Resident Assistant Position Description

Description of Duties

Student Development and Programming

1. Assist students in maintaining an environment conducive to study.
2. Organize and conduct floor meetings. These floor meetings are designed to help residents understand the goals and responsibilities of the Department of Residence Life as well as policies and procedures.
3. Develop a strong sense of positive community on your assigned area by planning activities, meetings, bulletin boards, programs, etc. throughout the school year.
4. Serve as a resource and referral agent to residents.
5. Attend the RA Class from 2-3pm on Wednesday afternoons.

Staff Development

1. Attend and contribute to RA training, conferences and workshop sessions.
2. Attend and contribute to weekly residence hall staff meetings.
3. Attend training workshops before the start of each semester.
4. Participate in residence hall staff selection process as needed.
5. Maintain frequent contact with Area Coordinator.

Counseling

1. Communicate with all assigned residents on a weekly basis as a means of establishing contact, identifying problem areas, imparting and obtaining information, and answering questions.
2. Use of an ‘open door’ policy is strongly encouraged while an RA is in his/her room to allow residents to approach RA if the need arises.
3. Function as a resource referral for students with emotional, health, or academic problems by directing them to the appropriate office on campus and follow through with appropriate notification to Area Coordinator.
4. Maintain confidentiality of information except to notify Area Coordinator.

Student Conduct

1. Observe and guide the general behavior of the residents in your assigned area in terms of expected behavior as established by the residents, Department of Residence Life, and the MGCCC community.
2. Document all behavior problems and subsequent actions and refer particular incidents to the appropriate staff member (Area Coordinator, Campus Police, etc.)
3. Use approved methods and procedures for confronting behavior and residents in a manner consistent with an educational focus on the effects of inappropriate behavior on community living.
4. If needed, serve as a witness or provide testimony for the validation of conduct documentation.

Administration

Housing

1. Assist the Area Coordinator in ensuring accuracy of hall rosters by knowing who is assigned to the floor/wing/suite(s) and making sure that they are residing in the proper room assignments. Notify the Area Coordinator of any residents who are assigned to the area but are apparently not living in that assigned space or of residents living on the floor that are not assigned.
2. Handle administrative paperwork and procedures associated with residents checking in and out of the residence hall.
3. Act as a liaison between the Residence Life administration and residents on matters of mutual concern.
4. Make regular visual inspections of the condition of the facilities for communication with the Area Coordinator, Director of Residence Life and Maintenance department.
5. Assist Area Coordinator in maintaining key inventory for the building/area and report any discrepancies. Any missing or unaccounted keys that cannot be traced back to the students will be the responsibility of all involved staff members to find missing keys. Failure to find missing or unaccounted keys will result in the locks being changed and the total cost for this service will be evenly assessed to all involved RAs and Area Coordinator in that building.

Front Desk

1. Work (9) hours of front desk coverage per week.
2. Check guests of residents in and out of the building.
3. Escort maintenance staff and vendors while in the building.
4. Desk schedules will be made by the Area Coordinator in conjunction with the RAs of the building/area to ensure that the desk has proper coverage.

On Call/Emergency

1. Be able to navigate halls and be able to respond to emergencies quickly.
2. Be available on campus the first and last weekend of each semester.

Availability

1. Be reasonably available to residents in evening hours and weekends when in town.
2. Must reside in the building every night in the week and during duty and/or required weekends.
3. Allowed one weeknight away per month with prior approval from Area Coordinator.
4. Reside in the residence hall up to 24 hours after closing each semester to assist with closing of the residence halls.

Qualifications

1. Candidates must have a minimum of a 2.50 cumulative GPA, as determined by MGCCC, at the time of application to be considered.
2. Candidates must not have been found responsible in any major disciplinary cases.
3. Candidates must maintain full time academic status (15 hours for scholarship purposes) throughout the entire semester to be considered in good academic standing and allowed to keep their RA position through the Department of Residence Life. In the event an RAs GPA should fall below the 2.50 minimum requirement, the RA may be given one semester in which to raise his/her cumulative GPA back to a minimum of 2.50. If he/she is unable to do so, they will be ineligible to continue employment.
4. The RA must be able to work effectively with MGCCC students in a residence hall environment.
5. The RA must demonstrate a sense of job responsibility, strong work ethic, and maturity.
6. The RA must utilize effective communication, planning, scheduling, and organizational skills.
7. RAs must be a good role model by following all college and residence hall policies.
8. RAs must show effective leadership skills.
9. The RA must live in the residence hall room assigned for the duration of employment with the Department of Residence Life. Leaving employment (voluntarily or otherwise) may result in removal from that room, floor, and possibly that residence hall.

Contract

Tenure

1. The RA contract is for one (1) academic year beginning prior to the Residence Hall opening (on dates set in the Academic Calendar) and ending 48 hours after the halls close for the spring semester.
2. The maximum renewal for the RA contract will be 4 semesters. An RA can appeal to return for a 5^th semester if they have maintained a constant positive overall job evaluation each semester, have the support of their Area Coordinator, and can show proof of how they will contribute to the department for an additional semester. The final decision will be made by the Director of Residence and Student Life.
3. In the event an RA fails to meet job requirements/expectations prior to the end of contract, for any reason, the cost for housing for the remainder of the term, should they continue to reside in on-campus housing, is prorated. In addition, the RA will be assessed (effective date of termination/resignation) the remaining scholarship (housing fees), regardless if they reside on or off campus for that semester.

Scholarship

1. RAs receive a scholarship equivalent to the cost of a double room as compensation for their responsibilities. MGCCC students are required to take a minimum of 15 credit hours to receive scholarships.
2. The Department of Residence Life reserves the right to assign a roommate to an RA in certain circumstances. While possible, the RA will have the option to choose that roommate.

Additional Employment

1. An RA is able to hold additional employment during the tenure as an RA only if
   1. (S)he receives written approval from the Area Coordinator prior to beginning any employment.
   2. (S)he works no more than ten (10) hours per week at a site within 30 minutes from the Perkinston campus.
   3. Performance in the RA position must remain above average or additional work is to be discontinued.
2. Additional obligations or employment will not be considered during the scheduling of on call responsibilities, programming obligations, opening and closing of residence halls or staff meetings.
3. Staff will be permitted to participate in military obligations (Reserves, National Guard, ROTC, etc.) Conflicts that arise with staff training, check in/out, and other required dates will be considered on an individual basis. RAs are expected to do everything possible to be present at these critical times.