ACUHO-I News Blog

If you feel like your residence hall is filled with a bunch of animals, just try living in Nemec Hall at Stetson University in DeLand, Florida. As reported elsewhere, beginning in August 2010, a section of Nemec Hall will welcome not only 36 students, but each of their favorite pets from home, including fish, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, rats, mice, cats and dogs during the inaugural year of the program.

Stenton University President Wendy B. Libby introduced a similar program during her presidency at Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri. It was a great success and seemed to help new students adjust to the college environment.

Students can bring one pet each as long as the animal is under 30 pounds and the student pays a registration fee and security deposit. A Pet Council oversees the program, from handling problems to providing input for the dog park that is being constructed outside.

Learn more about Nemec Hall here. Pictured below are Angelina Suarez and Bailey.

We proudly refer to the Talking Stick magazine as “the authoritative source for campus housing.” Now we are looking to the ACUHO-I membership to help solidify that status as we announce our first crowdsource-produced issue of the Talking Stick magazine.

Through Friday, May 28, 2010, ACUHO-I is accepting suggestions from the entire membership for the story topics that will go into the January + February 2011 issue of Talking Stick. Story ideas can be e-mailed to talkingstick@acuho-i.org, (please put the word “crowdsource” in the subject header) but you are also encouraged to post them as replies here on the blog or over on the ACUHO-I network. This way, others can see your ideas, brainstorm off of them, and be inspired to identify a story of their own. This is your chance to help create a magazine that speaks most directly to the questions and challenges you face.

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One way to benchmark a housing operation is to compare what percentage of your institution’s students (usually undergraduates) live in university-operated housing. First, here’s some general numbers for this:

The College Housing 2005 Special Report, a survey of our membership by Paul Abramsen, which was reported in the 21st Century Project Reading Compendium, Edited by Norbert W. Dunkel and James Baumann, published in 2006 found:

·  Public institutions had an average of 232 beds per residence hall and accommodated 41.1% of their students in residence halls. The median was 194 beds per hall, and 29.6% accommodated.

·  Private institutions had an average of 138 beds per residence hall, and accommodated an average of 73% of their students. The median was 112 beds per hall, and 72.1% accommodated.

·  This averages out to 54.8% average and 42.6% median accommodated, and 208 average and 151 median beds per hall, for all students.

Obviously, these numbers are general, and can’t be applied to all institutions. Demographics, location, and other factors affect the on-campus to off-campus ratio. When a member asks for help comparing their institution’s ratio to others, I, or my intern Lily Birkhimer, will create a list of 10-15 institutions similar to the member’s, then research those schools’ ratios for a useful comparison.

One of the many nice things about Austin is our close proximity to the best that Texas has to offer. It will be easy for you to turn your conference experience into a vacation that’s fun for the whole family (insert cheesy grin here)!

Austin is about a 3.5- to 4-hour drive from Dallas, Ft. Worth and Houston. Perhaps living in Texas skews one’s perception of driving times, but I’ve made several trips to these cities and back to Austin in the same day for special events (special exhibits at museums, concerts that aren’t coming to Austin, theatrical events). Just promise me that if you make the drive on I-35 between Austin and Dallas/Ft. Worth that you’ll stop off at the Czech Stop for some AH-MAZ-ING kolaches.

Closer to Austin, you can spend several days exploring the Texas Hill Country, a 14K-square-mile region to the west of Austin featuring by rolling hills (which those of from the mountains will mock). The growing Texas wine industry is located mostly in the Hill Country and many of the 22 wineries offer tours. In addition, there are about 55 cities/towns in the Hill Country, each with lots of things to check out while you’re here. I won’t list all 55 (you’re welcome), but here are the highlights from towns that are closest to Austin:

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Former Student Sues Brown University Over Rape Accusation

This is the sort of situation that university administrators think about in the wee, sleepless hours.

Would this have turned out differently at your institution, or at another institution at which you’ve worked?

Would it have turned out the same?

What would you have done during such an episode without knowing what would happen next?

What would you have done, having the benefit of 20-20 hindsight?

This week’s news from InsideHigherEd.com has stories on community colleges, Title IX, and the iPad on college campuses.

THE COMPLETION AGENDA: At national gathering of community college leaders, the emphasis is on how to get more students to finish their programs.

HOW TO JUDGE COMMUNITY COLLEGES: First details released on plans for national accountability system. At meeting of 2-year college leaders, most support idea, but some worry that metrics could become too
influential.

REVERSING BUSH ON TITLE IX: Education Department withdraws 2005 policy allowing colleges and schools to use survey alone to show they have met students’ athletics interests and abilities.

MINOR BUMPS FOR IPAD: Despite some high-profile snafus, CIOs say Apple’s initial bruises in higher education are superficial.

Picture it. Me growing up in North Canton, Ohio, in 1985.

At dinner on a summer night, I announced to my parents that I was going to attend the local Walsh College (now Walsh University) after high school. I explained that I would ride my bike between home and the school, a distance of 1.7 miles. My mother asks how I intend to get there in the winter when the lake effect snow is too deep for bike riding.

“Won’t you drive me?” I asked.

At five years old, I made the decision that I was not going to live in a dorm. This was fueled by my understanding of what a dorm was. My older, wiser brother (he was seven), told me that a dorm was like underneath the deck attached to our house. I was terrified of the area underneath the deck. It was dark, dank, and there were frogs who emerged from there occasionally.

Almost 25 years later, that conversation is laughably ironic and a family favorite in light of my career path, which has included not only living in dorms but also participating in their design.

I love the debates over whether the buildings that house residents are dorms or residence halls. It’s an issue that people in student affairs are extremely passionate about, both sides having endless resources to back up their cause. I’ve believed for a long time that while residence hall may be preferred, dorm is not a dirty word. Dorm happens to be the world that most people know to describe those buildings where learning and living happens 24/7. It is not used with disrespect for the work that we do or what happens on a daily basis.

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A woman of distinction! Dr. Valerie S. Averill has truly touched many individuals across the country and throughout higher education. For the members of the National Board of Directors of NACURH, she was more than just our National Advisor. She was a mentor, a muse, a hero, a friend, a mom, a shoulder to lean on, an encyclopedia of NACURH and its history, and an inspiration to all of her colleagues and students that she interacted with on a daily basis.

NACURH would not be where it is today without the guidance and contributions that Valerie provided during her tenure with this organization. Her commitment to student development is recognized across the country. Valerie has been serving in the role as NACURH National Advisor for the past eight years and prior to that she served as a Regional Advisor for GLACURH, MACURH, and SWACURH. It is its undeniable that she makes an impact in every organization she comes in contact with and every student that has had an interaction with her. Valerie was an individual who truly lived for the students.

NACURH was fortunate to have Valerie in attendance at the Strategic Planning Retreat two weekends ago. Knowing that her ideas, philosophy, and vision will be part of the next five years of this organization is heartwarming. As the National Board moves forward in completing our term, Valerie will forever be in our hearts.

Dan Ocampo, Director of Residential Living at University of California Berkeley, was selected at the Semi Annual Business Meeting in January 2010 to be the next NACURH National Advisor. At this time he has been appointed by the National Chair to serve as the Temporary National Advisor until NACURH 2010 when he takes on his new role.

NACURH is often viewed as a family, and now more than ever, we are coming together to celebrate the life of an individual who instilled upon us that our life was important and that we should never waste it living below our potential. Dr. Valerie S. Averill you will always have a special place in the heart of NACURH.

Turnabout is fair play, right?

I’ve been asked to present a webinar program on major trends in housing. I’ve compiled a list of potential topics below. Can you think of anything I’m missing? Thank you for your help in advance! I’ll post my presentation here after the webinar in mid-May.

1. Construction, design and amenities
2. Luxury & entitlement vs. community and learning to live with others
3. Gender-neutral housing, and other GLBT issues
4. Alcohol and drugs. The “drinking culture”
5. Mental health
6. Legislation and the government
7. Special requests and needs: service animals, attendants, access, etc.
8. Hiring and staffing:
   – Drawing new people to the profession
   – Determining qualifications and job descriptions
   – RA selection and training
9. Proving the worth of residence life and residence professionals
   – Limited research in some areas
   – Increasingly diverse higher education population
   – More reliance on distance learning
10. Costs, budgeting, contracts

In 2004 ACUHO-I began to investigate offering a certification program for housing professionals. Today those plans became a reality when registration opened for the ACUHO-I Certificate in Housing Assessment.

The ACUHO-I Certificate in Housing Assessment program is designed to educate participants how to successfully assess the programs, practices, and services a housing or residence life department delivers. The program offers three online courses, as well as a Capstone experience. And it does all this with practical, self-paced learning activities that utilize adult learning principles.

The three courses, which can also be taken individually, are crafted to establish, build, and utilize a culture of assessment within a housing department. The courses are: Advocating for Assessment and Creating a Comprehensive Plan; Developing and Implementing Assessment Projects and Methodology; and Analyzing and Reporting Assessment Data.

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Amanda Wallace, of  the University of Alabama, and Anne Stark, from Purdue University, are researching the challenges of advising student groups and the ways a professional advisor can help make the relationship work. If you’ve had experience in this area, please help your colleagues by completing their short, 16-item survey.

Please pass this on to anyone who can assist. There’s always a need for more research in student housing, and this is an easy way to help!

There’s an interesting article in the New York Times about how colleges and universities attempt to communicate to GLBT students that their campuses are open and safe places. Obviously, this is a delicate process, and some are skeptical of what they see as attempts to recruit gay students, without any regard for their other attributes.

How does your institution handle this issue? Do you have special recruiting materials or methods for other specialized communities of students?

This week on Inside HigherEd, a tough professor is removed from her post and her students’ grades are raised; the fallout from a “colorful” comment at Cornell, and an upcoming summit on community colleges, among other stories.

WHO REALLY FAILED? Louisiana State U. removes a tough grader from her course mid-semester, and raises the grades of her students. Faculty leaders see a betrayal of values and due process.

CLOSING ARGUMENT: Binghamton president plays down basketball scandal, foreseeing minor NCAA trouble and accusing SUNY system of overreaching. Critics say she’s missed the larger point.

A STRATEGIC LEAP ONLINE : Middlebury’s new language instruction venture, in partnership with a for-profit company, is turning a lot of heads. Not all of them are nodding.

AFTERMATH OF AN UGLY COMMENT: Two graduate students at Cornell say one of their professors called them “black bitches” — and many wonder why it’s taken so long for an open discussion of the incident.

RETOOLING REMEDIATION: Six states enter project to reform developmental education at community colleges by altering state policy on funding formulas and course rules.

SUGGESTIONS FOR THE SUMMIT: As White House plans fall gathering on community colleges, educators and lobbyists offer advice for what should be on the agenda.

Happy Thursday, folks!

I’ve been getting a flurry of questions about RA hiring, evaluation and supervision lately. It’s RA-recruitment season, after all. Unfortunately, there’s no single resource that covers this topic thoroughly. (Hint, hint, if you’re in the mood to research and write a book or paper.) If you’re not up for that, post your tips and resources here!

One member asked about RA qualifications.  I looked at what others are doing. I searched for institutions who specified RA qualifications on their websites beyond the usual good-GPA-and-good-disciplinary-record stipulation.

Here are a few of them:

Brigham Young
Carnegie Mellon
Kent State University
Carleton College
University of Oregon
University of Montevallo
University of Central Florida
Towson University

I also found some scholarly articles on the topic. Here’s a a sample list of citations:

• Wu, M.B. & Stemler, S.E. (2008) Resident Advisor General Intelligence, Emotional Intelligence, Personality Dimensions, and Internal Belief Characteristics as Predictors of Rated Performance; NASPA Journal (Online). 45 (4); 528-59.

• Servaty-Seib, H. L. & Taub, D. J. (2008) Training Faculty Members and Resident Assistants to Respond to Bereaved Students; New Directions for Student Services 121; 51-62.

• Healea, C.D. (2005) Character Education with Resident Assistants: A model for developing character on college campuses. Journal of Education, 186(1); 65-77.

• Elleven, R. K.; Allen, J. & Wircenski, M. (2001) Resident Assistant Training: A southwestern perspective. College Student Journal, 35 (4); 609-15.

This Inside HigherEd article is titled “The Anti-Amethyst Initiative,” The title is referencing the group of college presidents who support considering lowering the drinking age to 18 to lessen the secretiveness and subterfuge that often accompanies underage drinking on college campuses. They say this would also allow institutions–and parents–more ability to supervise appropriate enjoyment of alcohol.

However, I’m not sure if  Charles Sorensen, the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Stout, is advocating for keeping the drinking age at 21 or not. The drinking age doesn’t seem to be his issue; frustration is. Saddened by student deaths resulting from excessive drinking, Sorensen has vowed to redouble the institution’s efforts against underage and inappropriate drinking.

As a result, the students at UW-Stout have heeded Sorensen’s warning and cut down on their drinking considerably. Sales of apple juice have jumped.

…

You’re not buying that, are you?

Actually, students have predictably rallied around alcohol consumption of every sort, especially the illicit kinds, as a result of Sorensen’s declaration. Facebook groups have popped up.  Students have held drink-ins. Sorensen says they’ll come around to a more “sober” frame of mind after the indignation wears off. Some students who oppose his declaration don’t think drink-ins are the solution, but say the problem has to do with the drinking culture, and the supposed complete abstinence from alcohol that ends abruptly at 21. I’m inclined to side with this camp.

What do you think?