Resident Assistants have been the front line for Residence Life for Generations. In the fall of 2021, George Washington University in Washington, DC launched their new residence life staffing model, where RAs were no longer part of the equation. What gave the GW team the will to take on this behemoth in the tradition of student affairs, and what has the first semester of the new program taught them? This replay of “Office Hours with Dr. De Veau” features Residence Life and Student Affairs leadership from The George Washington University for a conversation about how the move is being felt on campus and what they are learning that may benefit other campuses.
Listen, share and comment!
Show Notes & About Our Guests:
GW to Transform Services for Residential Students; Why one University Decided to Do Away with RAs
Listeners of the live broadcast had a couple of common questions (thanks for reaching out!) … I asked guest, Seth Weinshel for the follow-up and he was kind enough to give me some details. First, listeners were interested in the 9 student staff roles that were discussed. Seth sent the chart below. I cannot stress more that when considering this model that campuses need to look at their own campus and the priorities of the culture and mission, so consider the examples of GWU, but you may have different needs for your own campus to consider.
Second, listeners really wanted to know about ‘rounds’ and how GWU handled ‘rounds’ and documenting student behavior. The answer from Seth, “In a nutshell the CCs (community coordinators) do rounds daily, and do them around dinner time to connect with students as they are coming back from class or leaving for dinner. We do not do late night rounds, because as we were asking questions about why do we do what we do, the only answer we could come up with about why have staff do rounds at 11 PM and 1 AM, was to catch people involved in policy violations, we decided we did not need to catch them. When our RAs, when we had them did rounds that late all they were doing was policing and that was never what we wanted them to be.”
Perhaps another show on the purpose of rounds is in order?
Dr. Cissy Petty Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
When Former students were asked to describe Cissy… abruptly, one piped up and said, “she’s a lightning bolt on two feet.” Cissy was appointed to her position at GW in August of 2019
She has high energy, a drive to accomplish bold projects, and a keen eye for the details. She would describe herself as a change agent, comfortable with intuitively seeing the potential in people, places, and things. As GW’s chief student affairs officer, she provides leadership over areas including student conduct, student health and well-being, campus living and residential education, fraternity and sorority life, student organizations and leadership development, military and veteran student support, and on-campus student programming. Recognized nationally as a thought leader in student affairs, Cissy has taught courses on leadership development and counseling at the graduate and undergraduate levels and has presented extensively.
Cissy’s undergraduate and graduate degrees are from Florida State University, and she was presented with the FSU Distinguished Alumni Award from the College of Education in 2020.
Seth Weinshel, Associate Vice President for Business Services
As Associate Vice President Business Services, Seth Weinshel is responsible for Housing, Dining, and other Auxiliary Services at GW. Seth earned his BBA and MTA from GW, and an AAS in Culinary arts from Stratford University. He is an accomplished Senior Housing Officer with over two decades of housing, management, and planning experience, and has held leadership positions within the Association of College and University Housing Officers – International.
Coming Up Next Week - LIVE FROM NASPA
If you are attending the NASPA National Conference on March 19 - 23 in Baltimore, be sure to be on the lookout for Dr. De Veau on the Street! I will be hosting multiple live broadcasts from the conference, and looking for participants to take part in person and virtually!
Publication & Broadcast Calendar for Spring 2022
The “What’s Up in the Academy?” Newsletter will be hitting your inboxes on Tuesdays until June of 2022. Replay distribution of the “Office Hours with Dr. De Veau” live pod on Fireside will occur 2 days after the original broadcast. Be sure to become a paid subscriber to have access to ALL of the newsletters and replays!
Rethinking Reslife: The Office Hours Replay