The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 3 - 77

Resident Assistants and White Racial Identity

ventions are necessary for People of Color.
Finally, the findings indicate there were
unintended consequences of the training
program. Stone (2002) referred to these "unintended consequences" as the "harmful side
effects of well-intentioned policy" (p. 192). The
three unintended consequences of this training included: 1) RAs retreated into Whiteness
as the result of inadequate time to process the
emotionally charged emersion into awareness;
2) RAs developed strategies for remaining in
Reintegration long-term; and 3) RAs misunderstand how People of Color feel about race,
which contributes to a deeper retreat into
colorblindness.
The analysis of this study yields two
primary recommendations. First, residential
life programs must be explicit in how diversity
and social justice training connects and applies
to the RA role and to White RAs racial identity
development. For programs that engage in affinity group work, it is important to articulate
why affinity groups are critical to the learning
process. Second, more time should be allotted
for the participants to fully engage and make
connections between the training content
and format, and the training goals, such as a
semester-long course to fully explore diversity and social justice issues within a societal
context.
In addition to the recommendations for
residential life programs, student life practitioner-educators should consider how White
students' racial identity development contribute to how White students engage with Students of Color on their respective campuses.
This could have implications for other student
life initiatives and for practitioner-educators'
efforts to advance White students' racial iden-

tity development to a non-racist identity.
There are multiple opportunities to extend
this research. We conducted the study within
a single department of residential life on one
campus. Our study provided a deeper understanding of White RAs' racial identity development, and their adherence to a colorblind
ideology; therefore, future research might
extend this work beyond one department
of residential life program in the Northeast
United States. In addition, the recruitment/
sampling methods may have caused sample
bias (Patton, 2015). There is the possibility
the RAs who volunteered to participate in this
study were more open to diversity and social
justice topics than RAs who did not volunteer
to participate.

CONCLUSION
Participating in diversity and social justice
training was a difficult and uncomfortable
process for the White RAs. Prior research
(Hardiman, 1982; Helms, 1990. 1995; Ponterotto, 1988) indicates there is no way to raise
White people's racial consciousness without
discomfort and resistance. Given this, examining race and racism is often an uncomfortable
and difficult process for White people (Kivel,
2002; Wise, 2008). White RAs must admit
their racism to learn to be non-racists (Helms,
1992). To achieve this, the RAs must acknowledge and address the incongruent messages
they have received. Such messages potentially
keep White RAs deeply entrenched in subtle
forms of racism that are carefully disguised as
attempts to be non-racist. The messages they
have received throughout their lives are potentially the greatest barriers to their learning.
These messages will take time and effort on
their part to change, challenge, and unlearn.
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