COVID-19 Statement
All Resident Assistant descriptions, offers, and positions are subject to change in light of federal, state, local, or university COVID-19 regulations.
Position Overview
Resident Assistants (RAs) are enrolled undergraduate students who work in teams to support the departmental mission of building community, providing resources, and investing in collaborative relationships across campus. By partnering with students, resident assistants support students personally, socially, and academically as they learn and explore.
The RA position is a 10-month live-in, on campus position that supports the creation and facilitation of an integrated residential learning environment that moves undergraduate students through the process of achieving the goals of the undergraduate experience, working through the mission and goals of the Office of Residence Life and the Division of Student Affairs. This embedded position assists the Residential Community Director (RCD) and Assistant Residential Community Director (ARCD) supervisors to support a residential community of first year, second year, or upperclass students. Immersed in the student community, the Resident Assistants create environments primed for learning that allow students to embrace challenges and shape communities.
Essential Functions
Community Development
- Develop the residential community to support the Division of Student Affairs student learning domains: Social and Emotional Competence, Purpose and Intentionality, Cultural and Human Appreciation, Community Engagement, and Problem Solving in an effort to help students thrive.
- Assist in developing community expectations that encourage students to become mindful community members, ethical leaders, well rounded flourishing students
- Assess the needs and interests of residential students and create residential communities, interactions, and programs that are tailored to the First Year Experience, Second Year Experience, or Upperclass Experience.
- Build rapport and individual relationships with residents through consistent presence in the residential community and facilitating planned conversations with residents.
- Role model and reinforce positive behaviors consistent with divisional values and university policies and procedures in all contexts including residence halls, online forums, campus events, and the campus community.
- Abide by local, state, and federal laws and university policies and procedures.
Team Member & Development
- Serve as a supportive team member. This may include but is not limited to communicating in a timely manner with Residence Life staff and/or student residents, taking initiative, having a presence in the community and with the Residence Life team, building trust and mutual respect across the Residence Life team, etc.
- Participate in the ongoing training, selection, and evaluation processes of the department.
- Attend and participate in weekly meetings and training programs which may include but is not limited to Fall RA Training, In-service trainings throughout the semesters, Spring Training, team development, and other training as determined by Residence Life leadership and supervisors.
- Role model a commitment to personal and professional development as well as respect for other Residence Life Team Member's personal and professional needs and development.
Community Response & Student Support
- Execute a system of intervention and referral to support the health, wellness, and safety of residential students.
- Participate in an ongoing required on-call rotation as determined by residential area and utilize the Non-Emergency and Emergency Protocol when responding to applicable situations.
- Report student concerns and possible policy violations promptly.
- Maintain confidentiality.
- Report all potential or alleged sexual harassment. All RAs are Non-Confidential resources and are mandatory reporters for sexual harassment. RAs are obligated to report any information regarding sexual harassment for all students at CWRU even if it occurs outside of the RA's residence hall or when the RA is off-duty.
- Encourage residents to develop meaningful relationships with faculty outside of the classroom.
- Promote healthy and appropriate personal, professional, and academic behaviors.
- Connect residents with Navigators and Residence Life Supervisors to support each resident's academic success.
Advocate for Social Justice & Diverse Perspectives
- Create a welcoming and comfortable living environment for community members.
- Address or seek assistance to address issues of intolerance, hate, and injustice in a thorough and prompt manner, escalating issues to Residence Life supervisors as appropriate.
- Engage students in new activities that may open new perspectives on issues and topics.
Administrative
- Complete administrative responsibilities in a timely and accurate manner and meet communicated deadlines. These responsibilities may include but are not limited to: incident reports, room condition reports, community building tools, bulletin boards, room changes (check-in/check-out procedures), maintenance requests, distribution of information, and daily communication.
- Maintain the proper use of master keys, key cards, building keys, ID cards, passwords and other access mechanisms to ensure the safety and security of residents and their belongings.
- Support the smooth functioning of the residential facilities and respond to resident concerns. Instruct and guide residents in completing room condition reports, room changes, work orders, and facility emergency response procedures.
Nonessential Functions
Perform other duties as assigned.
Contacts
- Daily interaction with undergraduate students. Daily interaction with Residence Life team and supervisors.
- Regular contact with the Office of Residence Life, Residence Hall Association, and community councils.
- Regular contact with the Offices of CWRU Police and Public Safety, University Health & Counseling Services, University Housing, University Facilities.
- Occasional contact with Offices of Student Affairs, Student Success, Enrollment Management, Disability Resources, Office of Multicultural Affairs, Greek Life.
Qualifications
- First-year students must have a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA, a minimum 2.0 fall semester GPA, and be in good academic standing in order to apply.
- Second-year students or above must have a minimum 2.25 cumulative GPA, a minimum 2.25 GPA for the semester preceding the start of their position, and be in good academic standing in order to apply.
- All selected Summer 2022 and 2022-2023 Academic Year RAs must have a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA, a minimum 2.5 GPA for the Spring 2021 semester, and be in good academic standing.
- Once selected, all students must maintain the GPA minimum of 2.5 cumulative GPA and a minimum 2.5 GPA and be in good academic standing. The GPA is calculated using earned credit hours only. If an RA's cumulative GPA falls below 2.5 and/or the RA's most recent semester GPA falls below 2.5, they will be ineligible to serve as an RA, and their RA position will be terminated. RAs who have served in their position for at least one semester may appeal. RAs who have not yet begun their roles are ineligible to appeal.
- RA candidates need to be in good standing with all University offices including but not limited to The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards, The Office of Equity.
- Candidates on disciplinary probation with the university will be ineligible to hold a Resident Assistant position. Candidates on deferred university probation will be eligible.
- All RA applicants must be enrolled at Case Western Reserve University. RAs are not eligible to participate in co-op as students must be registered for 6 credit hours or more to hold an RA position.
- Applicants need to live in the residence halls for at least one semester by the start of their RA position (Students starting at CWRU in Fall 2021 are not eligible for a Spring 2022 position, but are eligible for the Summer 2022 and 2022-2023 academic year position).
- The RA position requires an average time commitment of 15 hours per week. University regulations limit on-campus employment to a total of 20 hours per week, which includes RA positions. If an RA applicant has on-campus employment they would like to keep if selected as an RA, applicants should consult with Student Employment. It is assumed that RAs will work irregular hours and the number of hours might vary by week during the semester. RAs hours will be spent in a variety of ways including but not limited to in their community, with their team, and completing administrative tasks.
- Once selected, RAs must limit outside activities during their RA service to a maximum of 20 hours per week. Outside activities include, but are not limited to, off-campus employment, non-academic assistantships, and student organizations.
- All 2022-2023 Academic Year RAs must be available to participate in Fall Training beginning early August. The final date will be included in the resident assistant offer.
Compensation
- A $1,800 stipend with a $100-per-year merit increase for returning RAs.
- Upperclass RAs will receive an additional $90 for additional time in the role. Upperclass RAs serve through the day after May graduation, including senior week.
Housing Requirement
RAs are required to live in the single room assigned to them. RAs are not responsible for the cost of the room.
Application
Applications for the 2022-2023 Academic Year Resident Assistant Position starting in August of 2021 must be completed by 5:00pm EST on Friday, January 28, 2022.