Talking Stick - November/December 2015 - 57

Joining in this conversation are
Walter Abrego, a second-year resident
assistant at University of Northern
Iowa in Cedar Falls; Jon Bailey, a firstyear resident assistant at the University
of Alabama Huntsville; Emma Herbst,
a first-year resident assistant at Hobart
and William Smith Colleges in Geneva,
New York; Alan Moretton, a first-year
resident assistant at Purdue University
in West Lafayette, Indiana; and Noel
Saraceno, a third-year community
assistant at University of Pittsburgh at
Greensburg.
Talking Stick: What motivated you to
apply to be in your role?

Noel Saraceno: When I was a
freshman, I wasn't the biggest fan
of my roommates, so I used to hang
out in our rec room a lot while the
community assistants (CAs) sat duty. I
got to know the four of them in my hall
and began to build friendships with
each of them. I watched what types
of things they did, went to all of their
programs, and asked them questions
about their job and how much they
enjoyed it. Every one of them answered
that the job was a lot of work, but that
it was very rewarding. I knew after
talking to them that I too wanted to
be a CA. In February 2013, I applied
for the CA position and had a job in
residence life for the next school year.
Emma Herbst: I bonded with my
resident assistant (RA) in my first year.
Even though I liked my roommates
and didn't need to reach out to my
RA much for problems, she was still
a great resource and very friendly,
making everyone on our floor feel
welcome and comfortable. Knowing
that I could talk to her if I ever needed
to meant a lot in itself. But I also knew

other RAs that my friends had who,
unlike mine, often slacked on their job
and didn't connect to their residents.
I was motivated to apply for an RA
position because I wanted more people
on campus to have a great relationship
with an RA. On our campus, RAs have
quite a lot of authority and influence,
so I wanted to be a positive impact in
students' lives.

Alan Moretton: I was motivated
to apply to be an RA because I was
involved with Purdue's residence
hall association (RHA), and I felt
disconnected from the residents of
the floor I lived on. The work I did
was for the students, but it did not
directly affect them, so I had a constant
feeling that my work was overlooked
and my time was wasted. I thought
being an RA would be a great way to
be connected with my floor while still
being involved with people like me on
campus.

Walter Abrego: When I was a firstyear student, I got really involved on
campus. I felt as though I had found
a place where I could effect change
and make a difference at University
of Northern Iowa (UNI). Therefore,
I decided not to apply for the RA
position until my sophomore year. I
decided to apply because many people
in one of the student organizations
I belong to encouraged me to. They
thought I had all the skills and
characteristics to be a good RA. I was
also motivated to apply because many
of my close friends were applying at
the same time.
Jon Bailey: I began my freshman
year in a kickstart leadership program.
Everyone on the floor was involved in
it, including our RAs. There were two

RAs on my floor, and I got to know
them very well. They were two people
that encouraged me to get involved
on campus and make the most out of
my college experience, and they were
great examples of it. I am very athleticoriented and had noticed a lack of
involvement in the athletic community
here at UAH. I decided to apply for
the RA position on one of the athletic
floors to hopefully be able to be an
influence to athletes and encourage
them to make the most out of their
college experience. That is what my
RAs did for me, and hopefully now I
can pass it on.
TS: What were the most useful parts of
the training you received?

Saraceno: The best part about training
was learning how to handle different
situations from my returning staff in
my new residence hall. There were
four of us total in the building, and I
was the only rookie that year. Whatever
I learned in training, they helped
to reinforce it by giving me examples
of things they dealt with or just asking
me what I would do in that situation
and then giving me feedback.

Herbst: I agree with Noel, that one of
the most helpful things for a new RA is
to learn from returners how to handle
a variety of situations. Near the end of
our training, after learning protocols
and rules, new RAs go through Behind
Closed Doors. The returners are actors
in these scenes and pretend to be the
residents that we have to approach for
some reason. We walk around to the
seven different situations in groups led
by an area coordinator (AC) and senior
resident assistant (SRA). One from the
group receives the brief description
of what you as the RA know in that

NOVEMBER + DECEMBER 2015

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Talking Stick - November/December 2015

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