsibilities?
- Must maintain a 2.50 cumulative GPA.
- Making your RA role as a top priority and managing time effectively.
- Completing paperwork as assigned by your supervisors.
- Work closely with other Residence Life staff members to develop and maintain an atmosphere that promotes residential communities through excellence in academics and personal development opportunities for students.
- Work with students and other Residence Life personnel to promote a socially, culturally, and educationally enriching experience for students.
- Develop communities and programs that involve students, faculty and staff.
- Administer Residence Education Plan for developing residents holistically and intentionally with support from Assistant Director and Director.
- Follow and enforce policies and procedures as outlined in the university’s Code of Conduct.
- Plan monthly social gatherings.
- Contribute to the planning of educational programs for the department.
- Complete administrative responsibilities of the department including paperwork, regular reports, hall openings and closings, and health and safety inspections.
- Participate in overnight, on-call duty rotation for customer service, safety and emergency response to residents including 3 days of break/ holiday duty.
- Meeting on a regular basis with supervisors and as a staff
- Two hours of office hours each week throughout the semester
- Retaining a strong presence and visibility on your floor(s) and in the residence halls.
- Assisting in the RA selection process for new RA staff.
What if I have other commitments?
- While involvement in groups, organizations, and other activities on campus is always encouraged, the RA role takes priority over these activities.
- RA’s are allowed to work outside of their RA job, but this should be viewed as secondary to the RA role, which must take precedence. These obligations will be discussed in detail with your supervisor on an individual basis.
What exactly does being “on duty” mean?
- From 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., only RAs who are on duty must be in their building. All other RA’s are strongly urged to commit enough time to their floor to successfully foster relationships and a sense of community.
- Must be accessible and make rounds between 7:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m., and 2:00 a.m. on weekends. Being available will allow you to respond to any issues, needs, or incidents while performing security inspections throughout the building.
- The number of days spent “on duty” might range from 2-3 nights per week depending on the size of your area and the requirements of your building(s).