| Spring 2008 Semester | |
| Hall / Apartment | Resident Manager |
4-West |
Joshua Martinez |
Bearkat Village |
Amber Pruitt |
Belvin Hall | Rachel Esman |
Elliott Hall |
Natasha Shelton |
Estill Hall |
Amberleigh Ficklen |
The Hill |
Alfred Bryant |
Jackson-Shaver |
Aaron Harbaugh |
King / Lawrence / Mitchell |
James McSweeney |
Raven Village |
Melissa Mauck |
White Hall / The Valley |
Katie Smith |
Sam Houston Village |
Tim Cobb |
Resident Managers and Apartment Managers
Resident managers and apartment managers have final responsibility for a residence hall or a complex of buildings. Each one of the eleven RMs and two AMs is a student staff member with previous experience in Residence Life. They each live in or near the hall, houses, or complex for which they have responsibility. All resident managers and apartment managers take a few classes in addition to working in a residence hall, and are extremely familiar with college life.
Sam's staff of RMs and AMs has been selected for their abilities to identify with and assist college-age persons, and each one has had experiences which help him/her to understand what it's like to be away from home and facing all of the challenges and changes of the young adult years. In other words, the resident manager has been in the student's position, and his/her feelings and insights about what it's like to be a college student may be valuable to students as they face the decisions and questions which are a natural part of being in college.
Residents are encouraged to make the effort to get to know their resident manager or apartment managers, and to utilize his/her ability to be an advisor, a counselor or just a friend. Aside from counseling residents, resident managers have responsibility for supervising a staff team of resident advisors and for all of the paperwork related to running a residence hall. This includes keeping track of room assignments and changes, check-in and check-out information, renewals and maintenance. RMs and AMs must serve as disciplinarians, and are responsible for enforcing policies and laws just as RAs. They are trained to serve as information sources, and can usually help students find answers to questions about academics, the administration, etc. Additionally, resident managers serve as advisors to hall councils, and they provide an excellent opportunity for communication between residents and the central office. All resident managers and apartment managers report to an Area Coordinator.
Resident advisors are students who are successful in their college careers. There are usually one or two RAs per floor or house. Each RA has gone through a thorough selection process and an intensive training program. The RA is a student and, just like residents, has classes and exams, activities, frustrations, strengths, and weaknesses. All RAs are not alike and they shouldn't be. However, each RA has accepted responsibility for doing a job that is sometimes difficult, sometimes demanding, but hopefully rewarding and fun.
Each RA is responsible for enforcing departmental and university policies, as well as state and federal laws. This is a tough part of the RA's job, but it's a part that all RAs are expected to fulfill fairly and consistently. RAs are not expected to police halls but they do deserve residents' respect and cooperation. The RA is also responsible for a considerable amount of paperwork which must be done neatly and promptly. Being part of a team and helping provide opportunities for academic, social and cultural growth are also requirements of an RA. The most important part of the RA's job is helping the residents; and they have been trained so that they can answer questions, point students in the right directions, and be of assistance in many ways. Often the RA may be someone just to talk to, and this is probably the part of the job that he or she likes best. Since the RA is available and has received training, students are encouraged to take advantage of the ways that an RA can help. RAs must maintain a minimum grade point average, and are rehired each semester on the basis of their performance during the previous semester. They report to a resident manager, who also lives in or near the residence hall.
There are some resident advisors who are responsible for the "small houses" which accommodate 36 to 48 students each. These houses are an unusual college housing style and generate different staffing needs. The RAs in the houses have the same job responsibilities as other RAs with the added responsibility of being the only university representative in the house.