UMR Perspectives Fall 2016 by Upper Midwest Region-Association of College and University Housing Officers (UMR-ACUHO)

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MISSION OF THE UMR-ACUHO MAGAZINE The Communications Committee provides the UMR-ACUHO membership with an opportunity for information-sharing, professional dialogue, and a forum for ideas to increase knowledge, wisdom, and excellence in our field.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS Adam Neveau

Peru State College Committee Chair

Sarah Weiler

Carleton College

Phil Neuman

Minnesota State University, Mankato

Dillon Pearson

University of Nebraksa - Lincoln

Matt Diischer

South Dakota State University

Kristi Preston

University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

Katie LaSota Jackson St. Cloud State University Pamela Lisowe

University of Iowa

Barbara Braga

Kansas State University

Steven Steinman

Northwest Missouri State University

Bre Sinner

North Dakota State University

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES Articles should be limited to approximately 1500 words long (may be edited for length or content) and include a separate head shot of the author(s). Articles should be sent preferably through e-mail (in Microsoft Word format). If there are particular fonts or graphics that you would prefer, please include them with your submission. To receive feedback on your article, please be sure to submit 15 days prior to the deadline. Please send articles via e-mail to: aneveau@peru.edu.

UMR-ACUHO NON-DISCRIMINATION CLAUSE UMR-ACUHO promotes and provides an environment of full opportunity and service for all persons regardless of ethnicity, creed/ religion, age, gender, disability, sexual/affectional orientation, or any human circumstance. The Association will not arbitrarily discriminate in its programs, procedures, or activities. COVER DESIGN & MAGAZINE LAYOUT

Chair Note Hello again, UMR-ACUHO! I hope your fall move-in went well, and you escaped with minimal issues and/ or headaches. After our busy summers, each fall is a welcome relief and chance to have things back to “normal” with students moved in, welcome week activities, duty rotations in full swing, a little bit of shenanigans, and, of course, the fall conference! This year, the conference theme is “Living and Learning Together.” To accompany the conference, this issue of the magazine shares the same theme. The committee has enjoyed hearing stories from around the region about how living and learning have been integrated into our communities together. It was quickly evident that there are many different approaches to living and learning in our residence halls through living learning communities (LLCs), faculty involvement, student organizations, and many other sources. The authors in this issue have done a great job sharing what has worked well for them, and I encourage you to pursue applying some of their ideas/ experiences to your own campus. You may have noticed some changes with this issue of the magazine. First, you will notice that the magazine is now in full color. We have continued with our traditional “green” look, but look for subtle changes to continue to occur as we find our new look over the next few issues. This issue also has a special pre-conference section in the back with information for those attending this year’s conference. Lastly, each magazine is now only sent to the central housing office at each member school. You will receive a set number of issues based on the size of your institution. If you are in need of more copies, please contact me. As always, thank you for your continual support of UMRACUHO and Perspectives Magazine. If you are interested in submitting an article, you can email it to myself or any of the Communications Committee members. The next deadline is November 15th, and the theme is “Lessons Learned: Best Practices in Student Conduct” Student conduct is an area that most of us work with, so we are excited to hear from colleagues in the region about their best practices and experiences.

Adam Neveau Chair, UMR-ACUHO Communications Committee Director of Residence Life Peru State College aneveau@peru.edu

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Inside UMR

The 2016 UMR-ACUHO Executive Committee President

Aaron Macke Associate Dean of Students Director of Residence Life University of St. Thomas (651) 962-6470 ammacke@stthomas.edu

Vice President/President Elect

Tracy Gerth Assistant Director for Residence Life Programs Marquette University (414) 397-0183 Tracy.Gerth@marquette.edu

UMR-ACUHO Fall 2016, Vol. 52, No. 3

Inside UMR President’s Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 AIM on Assessment: Living and Learning Throughout the Years . . . . . . . 6 The University of Kansas Honors the Life of Christopher M. Sowa . . . . . . . 8

Immediate Past President

Christina Hurtado Area Coordinator for Student Development Kansas State University (785) 532-2233 cmhurtad@k-state.edu

UMR Student Side Graduate Assistantship Outcomes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Secretary

Linda Varvel Residence Education Coordinator University of Iowa (319) 335-2976 Linda-varvel@uiowa.edu

Treasurer

UMR Perspectives RELIng on Each Other, While Living and Learning Together . . . . . . . . . 10 Home, School, and the World In-Between . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Nicholas F. Rafanello Director of Residence Life University of Northern Iowa (319) 273-2333 nicholas.rafanello@uni.edu

Belonging and Self-Acceptance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Corporate Sponsorships Coordinator

UMR Personal Side

Brian Faust Director of Residential Living University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point (715) 346-3511 bfaust@uwsp.edu

Inclusion and Equity Coordinator Coree Burton Residence Life Coordinator University of Northern Iowa (319) 273-2080 coree.burton@uni.edu

State Membership Coordinator Beth Miller Assistant Director of Residence Life University of Central Missouri (660) 543-8121 bsmiller@ucmo.edu

Living, Learning, and Leading: Developing Community Through Advising Residential Student Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

5 things I wish I knew then that I know now. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 NHTI: A True Living and Learning Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 From One Cohort to Another: Reflections on the ACUHO-I Internship Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Finding Hope in the Madness: Continuing to Have Conversations on Race While Dealing with Racial Fatigue . . . . . . . . . . 27

UMR Business Side Vonversations: Learning a New Role, Becoming the “Big Boss” . . . . . . . . . 29 Surviving or Thriving? Supporting First Year Professionals. . . . . . . . . . 32

State Membership Coordinator Abby Sylvia Assistant Director of Residence Life University of Wisconsin – OshKosh (920)-424-3212 sylvia@uwosh.edu

Technology and Sustainability Coordinator

Greg Thompson Assistant Director of Residence Education University of Iowa (319) 335-3700 gregory-r-thompson@uiowa.edu

Inside UMR

Pre-Conference Living and Learning Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Tales from Both Sides of the Booth: A New Perspective on the Exhibitors Showcase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 What We’re Excited For . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 The views or opinions expressed in Perspectives magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the UMR-ACUHO organization, its committees, or membership as a whole. Any questions regarding articles should be sent directly to the authors using the contact information provided.

President’s Corner By Aaron Macke, Associate Dean of Students and Director of Residence Life, University of St. Thomas

reetings UMR-ACUHO and thank you for reading our 2016 Fall edition of Perspectives. It is my hope that you experienced a successful opening to your residence halls and academic year, and that the living and learning happening within your halls is everything that you planned it to be. It is also my hope that our institutions are continuing the conversations and work from last academic year around making our campuses more equitable, diverse, inclusive, and welcoming. Please know that UMR-ACUHO strives to improve our organization’s inclusion and equity, and we aim to provide ongoing professional development opportunities to help our members be successful in these efforts on their own campuses. The UMR-ACUHO Fall 2016 Conference in Madison, WI, will have many programs, workshops, speakers, and opportunities for dialogue at the conference aimed to enhance the knowledge and skills necessary to improve the experiences on our campuses for all students. If you are able to join us, I am confident the conference will deliver on this message, and if you are unable to attend, please know that we have conference program materials, webinars, and additional resources available on our web site. As we approach the Fall Conference, I want to take this opportunity to thank the 100+ members who have contributed their time and talent to providing professional development opportunities all year and, in particular, to the conference through committee involvement. I also want to take this opportunity to recognize the importance of the theme for this conference and for this issue of Perspectives. The theme, “Living and Learning Together,” is a wonderful theme as it reminds us how powerful “Together” can be. Since last Fall, together we conducted research and wrote articles on mental health and wellbeing, and on the

diversity of voices across campus. Together, we provided leadership and engagement opportunities for committee members, we raised funds to support scholarships and various professional development opportunities, we partnered with ACUHO-I to improve the experience for housing professionals across the country, and we fostered professional networks for our members to utilize throughout the year. On our campuses, we likely took advantage of opportunities to work together across our campus. We partnered with faculty, academic support services, alumni, athletics, auxiliary services and, of course, various student affairs departments to serve the holistic needs of our students. Many of us created partnerships or networking opportunities with other colleges/universities in our state or with local PK-12 grade schools and not-for-profit organizations. As the world and our work becomes more complex, working together within and outside our organization, and across institutions becomes more necessary. As I mentioned at the conference last fall, we have a phenomenal opportunity in our profession, because we understand the value of “Together.” We understand that we are all better when we live, learn, work, and serve our students together. We are more than a collective of individuals, we are more than a collective of schools, we are together UMR. On behalf of the Leadership Team, we wish you all a wonderful academic year of living and learning together. I hope to see you in Madison for the Fall Conference.

Aaron Macke Associate Dean of Students and Director of Residence Life, University of St. Thomas (651) 962-6470 ammacke@stthomas.edu

Inside UMR

AIM on Assessment: Living and Learning Throughout the Years By Melissa Shugarman, Assistant Director of Residential Life, Gustavus Adolphus College, Chair of the Assessment and Information Management Committee

campus, while 25 indicated they were not Condoms were available in residence halls at 11 institutions, all of which were distributed by machine

rofessionals and committees have been completing research about and for the Upper Midwest Region since 1973. The data-driven committee was called “Research and Information” until 2007, when the name changed to be “Assessment and Information Management.” While some of the research and projects of these committees has been lost, our archives for the work of the groups date back to 1984.

Of those schools that provided condoms, 19 had been providing them for two years or less

Looking at past research allows us to complete longitudinal studies as well as reflect on and assess growth and changes in the region. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights of past “hot button” topics and research from the Assessment committee:

This survey also asked one question about cohabitation, of which 25 institutions did not permit. Write in answers as to reasoning behind permitting or not permitting cohabitation included:

1984: Computer Use in UMR-ACUHO 89 colleges and universities responded 64 departments had access to a computer, while 25 did not 18 of the 25 institutions without computer access were considering purchasing or leasing a machine At 13 of the institutions everyone on campus had access to computers (faculty, staff and students), 8 institutions all faculty and staff (but not students) had access, and 1 institution all students (but not all faculty and staff) had access; all other respondents included a mixture of individuals on campus having access to a computer 14 institutions provided computer clusters in halls and 2 institutions provided rental options for students to have computers in their rooms

1989: Condom Availability In 1989 sexually transmitted diseases, and particularly AIDS, were a growing national concern, this prompted a survey regarding policies and procedures for condom distribution. 66 colleges and universities responded; 35 of which were public and 31 private 41 institutions indicated condoms were available on 6

Inside UMR

12 institutions had no charge and no limit to the number of condoms taken Condoms were being added to health services and vending machines at two institutions in future years

It’s against state law No Way! Doctors say it’s good for one’s health to have sex, so we agree with doctors We do not condone it In general we don’t become involved in personal life style unless a rule or right is violated It’s not permitted because it’s morally unacceptable No stated policy

1991: Sexual Assault 60 institutions responded to the survey; 30 public and 30 private 83% of responding institutions officially reported sexual assaults to campus officials 96% of schools provided written literature on sexual assault to students and professionals Student staff at 90% of schools received in-depth training on sexual assault The most popular means to assist in educating students about the topic included posters (83%), video (73%), brochure (71%), and flyers (66%) Counseling Centers (83%) and Health Services (76%) were in charge of the majority of educational programming on sexual assault

“The AIM committee has access to most research and studies completed by and for our region dating back to 1984. If there is a topic or research information you are looking for or just curious about, you can contact the AIM chair for this information.”

A note in the results for this survey stated the researchers hoped to discover the number of sexual assaults reported at institutions, but a lack of clarity about the definition of sexual assault left the question with much criticism with only 40 of 60 institutions reporting

1996: Quality of Life for Professional Staff 46 schools responded to the survey; 25 public and 21 private Monthly salaries for professional Hall Directors ranged from $166 - $2,228, the mode of the salary ranges listed was $1,501 - $2,000 with 17 responses Hall Director contract lengths ranged from 8-12 months, with 13 institutions responding 10 months, 19 responding ten month with option for summer work, and 16 responding 12 months The majority of institutions reported providing an apartment (34) and a meal plan (28) for Hall Directors Pets were allowed in staff apartments at 9 institutions Other services and life enhancements for professional Hall Directors included cable (34), health/dental benefits (31), cell phone/pager use (26), paid/reduced tuition (26), use of computers and software (24), time off (23), and paid parking (21)

2006: Online Media Usage In 2006 sites such as Facebook and MySpace were being introduced to campus communities. 68 institutions responded to the survey, 35 public and 33 private All responding institutions allowed student and professional staff to use online media The majority of institutions (65.6%) indicated they did not use online media in staff selection processes, 28.1% of institutions indicated use had come up but was not intentional, and 7.8% intentionally used online media

in staff selection Almost half (49.2%) of the schools reported employment related issues surrounding the use of online media Over half (57.1%) of institutions reported educating their students on use of online media through firstyear orientation, residence hall programming, passive programming, and student staff training and workshops 44.3% of institutions reported using online media in some way during the judicial process including supporting information, identifying patterns in behaviors, and determining location of stolen items or illegal activities 11.5% of institutions pursued judicial cases based solely on online media, while 27.9% would pursue non-judicial student concerns based solely on online media As mentioned, the AIM committee has access to most research and studies completed by and for our region dating back to 1984. If there is a topic or research information you are looking for or just curious about, you can contact the AIM chair for this information. A bibliography of past studies can also be found on the Assessment and Information Management portion of the UMR website. This year the AIM committee is working on research pertaining to the Affordable Care Act, Assistance and Support Animals, Resident Conflict Resolution, Retention, Two-Year Colleges, and Diversity and Climate Benchmarking. Be on the lookout for posters and a program session about these topics at the annual conference, as well as information in forthcoming Perspectives magazines. If there are topics you think the AIM committee should revisit or research, please let us know! Melissa Shugarman Assistant Director of Residential Life, Gustavus Adolphus College, Chair of the Assessment and Information Management Committee mshugarm@gustavus.edu Twitter: @MShugarman Inside UMR

The University of Kansas Honors the Life of Christopher M. Sowa A memorial to honor Christopher M. Sowa, Interim Associate Director for Residence Life, has been established to fund student leadership positions at the University of Kansas. Sowa, 37, died unexpectedly on Jan. 29, 2016. Sowa served KU as an Assistant Director for Residence Life from 2010 through 2015, then briefly as Interim Associate Director. He was an outstanding professional and a critical part of the success of the Residence Life program at the University of Kansas. Among Sowa’s accomplishments were proposing and leading the KU Student Housing Residential Curriculum. He is credited with developing partnerships across the KU campus, and supporting many young leaders through his work with the Association of University Residence Halls. He was an exceptional teacher and mentor with a strong commitment to social justice. His contributions will have a long-lasting impact on the lives of many students and staff members. Sowa earned a bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies from the University of Iowa in 2001. Upon graduation, he worked as the Registrar Coordinator and ESL instructor at a technical institute in Chicago before earning his master’s degree in Organizational and Multicultural Communications from DePaul University in 2009. He served as a Residence Director for Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. From there, he moved to DePaul University in 2005 and served as a Residence Director for five years. Sowa was a member of several professional organizations, including UMR-ACUHO, and while at KU he assisted in the planning of the 2011 UMR-ACUHO Conference and was a presenter when the conference was hosted in Topeka, Kansas. He was also a member of NASPA, ACPA, and ASCA. He served a member of the ACPA Residential Curriculum Institute Planning team.

While at KU, Sowa worked on a number of university-wide committees, including the Student Affairs Assessment Committee and the advisory board for the Center of Sexual and Gender Diversity. He served as a facilitator for three organizations: LGBTQ Safe Zone Training, Colors of KU Social Justice Education, and LeaderShape. He was a member of the steering committee for KU’s Common Book, and a member of the task force on Alcohol and Sexual Violence Education. He served as a long-time advisor to the Association of University Residence Halls and was the advisor when KU hosted the Midwest Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls Regional Conference in 2014. Most recently, Sowa served as a member of the Chancellor’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Advisory Group. His influence was so pervasive across the University of Kansas that two university awards also have been renamed to honor him. The former Student Organization of the Year is now the “Christopher Sowa Student Organization of the Year: Student Life Enrichment.” The award is presented by KU’s Student Involvement and Leadership Center. His passion for social justice has been honored by the Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity by naming the faculty/staff award as the “Christopher M. Sowa Faculty/Staff Award.” His passing is a significant loss to the profession. The Christopher M. Sowa Student Leaders Scholarship Fund will go to students in the KU Association of University Residence Halls. Contributions may be made here: http:// www.kuendowment.org/s/1312/endowment/start.aspx or by calling (785) 830-7576.

Diana Robertson Director, KU Student Housing University of Kansas drobertson@ku.edu (785) 864-7225

Inside UMR

Graduate Assistantship Outcomes: By Margaret McCarthy, Assistant Residential Life Coordinator, University of Missouri - Kansas City

pon being asked “What do you want to walk away with from this Graduate Assistantship,” thoughts raced through my mind. Sure, I am a thoughtful girl, but during my time in my assistantship I truly believe I have transitioned into an active girl. To be sure, a healthy balance needs to be maintained between the two. During the subsequent semesters of my assistantship, I wish to maintain that healthy balance between thoughts and actions, and how the things I do truly affect those around me. Rather than sitting back and letting others take on tasks, I have learned to take initiative to begin these tasks, if not fully complete them. I believe that this can successfully be done with a positive mindset – exuding happiness to get things done instead of being “bossy.” I am a woman who knows what I want and I am happy to get to be working towards those ambitions. During my assistantship there are many things I want to accomplish, from interviewing professionals in the field who share jobs that I wish to hold one day to making small positive impacts in my specific building. I want my assistantship to continue to give me the confidence to pursue educational interests, while forging relationships with professionals in the field who will assist in my professional development through cross-campus relationships. By completing informational interviews, I am able to meet with professionals who serve in different functional areas of higher education and gain the perspective of how their jobs fit into the broader higher education framework, and, most importantly, how they serve students. Even though I am a graduate student, professionals have responded with

tremendous positivity to my requests for interviews and shared their most profound findings with me. I am grateful that I serve an urban institution in which the professionals are so eager to assist curious students like me. Again, my graduate assistantship has taught me the value of gratitude. Although my parents taught me this value when I was young, I have been able to spread it to the campuses where my interviews have taken place as well as with the professionals who I have gotten to meet. What I want most from my assistantship is to have made a positive impact. I have been able to discover the necessary thoughts and actions that go into making an impact, and am making a promise to myself to make an impact on at least one individual and the building after I have graduated and completed my assistantship. I have begun brainstorming small monthly goals that will help me to accomplish this endeavor and I know that all of the professionals who I am privileged to work with will help me as well. The most important lesson that I have learned through my assistantship is the same lesson that I wish to keep working towards as a professional: thoughts plus actions equal impact. When you have a thought, develop it and embrace it so that it turns into an action. These actions are how impacts are left on the students and offices that you serve. Margaret McCarthy Assistant Residential Life Coordinator University of Missouri - Kansas City mkmc7c@mail.umkc.edu

“Thoughts plus actions equal impact.” UMR Student Side

RELIng on Each Other, While Living and Learning Together By Phillip Neuman, Hall Director, Minnesota State University, Mankato and Brian Kelley, Coordinator of Residential Life, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

ach year UMR-ACUHO and the University of Northern Iowa sponsor the Regional Entry Level Insitute (RELI). The experience affords thirty housing professionals within their first three years post-masters to work directly with ten seasoned housing professionals in smaller clusters. This intensive institute is an exciting and engaging professional development opportunity to allow impactful learning from one another about multiple areas of our profession. Whether it is preparing one’s application, being accepted, or taking part in this amazing opportunity, there are many mixed emotions which each individual goes through. Throughout our experience, we spoke often with colleagues in our shared spaces about what they were experiencing. One piece which was openly shared amongst the faculty and participants was not feeling as though each had the adequate experiences in order to be the best fit to participate within this intensive professional development opportunity. Many individuals shared their thoughts of having impostor syndrome. Impostor-syndrome, expert Valerie Young says, is the condition that “refers to people who have a persistent belief in their lack of intelligence, skills, or competence.” She continues: “They are convinced that other people’s praise and recognition of their accomplishments is undeserved, chalking up their achievements to chance, charm, connections, and other external factors.” Our goal through this article is to share our experiences with each of you in order to encourage you to apply to be a part of this connection-focused professional development opportunity.

Phil’s Perspective (Participant): My experience with RELI actually started a year ago. I remember sitting down and looking through the application materials. I recall brainstorming answers to the essay questions to be attached with the application. I started to question myself, my experiences, and wondered if I had the knowledge and skill base to be a successful RELI candidate. This downward spiral kept me thinking if I had 10

UMR Perspectives

done enough within one semester at my new institution to receive a letter of support for RELI. All of these things led me to decide that I would wait until my second year as a full-time professional to apply. As it became time to apply again for RELI, these thoughts snuck up again. This time I had no problem working through the application and receiving a letter of support from my institution. However, as RELI became a reality, the week before was filled with doubt again. This year, I felt more confident in my abilities and knowledge. However, I was overcome with the thought of “What else do I need to know to be successful and seem competent to my peers and to the faculty?” This led me to asking a few RELI Graduates what I really needed to know to be competent. The response I received was the same from them all. They shared that I’d be fine and to enjoy the experience because they would do it again if they could. Many of these thoughts and feelings escaped my mind as my RELI experience began.

Brian’s Perspective (Faculty): I first learned about RELI while participating in ACUHO-I’s National Housing Training Institute in 2011 at the University of Georgia. I remember thinking one of my future goals was to serve as faculty for RELI, even though I was not yet a part of a regional association which hosted the institute. Two years ago one of my colleagues served as faculty and talked about what an engaging and impactful experience it was for them. I knew I wanted to apply to be faculty in the future; and I did not feel I was yet prepared to serve as faculty with my seven years of post-masters experience. Being a part of conversations at our annual conference once again reminded me of my desire to be a part of this experience, yet my mind still questioned if my (now nine) years of post-masters experience would allow me the privilege to be accepted. Then I received notice that another professional within our region had nominated me to apply to be a faculty member, and that simple nomination drove me to finally apply. Through the application process I found it more difficult than I expected to celebrate my experiences and knowledge. Thankfully, colleagues I work with every day helped

to make the celebration of my work easier each step of the way. Once I was notified in January of becoming a faculty member, the feelings of “Am I good enough?” once again creeped in, and I reached out to previous faculty. They all shared that I had all it takes to be a part of this group, and told me to make sure to stop and enjoy each moment...and that is what I did. As we processed with others and ourselves, we found there were tips for success which had been shared by many.

1. How to prepare Think about previous experiences Speak with your supervisor about your experiences Preview schedules and topics

“This intensive institute is an exciting and engaging professional development opportunity to allow impactful learning from one another”

Ensure your responsibilities on your campus are taken care of until you return

2. How to engage Be vulnerable in sharing and learning from others Speak, ask questions, challenge thoughts, listen Be present - be locked into the experience, not work or events elsewhere

3. How to immerse in the experience Ask questions, ask for clarification, ask about others’ experiences Be actively present in each experience, and throughout the duration of the institute Do not rush through conversations and homework/ materials

4. How to connect Share within smaller groups (clusters) Branch out of the cluster, and connect with other participants and faculty (during meals, between sessions, atnighttime activities) Celebrate success and learning with one another Engage in social media (#UMRRELI2016)

5. How to keep the connection going Reflect upon your experience and sharing your experiences with others Bring ideas back to your campus Remain in contact with connections built (personally or professionally) Within the RELI experience, there were underlying needs to be vulnerable and to move past initial thoughts and feelings of doubt in order for growth to happen. Both faculty and participants needed to move past these to be present and fully emerge in the experience. This is similar to what is needed within the work that occurs back at our home institutions. If we show up to a difficult conversation, crisis, etc. with similar thoughts and feelings the RELI group experienced, are we doing our best to support our students? References: Leonard, D.J. (2014, February 5). Impostor syndrome: Academic identity under siege? The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retreived from http://chronicle.com/blogs/conversation/2014/02/05/impostor-syndrome-academic-identity-under-siege/

Phillip Neuman

Brian Kelley

Hall Director Minnesota State University, Mankato phillip.neuman@mnsu.edu Twitter: @PhilNeuman

Coordinator of Residential Life University of Minnesota-Twin Cities kell0668@umn.edu Twitter: @brianjkelley50

UMR Perspectives

Home, School, and the World In-Between By Alexandria Wisker, Area Coordinator, Southeast Missouri State University

earning and themed communities are a growing area within our work in Residence Life. Over the past several years at Southeast Missouri State University, we have been working to expand our program. We are currently piloting two education major-focused communities, “Tomorrow’s Teachers” and “Secondary Scholars,” which we hope will serve as a model for other current and future communities. Before we go in depth about these two communities, it is important to understand the larger context of what we are doing with learning communities in the Office of Residence Life at Southeast. Like many other institutions, we have two types of communities at Southeast-- learning and themed. The vast majority of our communities are classified as themed. These communities do not have a class component, are not necessarily major-focused, and have faculty/staff partners with a wide array of connections to their communities. Our themed communities include Computer Science and Engineering, Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Nursing and Medical Science, Visual and Performing Arts, Honors, Transfer, and Military and Veterans. Our learning communities, currently the two previously mentioned education communities, have a class requirement for both fall and spring semester, are major-focused, and have a strong connection to faculty partners in the College of Education. The Resident Assistants (RAs) who work on the floors with both types of communities are either majoring in the areas represented on the floor or are active on campus in the area of focus. When our office creates communities, we look for majors or populations of students that would be engaged in the community and where support and guidance will be available for students academically. The education communities originally started off as one community in the 2013-14 academic year, but split into two beginning with the 2015-16 year. Tomorrow’s Teachers is dedicated to those students who are Early, Elementary, and Exceptional Child majors. Secondary Scholars is for those who identify as Middle or Secondary Education majors. 12

UMR Perspectives

Housed in LaFerla Hall, a residence hall which opened in fall 2013 and has space for classes to be held, they are a true partnership with our College of Education. Each community has a dedicated faculty member from the College of Education who teaches one of the required classes for the community each semester. In the fall, they teach an educationally themed freshman seminar. In the spring semester, they teach an Introduction to Teaching class. The students are also required to take one additional class together each semester. The faculty members who are working directly with the communities are truly engaged with the students. They are responsible for hosting at least one program per month outside of class hours, and build individual relationships with the students. These supportive relationships often continue beyond the year the students are in the program. Students ask for guidance and support in making decisions about their career and educational paths, and the faculty are always willing to provide great advice and a place for students to talk. Before joining the faculty at Southeast full time, both of our faculty partners were full-time teachers in local school districts for a number of years. This allows for great insight and direction from both of them. They have worked with students on changing majors, supporting them through difficult personal issues, and engaging in conversations on a wide range of topics. There is a variety of programs and events that have been sponsored by both the faculty and the Office of Residence Life. One of the main events, which occurs in the communities is a trip to Live for Life Charter School in St. Louis, Missouri, each spring. As a part of their Introduction to Education class, each community visits the charter school which is partnered with Southeast’s College of Education. The students get to engage in a classroom environment that many are not familiar with. They assist the teachers with activities and projects, and shadow them for the day. This is one of the first formal experiences in the classroom

“We know many of the areas we need to improve, and we want to grow within our themed and learning communities.”

as an educator for many of the community members. A second large event held each year is our education communities’ dinner held during Southeast’s Family Weekend. All of the students who are enrolled in the communities, as well as their families, and the College of Education faculty are invited to a dinner held the Friday night of Family Weekend in the fall. The Dean of the College of Education, the RAs, and the faculty partners all have a chance to speak about what has been done in the year so far and what things will be occurring later in the year. A video is also shown during the event that is put together by the RAs and the faculty partners to showcase the students and what they have been doing during their time in the community.

An event that was new this past year, and is already planned to be repeated, involves graduates of Southeast’s Teacher Education program and in their first year of teaching sharing their experiences and advice with the students. They answer questions and provide real-life examples of classroom management, lesson planning, etc. There have also been programs to create an awareness of the diversity that the community members will see in their future classrooms. For example, one program held involved tie dying and decorating t-shirts to represent themselves. They then shared what the decorations and colors meant to them with the larger group. One of the most successful programs held on the Tomorrow’s Teachers floor in fall 2015 was a fall craft night. The RA had the residents create a number of crafts that are classroom-appropriate. It was an event that will help in lesson planning in the future, but might not have been covered in their regular classroom experience. There are also less formal programs held each semester. A spring tradition includes the faculty partner for the Tomorrow’s Teachers floor coordinating with other faculty in the College of Education to cook their favorite dishes. Then they bring their items to the students for a potluck and chance to

interact informally. The students and faculty both enjoy and look forward to the night. The faculty and staff are always looking for low-stress ways to engage the students with the College of Education and the larger Southeast community. A number of events are held with both communities, but there are also events held for only one community.

We are currently looking to make changes or additions to the programs to make them even more impactful. One addition that will begin with the Fall 2016 semester is having mentors live on the floors. These student mentors are former members of the communities who will help with programming, answer questions, come into classes if need be, etc. They will be an additional support and resource for the students in the Tomorrow’s Teachers and Secondary Scholars communities. As a result of the success of these communities, we are currently exploring how to move our other communities in the same direction. While not as closely tied to the academic area as the learning communities, our themed communities also do some fantastic work and create great experiences for their members. For example, the Nursing and Medical Science Community has taken a trip to Mid-Atlantic Organ Transplant Services in St. Louis. This organization facilitates the transplant and donation services for a three-state area. The students took a tour of the facility and spoke to the Medical Director directly. The Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Community went to the St. Louis Zoo in Spring 2016. Not only did they get to see animals, but they were able to take a tour and learn about the research center and veterinary services that exist for the animals. The Honors Community, which houses members of our Jane Stephens Honors Program, has taken trips to Elephant Rocks State Park. The Computer Science and Engineering Community teamed up with the Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Community to clean up over seven miles of a local trail. Finally, the Visual and Performing Arts Community takes a group of students each year to St. Louis or Memphis, Tennessee, to see a professional touring show. Each themed community also hosts a dinner for faculty UMR Perspectives

and staff partners on campus in the fall semester. A Tailgating Mixer, held before a home football game each year, brings all the communities together. Food, games, and chances to interact with others in the community or with faculty and staff who work with these students bring many out to participate each year. As with anything we do, there can be hiccups that occur. We know many of the areas we need to improve, and we want to grow within our themed and learning communities. For example, we are working on improving our sign-up process for all communities. Overall, the experience the students have is a positive one. They gain a lot from their experience as members of these communities, and the students are able to better connect to their college and to the larger Southeast community. This is evidenced by the retention rate we have seen from our Tomorrow’s Teachers community. The University retention rate is currently 77%, while the Tomorrow’s Teacher’s retention rate was 88% after the first year and 96% the second year. We hope to see similar gains with the Secondary Scholars community after

UMR Perspectives

this year. The retention rates of the themed communities have not previously been tracked. This an area we would like to explore moving forward. We take pride in the fact that our communities truly help students figure out which major and path is right for them. The staff and faculty work hard to provide support throughout the students’ University experience. With open lines of communication among all constituents, a willingness to work hard and put in time, and support from those in various positions across campus, our students truly benefit from their experiences in a themed or learning community at Southeast Missouri State University. Alexandria Wisker Area Coordinator Southeast Missouri State University awisker@semo.edu Twitter: @AllieWisker

Belonging and Self-Acceptance By Christine Hollermann, Director of Residence Life, Williston State College

hen I was nine years old I watched a concert of the Backstreet Boys on the Disney channel. I saw a young girl hand Nick Carter a rose and him look at her, in the eye, and I cried because I realized he would never know who I was. I adored him, I knew his favorite color, and I didn’t exist to him. It was devastating. I felt so foolish for having revered him in many ways as a god, and I swore I would never idolize someone in such an extreme manner again. For the most part I have upheld my promise with two exceptions; Garth Brooks, because the heart wants what the heart wants, and Brené Brown, who revolutionized my world and started a conversation about shame that the world needed to have. I have read Brenés work several times for personal growth and reflection. I incorporate her lessons into most presentations and classes I’m given the opportunity to present, and I mention her approximately once a week in day-to-day conversation. I am approaching my second year in my position and am looking forward to year two, while thinking about how we can create greater sense of community, offer value, and create experiences that stay with people. In this reflection I’ve been re-reading Daring Greatly for roughly the twelfth time. I came across this gem of a quote: “Because true belonging only happens when we present our authentic, imperfect selves to the world, our sense of belonging can never be greater than our level of self-acceptance.”(Brown, 2012, p. 145). Throughout Daring Greatly, she artfully explains shame, vulnerability, sharing our story, going against our instincts to isolate, and how, in order to get through it, we need to connect to one another. In my own position, I think about how I can use this reminder in conduct. I have steered away from using “you messed-up” language or other phrases that link the individual and the problem as intertwined. Regardless of if I did or

did not say it, most people will assign that to themselves. When I’ve made mistakes at work I’ve been guilty of the same automatic narrative, “Oh my gosh, Chrissy, how could you be so dumb?! They needed you to get that to them and you didn’t, and now people are delayed because of you. When will you get your act together?”, often with more choice words than what has been listed. We are conditioned to feel shame; intentionally or not, it was a widely used educational tool to modify behavior throughout our early years. In essence shame says “I am what’s wrong.” Guilt says “I did something wrong,” and is healthier for our wellbeing. I can deliberately make that clarification, probably to blank stare or glare, but I can still choose to make clear that while a student’s behaviors are not okay, they are fundamentally still a valued person and member of the community. With my staff I can see countless ways to apply this. Implementing standing one-on-ones with all my staff members, coordinating more trainings throughout the year, bringing a little take away to every meeting through quote or story, and,when I have to let someone go, use the same approach as above to make the clarification that while their actions lost the opportunity, they are still good and worthy of belonging. I can train staff in ways to facilitate similar lessons through activities, creating welcoming spaces, watching their own language of shame, and incorporating them into our in-hall leadership program. There are more barriers at play beyond self-acceptance when it comes to the sense of belonging. Students fear bullying, bias, prejudice, any member of staff making a mistake, interpersonal conflict, family, and so many others, but to be able to read Shakespeare you’ve got to first learn the alphabet. To tackle the barriers to belonging and community, we first have to to learn to accept ourselves and allow ourselves to be seen, in order to provide that lesson to those that live and learn with us.

Christine Hollermann Director of Residence Life Williston State College Christine.hollermann@ willistonstate.edu Twitter: @CHollermann Instagram: chrissy.hollermann UMR Perspectives

Living, Learning, and Leading: Developing Community Through Advising Residential Student Groups By Travis D. Schilla, Coordinator of Leadership Development and Programming, Missouri State University

ommunity development is a major focus for residence life departments, who pour resources and time each year toward it. Staff members, including Hall Directors and Resident Assistants (RAs), are charged with ensuring community is built among residents, and individuals are held accountable for student retention. While a significant amount of time and resources are poured into training individuals on community development techniques, there is one facet that may be overlooked while creating a sense of community: residential student organizations. Student groups including hall councils and Residence Hall Associations (RHAs) can be powerful tools for furthering the goals of residence life. Students who engage with these organizations learn a multitude of important skills including positive ways to be a member of a community and to affect change through collaboration and self-advocacy (Tucker, 2006). Additionally, as students further their involvement within a student organization, they gain valuable leadership skills and deepen their sense of belonging. These student groups, whether social, governmental, judicial, or programmatic, provide students with a space to come together to take an active role in creating the community they want to see within a residence hall setting. Residence life professionals who work with these student groups support the groups’ goals and initiatives, and intentionally incorporate opportunities to teach critical skills. Despite the presence of residential student groups on many college and university campuses, advising these groups is often seen as an extra, non-essential component of a residence life professional’s job. Thus, many folks with advising responsibilities fall short at making this component a fundamental part of their community development process. For those housing professionals who advise a student group, here are some meaningful ways to maximize your experience while building community through your residential student group: 16

UMR Perspectives

1. BE PRESENT DURING MEETINGS – While your job may not permit you to disconnect from outside distractions, being present at meetings is the first step to maximizing your time with your student group. Attending hall council or RHA meetings and actively engaging with residents is a great way to keep your finger on the pulse of trends and issues that may be arising within your community. Additionally, as Astin (1984) noted student involvement, faculty and staff members’ interactions with students more positively influenced students’ experiences in college than any other factor. 2. SEEK OUT STUDENTS’ OPINIONS – Students can be an invaluable resource in solving problems and looking at an issue in different ways. Looking for new incentives to entice students to stay on campus? Want input on a hall renovation project? Don’t be afraid to seek advice and input from your student group. They are a captive audience who quickly generate loads of ideas that might otherwise take a significant chunk of your time. In their research on student voice, Toshalis and Nakkula (2012) observed that students tend to congregate most toward environments where they feel their voices are encouraged, where they feel they can express themselves, and where they are open to critique what they wish to. 3. CHARGE YOUR GROUP WITH MEANINGFUL WORK – We all have those lists of tasks that we’ve been meaning to get to. Projects that would enhance our environments, but we never seem to have the time to do. Consider bringing your student group into the fold by allowing them to tackle that bulletin board you’ve been meaning to change, or create a year-long comprehensive recognition plan for your building or department. The point is not to pass off your unwanted tasks, but to allow your students an opportunity to take ownership of a project while making a contribution toward the goals of your building/department. The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) empirically proves that shared leadership and collaboration positively impacts student success and achievement, leading to persistence and a strengthened community (2012).

“Students who engage with these organizations learn a multitude of important skills including positive ways to be a member of a community and to affect change through collaboration and self-advocacy” 4. SHOW INTEREST IN YOUR STUDENTS – To effectively offer assistance and help students grow through their involvement within a student organization, a good advisor must first know something about the students they are advising. Knowledge about students will help you to refine your leadership, and allow you to be a more effective advisor. Additionally, show consideration and interest in your students, and encourage them to treat each other likewise. This will improve the quality of life for students and promote their general satisfaction within your student group and in the residence halls. Early in the forming stage of your group’s development, consider handing out a questionnaire to learn more about your students and utilize ice breakers that allow students to share about their backgrounds and aspirations. The key is to maintain a professional relationships with students without crossing the line to friendship. Advisors, particularly those new to an advising role, can sometimes be flattered by the desire of some students to become too close. Additionally, for residence life professionals who may live in the community with their student leaders, this can become even more of a challenge. Informing students about your personal boundaries early on can make you less likely to encounter difficult and potentially unethical situations (Linkous, 2006). 5. REMEMBER, YOU ARE AN EDUCATOR – As educators, organization advisors share knowledge, promote critical thinking, and develop leadership skills within their students. This leadership development should be a central component of student involvement, and “leadership educators can provide structure to a student’s education, help make meaning, and connect an understanding of developmental theory to one’s life experience” (Rosch & Anthony, 2012). As educators, we help students buy into the collective goals and collaborative visions of the group, which can lead to further group cohesion and a stronger sense of belonging for students.

education is to enable individual development in a context of creating and maintain community” (2001). As residence life professionals, community development is a significant focus in our work with students, and those fortunate enough to advise a student residential group have an invaluable platform for furthering this effort. References Astin, A. W. (1984). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College Student Personnel, 25(4), 297–308. Creamer, D. G., R. B. Winston, Jr., and T. K. Miller. 2001. “The Professional Student Affairs Administrator: Roles and Functions.” In The Professional Student Affairs Administrator: Educator, Leader and Manager, edited by R. B. Winston, D. G. Creamer, T. K. Miller, and Associates. New York: Brunner-Routledge. Linkous, K. (2006). First-Year Advising Challenges. In N. W. Dunkel & C. L. Spencer (Eds.),Advice for Advisers: Empowering your residence hall association (Third ed., pp. 60-96). Columbus, OH: Association of College and University Housing Officers - International. National Survey of Student Engagement. (2012). Promoting Student Learning and Institutional Improvement: Lessons from NSSE at 13. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research. Rosch, D. M., & Anthony, M.D. (2012). Leadership Pedagogy: Putting theory to practice. New Directions for Student Services, 2012(140), 3751. doi:10.1002/ss.20030 Toshalis, E., & Nakkula, M. J. (2012, April). Motivation, Engagement, and Student Voice [Scholarly project]. In The Students at the Center Series. Retrieved June 16, 2016, from http://www.studentsatthecenter.org/ sites/scl.dl-dev.com/files/Motivation Engagement Student Voice_0.pdf Tucker, G. (2006). Residence Government Effectiveness. In N. W. Dunkel & C. L. Spencer (Eds.),Advice for Advisers: Empowering your residence hall association (Third ed., pp. 60-96). Columbus, OH: Association of College and University Housing Officers - International.

Travis D. Schilla Coordinator of Leadership Development and Programming Missouri State University TravisSchilla@missouristate.edu Twitter: trav_s

As Creamer et al. state, “the raison d’être of higher UMR Perspectives

5 Things I Wish I Knew Then That I Know Now to Oklahoma State University to complete my ACUHO-I internship, I returned to my institution, the University of Central Missouri, with the news that I was going to do a housing job search. I remember clearly how many of my housing cohort peers shared all their housing knowledge with me. Housing professionals were surprised and pleased. Although many told me that housing was a different type of beast, and that I was going to do great things, there are still some things I wish I knew then and that I know now.

“I discovered that the work will always be there. Waiting for me or someone else. I became friends with my work. I was working smarter, not harder.”

By Claudia González, Hall Coordinator, University of Iowa

entered the beautiful world of housing in 2011. Having not been an RA or lived in the halls during my undergraduate career, I knew that I was in for an experience of a lifetime. I had many opinions about housing; at a point during graduate school, I remember thinking (and maybe saying) that housing is where dreams go to die. I am glad to say that this is not true and that I was wrong. After going 18

UMR Personal Side

1. THE WORK WILL ALWAYS BE THERE AND THAT IS OKAY. My first year as a Resident Director I would define my success level on how much work I would get done and on how low my inbox would get. This was a recipe for disaster. My inbox would never get under 30 items. The work would not end. Just when I would be done with a roommate conflict, a project, or a plan of action, another conflict, another call, another mess would appear. Entering every year, I would create a new plan of action. Every year, I felt getting closer to conquering the work. See, that was the problem, I saw work as my foe. Last year, after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis and realizing that I was not Superwoman and that it was okay to be me, I discovered that the work will always be there, waiting for me or someone else. I became friends with my work. I was working smarter, not harder. I started prioritizing and knowing that I would have to refuel and leave some things for the next day or another day. Our work never ends. This is not a race; It is a journey. 2. EVERY SITUATION -WHETHER IT IS FRUITFUL, AWFUL, OR GREAT- WILL CHANGE YOU. Every situation I have encountered on this job, whether it was on a manic admin Monday or when I was on call, has changed me in one way or another. I remember it all, some situations better than others. I will never forget the day that I had to tell my staff that one of their peers had taken their own life. Having to facilitate that conversation with them and creating a space to talk about things we heard about in training but we never truly wanted to

experience changed me forever. For the next weeks, maybe months, and even now, I think of what we could have done to prevent losing him. I remember thinking, ‘Why do I still do this work?’ and feeling ashamed and guilty for having such a thought since I love my job. Knowing that this was not a healthy thought, I sought out help. During one session, my counselor put it all together for me. She told me that every day we change, some days more than others. On the days that we have situations out of the ordinary-- the amazing situations or the awful situations--those always stand out in our minds. The challenge is to be able to identify how we remember them since they will change us to some degree. The key point is to accept the change and reflect about it in a healthy way. Yes, we will see some awful things but we will also see some amazing things. 3. ONE DAY NOT FAR FROM NOW, YOU WILL GET TO SEE HOW MUCH YOU HAVE LEARNED AND GROWN. Be patient. I did not realize how much I had learned and grown until I decided to search for new opportunities. I was at an on-campus interview and I was asked what I thought was the main need for our students nowadays. I remember answering the question and thinking to myself, “I am not the professional I was 4 years ago and I am pretty awesome.” I had grown so much. I could not help thinking of all those nights when self-doubt would settle on my mind hard and how I would always wonder ‘When will I get to see the fruits of my labor?’ On that day, in that interview, I got to see the fruits of my labor and my life changed as I knew it. So please be patient. Every challenge that you will encounter in this job comes with wonderful lessons. Some of those lessons are hard and they are also wonderful. 4. THIS EXPERIENCE WILL NEVER BE GRADUATE SCHOOL, AND IT SHOULDN’T BE. I think of my cohort and cherish my grad school experience every day. I owe so much to the CSPA program at UCM. I made friendships that will last a lifetime. I got to grow with some of the best people in the field, and that chapter came to an end just like it was supposed to. Graduate school was one of the many first lessons teaching us that in this field (especially in housing) change is inevitable. We must embrace it and also notice how we react to and interact with the change. Wanting this experience to be graduate school is a recipe for disaster. You are not

setting yourself up for success. The more I thought that I wanted my first job to be just like grad school, the more I rejected the place that was trying to become my new home. I stunted my growth just because I was fighting the transition. Transitions cannot be skipped; they are necessary to be able to grow. 5. PERFECTION IS THE ENEMY OF GREATNESS. There were so many times I was so unforgiving to myself about my mistakes. I would make a mistake and think, ‘This is it. Today I have failed.’ This mentality is poison. At the end of my second year as a Resident Director, I remember moving buildings and being placed in a building with one of the worst reputations. I had talked to my mentor at UCM and asked him how I could reconstruct the imperfect reputation of a building. He told me that was not my job. My job was to make sure that the building provided adequate shelter and that the students had the tools to create an experience of a lifetime. I did not realize it then, but that day he shattered my vision of perfection and replaced it with greatness. I entered that year with that philosophy: I desired greatness and so did the community. The community I led and the staff that I worked with and for were amazing. They won on all levels. They were bold and vibrant. I rarely labeled my mistakes as failures; I saw them as lessons. I quickly became more forgiving of others since I no longer expected perfection from myself and others. The next lesson was to be more forgiving to myself. I strive for greatness, not perfection. I have been working as a Resident Director/Hall Coordinator for 5 years and I have loved it every day- not all day but every day. When I was at UCM, I remember joking around with Alan Nordyke that as CSPA grads we would change lives and he always smiled at me and said that this was true. I do not think I fully believed it then but I do now. Hello UMR, my name is Claudia, I am a Hall Coordinator at the University of Iowa, and I change lives.

Claudia González Hall Coordinator University of Iowa claudia-gonzalez@uiowa.edu Twitter: @17stargirl

UMR Personal Side

NHTI: A True Living and Learning Experience By John Wachal, Residence Director, University of Nebraska - Lincoln Amanda Murphy, Complex Director, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater Dennis Scott, Residence Hall Coordinator, University of Missouri; Keniese Evans, Residence Life Coordinator, University of Northern Iowa Kelsey Hansen, Area Coordinator, College of Saint Benedict Joshua Lee, Assistant Director of Residence Life, St. Olaf College

The core aspect of NHTI is the many educational sessions developed from the ACUHO-I body of knowledge. For each knowledge area, a session was developed to provide us with a foundation that would launch us into more in-depth discussions within clusters. This year’s format was new due to a curriculum revamp as well as the addition of a second cohort at the University of South Florida. For those new to ACUHO-I, the body of knowledge includes: A.

Conference Services

Crisis/Risk Management

n the spirit of this issue’s theme of “Living and Learning Together,” the UMR-ACUHO participants of the National Housing Training Institute (NHTI) decided to reflect and share our experience of living and learning together at Michigan State University this past June.

Assessment & Planning

Budget Management

Human Resources

Information Technology

The Institute took place in East Lansing, Michigan at Michigan State University from June 7 through June 12. The learning started three weeks before NHTI with assignments and discussion groups. These assignments included self-assessments, interviews with campus administrators, and discussions with our NHTI cluster group. Once we arrived at NHTI, Michigan State hosted us in one of their apartment residence halls where we lived with our assigned cluster groups, which consisted of participants from all over the country. Each cluster was led by an experienced student affairs professional who served as our faculty member/ mentor. Reflecting back on the experience, we truly felt like our clusters were a family. A space where we could all process information presented from the day. Our faculty mentors answered questions about the housing profession, facilitated enriching conversations about the NHTI sessions, and helped members use each other as a wealth of knowledge and experience.

Occupancy Management

Inclusion & Cultural Competence

Master Planning and PPP

Outside of cluster time, there were opportunities to connect with your faculty member in a 1:1 setting. While the cluster time was great, the 1:1 time with faculty was extremely beneficial. We were able to ask more complex questions. We sought their advice on our career paths and how to be more intentional with professional development opportunities, such as conferences and seeking additional opportunities within our current position, and how to navigate our next job search within the profession. 20

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J. Politics K.

Current Trends

The UMR group of NHTI participants (Michigan State Cohort) took some time to highlight the sessions that impacted us the most after we returned home.

The UMR-ACUHO Participants of NHTI-Michigan State

Pictured (from left): John Wachal, Amanda Murphy, Dennis Scott, Keniese Evans, Kelsey Hansen, and Joshua Lee

Leadership & Personal Characteristics: Amanda Murphy For the pre-conference work, each participant was asked to complete a self-assessment on the ACUHO-I Knowledge Domains. The activity asked us to rate our own mastery of each domain as well as rate how important we thought the domain was. A report was generated and we were asked to share with others our thoughts on the exercise, the outcome of our own rankings, and the application of these items to our experience at NHTI in creating a professional development plan. Surprisingly, Leadership & Personal Characteristics landed on the bottom of my scale of importance when looking at each ranked category. I had a moment of “how can something I value so much in others be ranked so low compared to other knowledge domains?” This dissonance was concerning as I have seen the power that effective (and ineffective) leaders can have on an organization, staff members, and those they serve. I have been inspired by strong leaders who use their leadership to live out their values and the mission of the departments they serve to create positive, lasting change. Each session throughout the institute built upon and used information or examples from past presentations to create a cohesive learning experience. It was only natural, then, that Leadership & Personal Characteristics was our first topic when we arrived at the conference, presented by Mike Walsh, Director of University Housing & Residence Life at Portland State University. Throughout the presentation, we were reminded how our different preferences can impact how we get work done and how to work with other’s preferences as an added strength to our teams. This allowed our clusters to connect in different ways and extend more patience and understanding in discussions and approaching conference work. Just as a leadership style or personal characteristics can color how anyone approaches challenges and opportunities, starting NHTI discussing leadership helped direct the rest of our experience at the conference. One of my biggest take-aways (besides reevaluating how much value I place in leadership) is how we can be successful in this work when we recognize that our own leadership has the power to influence others and can be used to create good, positive ripples of change throughout our organizations.

Occupancy Management, Master Planning, and Public Private Partnership: Joshua Lee NHTI used many methods of instruction to provide participants with applicable and meaningful ways to put our new knowledge to use. Two of the sessions I benefited most from were “Occupancy Management,” led by Michael Zabriskie, Associate Director of Operations at the University of Michigan, and “Master Planning and P3s,” led by Kevin Williams, Director of residence Life at Temple University. Occupancy Management is not a responsibility within my current role, which is why this session was of particular interest to me. In fact, just thinking about the word “occupancy” gets me anxious. However, in the process of learning about contracts, lease agreements, assignments, and forecasting, I became more aware of how much occupancy depends on more than Residence Life and takes a team of people to accomplish. Admissions and Facilities, for example, are an integral part of the puzzle and a conversation regarding occupancy can not function without constant communication with those areas. As Michael explains, it is a “constant dance” with Admissions and Facilities to manage occupancy effectively. The session ended with case studies about over-occupied and under-occupied campuses, which allowed us to think creatively, with feedback from the experts, about how we would handle those scenarios. A special thanks goes out to Michael Zabriskie for his work and expertise in this presentation! On the other side of the coin, “Master Planning and P3s” was an area where I thought I had some knowledge and experience. Headed into the session, I questioned what I would gain from this knowledge area, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was overwhelmed with the wealth of information received during this session. Our presenter, Kevin Williams, Director of Residential Life at Temple University, equipped us with information on public-private partnerships, specialized housing, facilities assessment, and capital project management. While each aspect of his presentation was interesting, the public-private partnerships section expanded my knowledge about the various types of partnerships. I had no idea that P3s could be involved in part, or in all, of the design, build, finance, operation, or maintenance of a facility. As public-private partnerships become more commonplace, this information will be invaluable. Kevin Williams provided great case studies to wrap up the session, and I felt lucky to have him on the panel of amazing faculty. UMR Personal Side

Politics: Keniese Evans One of the sessions that I was looking forward to the most was “Politics,” which was presented by Michael Griffel from the University of Oregon. In preparation for the session, we had to interview the CHO and VP of Student Affairs at our institution to find out their thoughts on politics. Those conversations were very informative and made me excited about the conversations that I would have at NHTI about institution politics. It’s easy to want to shy away from politics, but you shouldn’t. At all points in your career, you are dealing with politics and the various stakeholders involved in the decisions being made. A quote someone said during the session was, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” This resonated with me because I was once the professional that shied away from politics. Over time, I have come to see that I was not helping anything by staying away; I was doing the exact opposite. During the session we played a game created by Derek Jackson and Michael Griffel that allowed us to role play politics being played out on a campus. Each cluster was

given cards that had who they were representing: parents, directors, marketing, RHA, HDs, facilities, etc. The other cards we received stated certain items we had in your budget: student employment, marketing items, staff travel, staff, etc. We then were told that we needed to cut things from the budget and negotiate with others to save some of those items. Obviously, this was a hard task as everyone had their own priorities, but it gave us a great visual as to how politics can play out at an institution. Overall, I enjoyed this session, the conversations, and the game. I learned a lot and now feel better prepared to navigate politics in my career.

Facilities and Current Trends: Kelsey Hansen The NHTI faculty created several opportunities for us to take knowledge gained through pre-assigned readings and presentation sessions and directly apply it to an activity designed to challenge us to engage and respond from the lens of a director or dean. Two activities that greatly impacted my learning were in conjunction with the knowledge domains of Facilities Management, led by Jenifer

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Campbell, Director of Residential Life at Fordham University, and Current Issues, presented by Gay Perez, the Associate Dean of Students and Executive Director of Housing & Residence Life at the University of Virginia. Jenifer’s presentation on Facilities Management taught us about common facility assessment strategies and different facility staffing models and allowed us to compare and contrast different maintenance strategies. After discussing the Facility Condition Index (FCI), Michigan State University, our host site, provided us the opportunity to tour one of their older residence halls so we could see firsthand the components of the FCI for that hall. The tour and discussions had with our clusters shed light into all of the information needed and the discussions that take place around budgeting to repair current facilities or to build new facilities. Throughout NHTI, we analyzed several case studies that put us in real scenarios to address and resolve them from a director or dean level. Several of these case studies came in our session on current issues. Gay focused primarily on student activism. She covered the history of student activism and discussed current activism while acknowledging the rise of activism on campuses. In the case studies designed for this session, we were able to determine the varying response to student activism depending on our institution type and location, our assessment of time, place and manner, and our professional role. Concluding our formal presentations with

John Wachal Residence Director University of Nebraska Lincoln

Amanda Murphy Complex Director University of Wisconsin Whitewater

this session demonstrated the thought and effort our faculty and the NHTI planning committee put into our experience as this session combined so many of the sessions we had throughout the week.The faculty, planning committee, and host site were very intentional in maximizing the time we had together in order for us to learn as much as possible while engaging with our fellow professional colleagues.

Final Reflection While the schedule for NHTI was jam-packed with sessions and meetings, there was also time to socialize with others participants and faculty and enjoy East Lansing. From the night out on the town to the various conversations in the hospitality suite, the socializing time provided an added bonus to the connections already formulated with our cluster members. In closing, if you are looking for an amazing professional development opportunity geared toward propelling you to the next level, building relationships with respected faculty, and connecting with other professional from across the country, then I highly encourage you to make NHTI a part of your professional development journey.We obviously didn’t have enough space or time to share with you all that we took away from this conference, so please, seek us out at the next UMR conference or seek out the professionals on your campus to start the conversation now about how NHTI can impact your future.

Dennis Scott Residence Hall Coordinator University of Missouri

Keniese Evans Residence Life Coordinator University of Northern Iowa

Kelsey Kay Hansen Joshua D. Lee Area Coordinator Assistant Director of Residence Life College of Saint Benedict St. Olaf College UMR Personal Side

From One Cohort to Another: Reflections on the ACUHO-I Internship Experience By Brendan Miller, Assistant Hall Coordinator, The University of Iowa, and Katie Keenan, Assistant Complex Director for Apartment Living, The University of Kansas

ollaboration among peers and across departments is highly emphasized from the time a student enters a higher education graduate program and throughout their professional career. Often, this is characterized through the implementation of a cohort model. By sharing the same learning space in both times of success and frustration, members of a cohort grow and develop from their experiences and interactions with each other. In addition, it allows for a graduate student to begin to develop meaningful relationships with peers that extend beyond their classroom experiences. During the summer between the first and second year of graduate school, often the graduate program cohort separates to do various summer experiences , such as an ACUHO-I internship.Those participating in an ACUHO-I internship have a chance to gain experience working at a different institution, make connections with other professionals in the field, and learn new skills to bring back to their graduate institution. These opportunities can vary by institution, with some hosting only one intern and some hosting several. At The University of Texas at Austin, the Division of Housing and Food Service hired six interns from various parts of the United States this summer and structured the internship to function in a cohort model, much like some of the higher education graduate programs.

Brendan: During my ACUHO-I internship at The University of Texas at Austin, the experience was designed to be a cohort model not unlike those present in many graduate programs. As someone who hails from a cohort model, the intern cohort experience was a primary selling point when searching for an internship. As an introvert, it can be challenging for me to take initiative and go on adventures by myself, but with additional interns, I immediately had a group of peers with whom to go exploring, have conversations, and eat and socialize with when I arrived in Austin. This was evident on my first few days on campus, when instead of getting lost by myself trying to find where I needed to go for training, we got lost together as a group, which is a much less awkward and more enjoyable experience. My grad program cohort has been eye-opening in terms of discovering how I best work with others and approach the learning experience as a cooperative venture. This is no different with our internship cohort. All six of us come from different institutions, different professional backgrounds, and different parts of the country. While these differences may occasionally lead to conflict, working through these differences are what provides us the greatest opportunity for personal and professional growth. What unites us, though, is our shared graduate school experiences and our love for working with college students. Katie: When I received the phone call from The University of Texas at Austin, I was excited and knew I was destined to spend this critical summer between year one and year two of my graduate program in Austin. The internship offered opportunities to sit on department committees, work with conferences, lead an orientation session, and try new areas outside of my graduate program assistantship. Although I did not know anyone in Austin, I did not hesitate for a second, as I knew there would be five other interns I could connect and share this experience with. Although this cohort was a lot smaller than my graduate program cohort, it instantly allowed me to feel comfortable, making the transition easier, similar to when I began my graduate program. Upon arriving in Austin, I was opened to the multiple opportunities that were going to be given to me and found I was challenging myself to grow and learn by picking new

UMR Personal Side

areas that I did not currently have experience in. The cohort model opened several doors for me that I would not have imagined when I accepted the internship. I interacted with many professionals in the field and made connections at other institutions in the state of Texas. I had the opportunity to collaborate with Brendan on this article and learn from the other interns’ experiences at their respective graduate institutions.

Working Hard, Playing Hard Brendan: My internship experience at UT this summer was often a smorgasbord of different opportunities to partake in. While much of our work was with camps and conferences, we also got the opportunity to join committees and work on special projects for the department. For example, I worked with creating scenarios for Behind Closed Doors during RA training. Katie and I also represented the department at orientation sessions, answering questions incoming students had about moving-in in the fall. Being a member of a cohort, I knew I was not alone in my work. It was easier for me to find someone to bounce ideas off of or vent frustrations when needed. Coming from different experiences, each of us has already developed different perspectives on how to approach challenges we may encounter. One of the best elements of the internship experience is the opportunity to explore a new city and part of the country. Honestly, I did not create a set list of things I wanted to do prior to coming to Austin, though I did hear a lot of recommendations from friends and colleagues who had previously visited. The best part of the being in an intern cohort is that you don’t have to do things alone! Whether it is going to the pool after a long day of work or trying out a local restaurant – my favorites including The Salt Lick BBQ, Torchy’s Tacos, and Gourdough’s Donuts – we had the opportunity to make the most out of our time in Austin. Katie: For me, the internship had so many components and multiple opportunities for professional development. I spent several long days in the office or working with various conference groups, in hopes to get as much as I could out of the short time that I would be in Austin. I engaged in weekly cohort meetings that encouraged dialogue and a book study to enhance our work as professionals. The summer was busy at times, but whether it was a 6:30 am Orientation Check-In, a Professional Staff Training committee meeting, or a particular Residence Life task, there were several new skills, revelations, and experiences I gained to take back with me to my graduate program.

While I worked very hard, I also took a lot of time to explore the city of Austin. One of my criteria for my ACUHO-I internship was to try a new area, which maybe I would not have had the opportunity to explore otherwise. The clock ticked quickly this summer, but I am confident that I explored a lot and was able to try several Austin establishments, accomplishing my summer bucket list and more. Whether it was dessert doughnuts, outdoor activities, or live music, the Austin experiences will be unforgettable.

Lessons Learned Brendan: Probably the biggest lesson I have learned is that this experience goes by way too fast! You may not realize until it’s too late all the things you still want to accomplish before you leave, whether it’s work-related projects or places to visit within the city. I’m doing my best to make the most of every opportunity presented to me because I know I will not likely be a similar position later in my career. However, realize there is a need to prioritize certain experiences so as not to get overwhelmed. The summer was also a great time for additional reflection on my own journey and professional development. We had a multitude of different opportunities to sit down and talk with various senior administrators as well as other professional staff to learn more about their professional journey and listen to their advice. I made a much more conscious effort to take notes while having these interactions, in addition to other meetings throughout my internship, as a tool to reflect on these experiences afterward. I am grateful that I had the chance to meet and work with five other peers, many of whom I would not have connected with through any other means. In our short time together, we got to experience an awesome city and create meaningful relationships that I hope continue throughout my student affairs career. Katie: I would say the biggest lesson I learned this summer, in addition to what Brendan discussed is my passion for other areas in higher education. On the very first day at UT Austin in our cohort meeting, our supervisor asked us to introduce ourselves and share the area we see ourselves going after our graduate programs. Almost everyone in the room was able to state what they wanted to do or where they hoped to find a job in beyond their graduate program. For me, I talked about various areas I loved and could potentially see myself in, but I was not able to say this is the area I want to be in, although I believe I did not need to know right then. This summer I was assigned to speaking about UMR Personal Side

Living on Campus with new UT students at orientation, and I was a little nervous at first, but quickly realized I enjoyed my weekly sessions about living on campus that I did with Brendan. In addition to this, I had a defining moment that made me realize other passions I have in higher education. I was working an Orientation Check-In and was directing students in line to check-into their rooms. I would chat with them and pair them with their roommate in line, trying to make it as fun as possible. I loved every minute of it and found myself volunteering for additional orientation sessions and reaching out to speak with Orientation directly. At this moment, I realized that I want to use my second year in

After this summer, I feel more confident in the types of jobs I plan to apply for and found my passion emerge through some of the opportunities that were provided to me this summer. The cohort experience helped with this, as I could openly discuss my thoughts and others would speak up to offer a different perspective or ask me a reflective question. If it were not for my peers and the internship experience, I do not know if I would have reflected as much or come to a more confident answer about my passions within higher education.

Brendan Miller

Katie Keenan

Assistant Hall Coordinator The University of Iowa brendan-miller@uiowa.edu Twitter: @brendanRmiller

Assistant Complex Director for Apartment Living The University of Kansas katiekeenan@ku.edu

12:58A M 26

graduate school to explore some of the areas that I became excited about and felt I might have a little more direction.

UMR Personal Side

STU DY BREAK Solution

Finding Hope in the Madness: Continuing To Have Conversations On Race While Dealing With Racial Fatigue By Thomas Dickens, Hall Director/Coordinator for Diversity and Equity Programs, Carthage College

’m tired. I am writing this article mere hours after the shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile. I have experienced a wide range of emotions since finding out about these incidents. Sadness, confusion, anger… but I keep coming back to just being tired. This exhaustion has many personal reasons attached to it, but it is the professional reasons that I want to focus on. I am tired because I know the conversations that are coming. Since becoming a Student Affairs professional, I have needed to have these conversations all too often. From the “Why is it ‘Black Lives Matter’? Shouldn’t it be ‘All Lives Matter’?” conversation to the “If they just obey the officers’ commands, there shouldn’t be any issues” conversation, From the “This is only a singular incident” conversation to the “Why are people making this a racial issue?” conversation, these discussions, or sometimes debates, always surface when another African-American is killed by police. Though it is a part of the work for me to have these conversations with students, and sometimes other professionals, the discussions definitely take their toll over time. While I cannot remember when this exhaustion began to creep in, I do remember one of the first significant moments that I started to notice it. In March of 2014, I hosted a discussion about African-American and police relations in America. This program took place as part of my college’s “Diversity Institute,”

which is a week-long leadership workshop that is focused on diversity and social justice education. The conversation took place immediately after showing the movie “Fruitvale Station,” which is about the last day of the life of Oscar Grant, an unarmed African-American male who was gunned down by police on January 1, 2009. During the course of this discussion, I had opened up about the interactions I have had with police officers as an African-American over the years and how I often feel helpless and powerless in those situations. After sharing those stories and how it related to the film, a student made a comment that while this situation was sad, the incident took place 5 years earlier. He continued by saying that the he would like to see something more recent. I felt frustrated because it was almost as if these injustices could be forgiven and forgotten with enough time rather than with actual work around the issue. The conversation continued with me and a student worker trying to explain to 100+ students how these issue are still relevant today. The conversation ended around 1am and I remember leaving thinking, “That took a lot out of me”. A few short months later, Mike Brown, another unarmed African-American male was gunned down by police in Ferguson, MO. And the series of conversations began. Almost one year after hosting the “Fruitvale Station” discussion, I held another movie and discussion program. This time the movie was “Dear White People”, a movie focused on race relations on a college campus. While I had to have

“... the conversation helped him gain a perspective of how this wasn’t just an isolated incident in a distant land, but was something that could very well happen to his classmates and peers.” UMR Personal Side

a lot of difficult conversations to help students understand that just because it was a movie doesn’t mean these issues are imaginary, there was a part of the conversation that reminded me of why I love doing what I do. During this conversation, there was as student who raised his hand and made the comment “I think I get it now”. You see, two weeks before the showing of this movie, there was an incident with a fraternity that made national headlines. A video surfaced showing members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity at the University of Oklahoma singing a racist chant on the way to an event. This student who was at the movie discussion had heard about this incident and the movie showing and the follow-up discussion had helped put things into context for him about a reality on campus that he doesn’t have to experience. While he understood the incident with SAE was bad, the conversation helped him gain a perspective of how this wasn’t just an isolated incident in a distant land, but was something that could very well happen to his classmates and peers. That moment and others like it help keep the fatigue at bay.

UMR Personal Side

Yes, I am tired. I am downright exhausted because I know what is coming and the energy I need to utilize to do the work, but I will continue to do the work. I will continue to have these conversations until my face turns blue. I will do so because I have to. These conversations need to occur to push the learning forward. I have to because for every person that doesn’t get it, there is a person out there that who doesn’t get it yet and someone needs to be there to plant the seeds of growth. And remembering that helps with fatigue of having to have these conversations about race.

Thomas Dickens Hall Director/Coordinator for Diversity and Equity Programs Carthage College tdickens@carthage.edu

Vonversations: Learning a New Role, Becoming the “Big Boss” By Von Stange, Assistant Vice President and Executive Director, University of Iowa

his issue’s Vonversations focuses on the transition from “middle manager” to senior housing officer. It’s been over 20 years since I made that transition, but I still remember many aspects of the first year in the new role – the challenges, the successes, and the failures that come with being the boss. For those of you who are contemplating becoming a senior housing officer, I have brought together four current, first-time Senior Housing Officers (SHOs) to share to share their transitional experiences with you. Ranging in tenure from less than a year to five years, these SHOs have provided their collective wisdom to the questions I posed. I am happy to present Vonversations with the following UMR colleagues: John Geske, Director of University Housing at the University of South Dakota; Scott Jensen, Director of Housing and Residence Life at Wichita State University; Karla Thoennes, Director of Residence Life at the University of Wisconsin – River Falls; and Charlie Potts, Director of Residential Life and Assistant Dean of Students at Gustavus Adolphus College. I hope you enjoy reading their comments as much as I did. I just wish I had this information when I first became a SHO. How long have you been a senior housing officer? What position(s) did you hold before becoming a SHO? Geske: I have been an SHO for 7 months at USD. I served as an Assistant Director at the same school prior to becoming SHO. Jensen: I have just finished my first year in an SHO position here at WSU. I worked for 13 years in residence life, then moved into the operations side of things at two other institutions for 6 years before becoming SHO at WSU. Thoennes: I have been a SHO for 2 ½ years. Previous to that was Senior Associate Director of Residence Life at NDSU.

Potts: I just finished my fifth year as the Director of Residential Life at Gustavus Adolphus College. I have also been an Assistant Dean of Students for the past 3 years. Prior to this I was the Associate Director of Residence Life at St. Olaf College. What experiences as a middle manager helped you most in becoming a Senior Housing Officer? Geske: “The most formative experiences ... allowed me to take on work outside of my comfort zone that left me with tangible, relevant, and useful skills. Being involved with budget review committees, experience on planning and construction committees for new residential facilities, exposure to the facility renewal processes, and other skill sets have been helpful in the transition. Jensen: I feel like having both the residence life background and the operations experience has been the most beneficial. Specifically working more in-depth on budgeting as well as fully understanding occupancy management has helped round out my skills as a housing professional. Thoennes: As a middle-manager, I had the opportunity to work either directly with most aspects of residence life or become involved in decision making in most areas. Being part of a central leadership team provided me the opportunity to be involved in all aspects of our department. Additionally, as a middle-manager I worked with many other departments and faculty on campus. Learning how to build professional relationships and knowing the importance of them is something I have brought to my current position. Potts: Middle managers really act as a bridge in the organizational structure. I was an on-the-ground connection to entry level staff and served as a translator of information from entry level to the director and vice versa. As a middle manager, I was able to see very closely how all aspects of the operation functioned and, while I didn’t have ultimate decision-making capabilities, I certainly had input and often had the most thorough knowledge from all sides in the decision-making process. UMR Business Side

What were your top priorities when you arrived on your new campus and assumed your new position? Geske: For me, I was already on my campus which gave me the advantage of being familiar with the processes, policies, and procedures in place. Though that was the case, my first priority was to learn the department and university system again with a fresh set of eyes. There was a definite need to make improvements in many systems after several years of high turnover at the SHO level. However, before doing that I wanted to take the time to complete a thorough analysis of current operations. Jensen: Having been out of residence life for a while, I had to understand my role on our Behavior Intervention Team and the expectations associated with that. I took time to look at our budget and delve into the current health of our finances (as well as learning how financial operations worked at WSU’s campus). Finally, I spent some time learning what people expected of me in this role (campus partners, my supervisor, and my staff team). Thoennes: Do a thorough environmental scan of the department—that includes meeting with staff in all areas of the department either one-on-one or in groups. In the one-on-one meetings, I asked the exact same questions of everyone. I also met with various stakeholders within the university to gain an understanding of these relationships. I went through all the files that were left for me and pulled out the ones that I thought were most pertinent at the time. As a result of all this, I initiated the creation of a 1-year strategic plan with my staff. The plan helped us develop philosophies, systems, policies, and procedures. It included input and feedback from individuals within all areas of the department, but the plan was developed mostly by the leadership team in the department. There had been a lot of changes and staff turnover in the department prior to my arrival. The staff were ready to make some changes that would fit our current situation. Once you got in the position, what were the area(s) you felt you had the steepest learning curve? How did you go about improving your skill level in that/those areas? Geske: The biggest area has been working with outside contractors. With our location being somewhat remote, we have a regular need to work with outside contractors for various items. Learning how to be an active part of project 30

UMR Business Side

management and how to effectively communicate with agencies outside of higher education and housing has been a challenge. When I assumed my role, we were in the midst of a project that was off track and behind schedule. Having to work through those difficulties and experience the pitfalls of poor project management and communication helped me to learn and grow in that area. Thoennes: I needed to learn what it was like to work in a different state university system. The most significant part of that was learning about how money flowed in the institution and how to manage my own budget without the help of a departmental budget manager. I learned by digging into the documents, spending some time with the University controller and budget manager, and asking a lot of questions. I am still learning. Potts: I had to learn a lot about balancing hard and soft skills. Relationships are always vital to this field, but suddenly I had to sit down and be the person solely responsible for balancing a budget, crunching occupancy numbers, creating reports for my Vice President, etc. I also had to quickly learn how to prioritize, how to negotiate, and how to collaborate to achieve goals. I had been an Associate Director responsible for programming and leadership, so I also had to learn a lot about facilities management, working with our Physical Plant, etc. What was the best advice you were given upon becoming a senior housing officer? Geske: My dad, who has been in management for years, though not in housing, told me “Don’t forget where you came from and who you serve. Stay humble.” A reminder that I need to draw from all of my experiences, housing and otherwise, while remembering that my job is to serve the students in order to be successful. Jensen: I am not sure I could point to specific advice I was given, rather I draw from examples many great people have set for me. Create strong relationships across campus, follow through on what you say you are going to do, care about your staff, while also holding them accountable, and stay true to your personal values in order to feel like you are working with a strong sense of integrity. Potts: The biggest lesson I learned as a new professional that I have carried with me is that we are all replaceable. I am simply the current Director of Residential Life. There were many before me and will be many after me, so how can I make sure the things I do - the decisions I make, the

programs I create and support - are sustainable and good for the long-term health of the college. I have had to learn to be both selfish and selfless in this job - to advocate strongly for what I need and what we want to do, but also to make sure that programs and projects can be picked up and carried on no matter who is leading this organization. What advice would you share with a middle manager who aspires to be a senior housing officer? Jensen: Understand the business side of things and make sure you are able to articulate issues that impact your budget well in order to operate your organization in a fiscally sound manner.

from a supervisor can drop off significantly once a person moves into the Director’s role. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but it is definitely something to get used to. Potts: You don’t have to be in a rush to move on or up. If you like your job now, continue to push yourself. Ask your supervisor for more responsibility, expand your professional involvement, etc. When you truly feel that your skill level has exceeded the expectations for your position, it might be time to move on. But there’s nothing wrong with staying in the middle and developing skills, trying new things, and building connections that will ultimately serve you well when you do move on or up. Von Stange

Thoennes: Evaluate the decision to become a senior housing officer from the perspective of it not only being a “step up”, but also from the perspective that it is a different job altogether. Yes, you will utilize all the knowledge and skills you’ve gained over the years, but in reality the work will be very different. Also, the level of supervision and guidance

Assistant Vice President and Executive Director, University of Iowa von-stange@uiowa.edu

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Surviving or Thriving? Supporting First Year Professionals By Katie Milne, Hall Coordinator, University of Iowa

n the field of housing and residence life, a common mantra is “You survive your first year and you thrive your second year”. Well, I just finished my first year as a Hall Coordinator and it was filled with a variety of challenging circumstances, personally and professionally. However, I am ending the year feeling incredibly fulfilled and positive about my experience, not like I have “survived”. In a one-on-one this spring, I was struggling with the differences in experience between myself and some of my colleagues. My first year has been an overwhelmingly positive experience and I feel that I found a great fit in my first professional position. Meanwhile, some of my colleagues have had very different experiences under similar circumstances. I took some time to reflect on what helped me thrive during my first year. My hope is that this article can provide a starting point for new professionals and their supervisors to communicate about what will help them thrive during year one.

UMR Business Side

administrative systems in place ahead of time made the day-to-day chaos manageable. One of the best ideas I had this year was to create a half sheet task checklist for all my RAs and Desk Clerks. Any time I assigned them a task I would print a half sheet, write the task at the top, and as my staff completed the assignment, I would cross their name off the list. What took me 5 minutes to create in July saved me hours of sifting through emails for confirmation and following up with RAs to make sure things were done. Furthermore, my to-do list was my lifeline this year because I kept it manageable; the only items I kept on it were tasks that could be done within the week. Anything larger or that did not have a deadline associated with it went on a separate list that I could pull out during down time or over breaks when there was a chance to work on non-essential projects.

Considerations for New Professionals

EAT LUNCH. This past year I shared an office space with two experienced professional staff members and almost every day the three of us would head to the dining hall at lunch time to eat together. These lunches were our time to talk informally, get to know each other, and process challenges we were encountering at work. The foundation that was built at these lunches led to a fun and collaborative office atmosphere throughout the year. For instance, it was at the lunch table that we hatched our plan to serenade our secretary on Administrative Professionals Day, complete with a ukulele and fire safety vests!

O RG A N I Z AT I O N IS YOUR FRIEND. Two of my strengths are discipline and consistency. I am predisposed to order and structure in my work. It was only natural that in my first year as a professional keeping realistic to-do lists and putting

BE HONEST WITH YOUR STUDENT STAFF. As I mentioned at the beginning my year was filled with challenging circumstances that prevented me from supervising my staff the way I had envisioned. However, from the beginning I was open and honest with my staff about the situation we were in and what that meant for our staff. Our staff had a vacant Hall Coordinator position, so I was preparing twice as many RAs for the year. By default, this meant that I just couldn’t provide individualized attention or help with the small stuff. By sharing this with the staff upfront, we quickly developed a “we’re all in this together” mentality that continued throughout the year as future challenges arose. When

“As a new professional, the consistent check-ins and easy access to my supervisor kept me feeling supported and reassured through all the learning and change. “ I was out for multiple weeks for a family emergency, I came back to the office expecting to have to put out all kinds of fires. Instead my RAs came into my office checking on how I was and updating me on all the programs they had done while I was away. The honesty and care that I gave them from the beginning of the year had come full circle in the honesty and care they showed me during my time of need.

as it is to first year professionals. My supervisor provided an excellent balance of support (picking up RA training meals without complaint) and challenge (allowing me to manage two buildings). The key was that both her challenge and support came from a place of trust. Trusting that I wouldn’t ask for help if I didn’t truly need it and trusting that I could handle the challenges I was taking on.

COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR SUPERVISOR AND LEADERSHIP TEAM. I was incredibly fortunate to have not only a supportive supervisor but a supportive leadership team this year. The way they were able to be so supportive was through me communicating with them. As I got to know each of them, I was able to share my working style, my passions, what I was struggling with, and what I needed to be able to do better. In turn, they were able to provide assistance, opportunities for me to get involved, and words of affirmation that helped me end the year feeling like I was thriving instead of just surviving.

RECOGNIZE A JOB WELL DONE WITH FURTHER OPPORTUNITIES. A general philosophy in my department is that the first year is for learning your job and any subsequent years are for more personalized professional development. However, people do their best work when they are passionate, so, if possible, start shoulder-tapping new professionals as soon as they have a handle on their job responsibilities for opportunities. I was able to start taking on special projects and was identified for opportunities during my first year. During second semester I was asked to represent our department on the Professional Staff Recruitment team due in large part to the positive experience that I was having as a first year professional. This and other special projects are some of the accomplishments that allowed me to end my first year feeling like I was thriving.

Considerations for Supervisors of New Professionals CHECK IN REGULARLY AND IN PERSON. When I was interviewing with the University of Iowa I talked about how I wanted my own building and my own staff. I didn’t know at that time how important a connection to the department and other professionals would be to me. A huge part of my success was the proximity and frequency of contact that I had with my supervisor. This past year my supervisor’s office was in the building connected to mine. During opening and closing she was able to visit me every hour or two to check in and see how I was managing. As the year got going I never hesitated to email or call with a quick question – things didn’t have to wait until our one-on-one each week. As a new professional, the consistent check-ins and easy access to my supervisor kept me feeling supported and reassured through all the learning and change.

As I said at the beginning, this article is only meant to be starting point for further reflection and conversation for new professionals. The conclusions drawn are based only on my own set of experiences. All new professionals and their supervisors will have their own strengths, challenges and styles, but everyone can unite around the goal of new professionals ending their first year with the sense that they are thriving not just surviving.

Katie Milne Hall Coordinator University of Iowa kathryn-milne@uiowa.edu

CHALLENGE AND SUPPORT. It is one of the pillars of our profession and it is as applicable to first year students UMR Business Side

Pre-Conference

Living and Learning Together UMR-ACUHO 2016: Madison, Wisconsin Wednesday, November 9 – Friday, November 11, 2016 By Mike Perry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Co-chair, Jolene Esterline, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Co-chair

his fall, we are delighted to welcome you to Madison. After a long hiatus, UW-Madison has the privilege of hosting the annual conference and we could not be more excited! The theme of the conference took shape as our group reflected upon the great progress that comes when we work together. The learning that can be achieved when we are living in community and exploring new ideas together is what we strive to create in our work and in our lives. The University of Wisconsin-Madison has a long, rich history of living and learning communities. Starting in 1926, the first residential college experience began in Adams Hall located in the the lakeshore area along the shores of the lake Mendota. The Experimental College, led by Alexander Meiklejohn, who was an early adopter of our strongest principles and practices in University Housing, included faculty living in residence and teaching courses with students and a student-led perspective. While the community was short-lived, the spirit of its mission lives on in the work that we do today.

Mike Perry

Jolene Esterline

University of Wisconsin Madison

The living and learning communities on campus today are a testament to the values of collaboration with academic partners and commitment to student success; our theme is a salute to this work. Additionally, it is a nod to the Wisconsin Idea: the work done at our institutions serves a purpose to support those living outside our collegiate communities. It is our hope that UMR conference attendees will embrace this idea and consider how their work contributes to the education in our halls and its outreach into the surrounding communities. The Host Committee was fortunate to join other committees at this year’s summer meeting and we are excited to share in learning and living together during your time at this fall’s conference. We are all excited to welcome you in November. • Conference Hotel: www.concoursehotel.com • Conference Session Location: www.mononterrace.com • Social Media - Facebook: UMR-ACUHO Annual Conference • Host Email: umrhost2016@housing.wisc.edu

Pre-Conference

Tales from Both Sides of the Booth – A New Perspective on the Exhibitors Showcase By Adrienne Patmythes, Assistant Director of Residence Life, University of Wisconsin-Parkside - On behalf of the Sponsors and Exhibits Committee You walk into a sea of bodies and drapery, thoughts swirling, unsure of what to say or whom to approach. Dessert is in there somewhere, but you have to navigate the booths to reach it. You make your way through the gauntlet, avoiding eye contact until you get that delectable brownie. Dessert serves as your shield. You watch others and reunite with your peers from graduate school or connections made at GLACURH or MACURH, after all, there’s safety in numbers. The challenge is laid out. The jackpot on the line. If you complete this card thrust into your hands as you entered, you could win! You aren’t sure what, but you know you want to win. You awkwardly stand by as a Senior Housing Officer strikes up a conversation with an exhibitor. She sounds so knowledgeable! What do you know about furniture or architecture? Why are there so many people by the care packages? You feel more familiar with those! You scan the provided checklist and find the least threatening question to ask. “What’s your favorite dessert?” Perfect! It’s finally your turn. Greeted by a smiling face, you quickly ask your question, put forth your card, take a deep breath and move on to the next booth. We’ve all been there - the uncertainty, the excitement, the doubt. You wonder, “Why am I here? I have no purchasing authority. What can I possibly get out of this?” Aside from dessert and the chance to win a prize, much can to be gained from the Exhibitors Showcase experience. It may be a professional contact that you will utilize when you ascend the ranks. It may be a new idea to bring back to campus and present to others unable to attend the conference. It may be an opportunity to expand your knowledge base to make you a more well-rounded leader for the future. It may even be a new career opportunity. Amidst the sea of faces, there are exhibitors who know exactly what you are experiencing. Why? Because they were once in your shoes. Several of the exhibitors you have met or may meet in the future began their careers as housing professionals. The Sponsors and Exhibits Committee took an opportunity to ask a few of our exhibitors about their experiences on both sides of the booth. Terri Gray, National Higher Education Sales Manager of CORT, received her Master of Education in College Student Affairs from Azusa Pacific University and first worked as a Conference Coordinator at Cal Poly Pomona. Since joining the corporate world, Terri has made a point to remain very active in ACUHO-I, attends everything possible while at the conference beyond the showcase, and currently serves on the ACUHO-I Levels of Engagement Task Committee. She utilizes her knowledge and skills gained in housing and residence life to educate and 36

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mentor her company about the culture, operations, values and principles of the field. Her focus is not the product; it is the relationship she values, and she feels her greatest reward is helping others grow and develop. When asked what advice she would give professionals navigating through the exhibitors showcase, she reflected upon her first conferences during and immediately following graduate school. She admits, “It felt so intimidating to walk in the exhibit hall!” Terri also acknowledges that exhibitors also have a responsibility to welcome new professionals and mentor them through the process to make it a better experience for all involved. Angela Powell, Public Relations Manager for On Campus Marketing, started as a member of RHA and as a Resident Assistant. After obtaining a Master of Science in Education and working as a graduate assistant at Emporia State University, she served as a Hall Director at Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State University). In her current role, Angela serves as the liaison for all partnerships with NACURH, Inc., ACUHO-I and regions, ACPA, and NASPA. Given her experience working with residence life and as a student leader on both the regional and national level of NACURH, she states this role was a natural fit. Skills gained in the field, such as teamwork, creativity, and flexibility to name a few, are used on a daily basis in her current role. Angela stresses that exhibitors want to meet you! She states, “There has been the notion that young professionals don’t have buying power, but you will and creating relationships early on with exhibitors can support you along the way. For seasoned visitors, we appreciate learning about changes or updates in your department and school, and we appreciate being able to share with you our new updates and products as well. Your feedback and experiences with products and services makes a difference to exhibitors – it’s how we get better as companies.” She also encourages housing professionals to recognize sponsorship provided by vendors as they enjoy being involved and receiving feedback when you enjoy a speaker, meal, or award. Connecting with others from colleagues met at conference to longtime friends to former student leaders now in the profession is “always a highlight” for Angela. Dan Statter, Director of Institutional Relations for Roompact, began his Residence Life career as a Student Desk Receptionist at Marquette University, and while in graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison he worked with the Farm and Industry Short Course residential certificate program. He became a Residence Life Coordinator at Elmhurst College after graduate school. Dan considers his listening abilities and patience as skills he has most been able to use in his current role, and he uses these and others to understand the issues that make it difficult for Residence Life professionals to do their jobs well. His recommendation to housing professionals is to “look at the exhibit hall as an opportunity to learn about

our housing/reslife industry” and encourages that all “need not be a ‘decision maker’ to be well informed!” Hopefully, this article has provided a new perspective on the Exhibitors Showcase experience. Whether viewed as a competition, an opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, or an educational experience, the Exhibitors Showcase is a time to meet and network with professionals internally and externally who support Residence Life. We encourage you to take the opportunity to learn at least one thing about the people in the booth beyond the product they are representing. It’s not what you know; it’s who you know. You may be surprised to learn someone’s path began exactly where you are, and

you may even find a connection that could one day influence to your next career move inside or outside the profession. Adrienne Patmythes Assistant Director of Residence Life University of Wisconsin-Parkside patmythe@uwp.edu

What We’re Excited For By The Program Committee

ith the conference quickly approaching, there are many workshops, traditional programs, and roundtables that are going to make this conference exceptionally special. While we are excited for all the programs being presented, we wanted to offer you a sneak peak into some highlights for this conference. WORKSHOP. Tales from Planet Estrogen: Reflections and Insights from Women in Housing: This workshop is a high audience involvement workshop which will allow women housing professionals, and their supporters, to share experiences and anecdotes about how to succeed and empower one another as housing professionals. As Gloria Vanderbilt once said, “One woman’s success can only help another woman’s success.” Come engage with women in housing to feel empowered, inspired, and motivated to do the important work we do each day. ROUNDTABLE. Federal/State legislation and its impact on campus housing: Federal Legislation impacts our housing operations on a daily basis. Recently, the Affordable Care Act and FLSA, among others, have affected our profession immensely. With that being said, our future daily operations in Student Housing may look different than they presently do. This roundtable program will not only educate you on how recent legislation and Dear Colleague letters are taking shape, but also how institutions are responding to them. TRADITIONAL. Conflict, College Students, and Lots of Questions: One thing that we all can guarantee is that as housing professionals we will assist students in managing conflict at some point in time. Specifically, live-in professionals, student-staff, and students will often handle conflict on a weekly basis. Consequently, conflict can negatively affect students, staff, and peers. Utilizing research completed in a residence hall setting, this presentation will guide participants through mediating conflict by identifying important questions that should be addressed before, during, and after an interaction, as well as using communication theory and personal experience to provide practical approaches for successful mediation.

TRADITIONAL. Dazed and Confused: Incorporating Social Media to Stay Connected: This program will provide an opportunity for mid- and senior-level professionals to learn different techniques to engage with students, staff, and other educators through social media platforms. Utilizing the ACPA/NASPA Technology Competency and experience from graduate students, this program will allow participants to expand their knowledge and skill in connecting to a broad range of users and potentially allow them to connect on a level current with societal trends. Come engage with fellow colleagues and prepare to enhance your #connection with others. TRADITIONAL. Wakan Tanka: The Native Indian Spirit in Higher Education: This program will focus on educating and inspiring new practices and understandings of the Native American/ Native Indian students we serve at our institutions. The presenter will cover the results of a campus climate survey at their university related to Native American students and their struggles to find belonging on their campus. Stories and testimonies from students will help us to have a better understanding of their experiences and how their identity development is impacted by their experiences at our campuses. Check out this program to learn more about supporting this population of students! New experiences ahead at the annual conference: Introducing “The Encore” a new and exciting format for the final session of this year’s conference. This session will feature a hot topics panel with senior level housing professionals discussing current trends and topics in higher education, an in-depth interview with a housing professional formatted after the popular television show “Inside the Actors Studio,” and UMR Speaks - three short 15-minute presentations about a concept or idea to give everyone some food for thought. We’re excited about this new direction for the conference, and we can’t wait to present UMR-ACUHO’s first conference Encore. While we have highlighted just a few of the programs going to be offered at the conference, make sure you spend time checking out the program booklet or Guidebook to discover more of the exciting and engaging programs being offered at the conference. See you in Madison! Pre-Conference

What kind of UMR-ACUHO member are YOU? With the annual UMR-ACUHO conference quickly approaching, have you ever thought, “What kind of UMR-ACUHO member am I?” Whether you will be new to the conference or a returning attendee, take this quiz and find out how you can make the most of your UMR-ACUHO conference experience!

START

I am a returning UMR-ACUHO attendee

I am a first-time UMR-ACUHO attendee

I am looking to network with other professionals at UMR

I am interested in leadership positions

Although a previous UMRACUHO attendee, I am interested in continuing to build connections with others in the field I am looking to learn from others within the field

I am interested in giving back to UMR-ACUHO

PROGRAM MODERATOR! Being a program moderator is a gre at way for first–time and returning UMR-ACUHO attendees to take on a leadership pos ition within the UMR annual confere nce. Moderators introduce the program presenters and ensure programs tak e place without a hitch! Expect an email as the conference gets closer to sign-up to be a moderator! The annual conference depends on the assistance from me mbers like YOU!

Residence Life Office Peru State College P.O. Box 10 Peru, NE 68421

Please deliver to the housing office if undeliverable. Housing Office: If this staff member no longer works at your institution, please update your member directory on www.umr-acuho.org

Make your housing a HOME! Which Program Is Right For YOU?