It's time for an intervention. PUT DOWN the glitter. STEP AWAY from the construction paper. DO NOT OPEN the pizza boxes. I WANT YOU TO STOP PROGRAMMING! I don't really want you to stop programming, but I do want to stop putting on programs that are not developed with a strong set of learning outcomes and... Continue Reading →
A number of departments and institutions have recognized that as the roles of residential education staff have evolved and technology has advanced, many of the assumptions upon which training programs were previously built no longer hold true. For example, resident assistant and student staff training programs typically occur in August, before residence halls open for the... Continue Reading →
I've always been fascinated by how mobile communications are increasingly pushing us towards more visual forms of communication and expression. Memes, animated gifs, and, of course, emoji. With the beginning of the year upon us... RA training... residence hall opening... I thought it was appropriate to rework some of the emoji series I did last... Continue Reading →
I have the pleasure of heading to Canada today to present twice at the OACUHO Residence Life Conference at the University of Guelph. Growing up in Rochester, NY, going to Canada feels a little bit like coming home. The first session I'll be doing this weekend is to the RAs and student leader's in attendance... Continue Reading →
I have the immense pleasure to be presenting at my alma mater today, the State University of New York College at Geneseo. They asked me to do a presentation to their Resident Assistants that's spin on my blog post "RAs Are Not Educational Experts." Geneseo's residence life program utilizes a model similar to that of... Continue Reading →
I created this presentation back in 2008(?) for RA Training to help my RAs understand how the educational purpose of residence halls has evolved over time and where, as student staff, they fit into that history. I recently came back across it and thought I'd put it up on the web as a video for others... Continue Reading →
In my original post (included at the end) I included a challenge to residence life pros and resident assistants to tweet me their own emoji. Here's what they sent: Submitted by @KMcCarthy8185: Submitted by @dougtate: Submitted by @Jen_Cox: I made this one:Submitted by @TorryBruce: Submitted by @icehockeystick: Submitted by @awall13: Submitted by @cm_ferrari3: Submitted by @TorryBruce: Submitted by @ValerieHeruska: BUY this as... Continue Reading →
Date: November 3, 1990 Time: 8:34pm Location: Bayside Hall room 231 Responding Staff Member: Richard Belding Residents Involved: Jesse Spano, Zach Morris, Samuel "Screech" Powers, A.C. Slater RD Richard Belding received a call to the staff duty phone at approximately 8:34pm from Resident Samuel "Screech" Powers. Resident Screech stated that he had recently come back from... Continue Reading →
“Door decs” with your name on it… Crafting in the lobby… An icebreaker where you rhyme your name with a vegetable… free pizza... all cliché ways a college Resident Assistant (RA) goes about building and maintaining community. Of course, the RA position is far more complex than the stereotype that often gets portrayed, or the hokey... Continue Reading →
A gift to my friends in Residence Life. May August treat you well! xoxo Pb BUY this as a poster! Or a greeting card. Help fund my doctoral dissertation! The paid version uses a sharper, higher resolution file. For the poster, there are multiple price points, qualities, and sizes.... All proceeds help fund my dissertation.... Continue Reading →
“Door decs” with your name on it… Crafting in the lobby… An icebreaker where you rhyme your name with a vegetable… you might be surprised by how a college Resident Assistant (RA) goes about building and maintaining community. Of course, the RA position is far more complex than the stereotype that often gets portrayed, or... Continue Reading →
The terms “residential curriculum” or “curricular approach” are used to describe an intentional specifically-structured way of promoting learning in college and university student affairs programs. Borrowing from techniques utilized by classroom-based teachers, the curricular approach to student affairs designs a series of successive learning and engagement opportunities for students that are measurable against defined objectives.... Continue Reading →
I remember first encountering the Residential Curriculum Model back in 2006. My supervisor at American University had just returned from the first annual ACPA Residential Curriculum Institute. It was love at first sight. It just made sense. Why hadn’t anyone thought of this approach before? What many don’t understand about a Residential Curriculum (That’s capital “R” and “C”)... Continue Reading →
Pb 