As an SRA, my job is the liaison between the RAs and the professional staff members.
In 162, working together with Jenny, Lo-K and Betsy, as well as the entire team, we were able to overcome the challenges posed by this unusual time. We helped each other and grew together. In the Staff Development committee, I had the chance to lead with the help from Lovey as well as every member in it. It’s an opportunity for me challenge myself and improve myself.
I love working together in the Res Life team and challenging myself in a leadership role. I would love to have the opportunity to continue this journey.
I’m on a steady route in the film and video department. For next year, I will continue to advance course by course and actively looking for internship opportunities.
As for Res Life, I will put in my best effort in team bonding, building community and leading my committee. Since I will be a 4th year, I will also do my best in time management to balance school, Res Life, as well as other commitments.
To me, my greatest success is leading the Staff Development committee. Being in this leadership role has taught me that it takes a lot more than professionalism to be an approachable and respectable leader. I need to truly connect with my team members and cultivate good working relationships among the team.
My biggest disappointment would definitely be the attendance for my programs. Due to the lower occupancy during the pandemic, attendance to RA programs has declined significantly. For the next semester as well as the following academic year, I need to plan programs that would fit more with the residents’ preferences and be more creative at publicizing my programs. In fact, I already have a program idea that is in the works.
I experimented with creating a series of late-night programs that share the same theme of “Shot in Chicago”, mainly showcasing movies that were mainly filmed in and around Chicago. Besides the programs, I also shared the live streaming server I created with other RAs so they can also utilize this tool to do their own streaming programs.
Leading the Staff Devo committee is definitely different from being in the committee. The focus is shifted more towards preparation before leading the meetings as well as assigning and tracking tasks. Having being in the same committee both as an RA and an SRA, It gives me a clearer idea how to balance leading and participating in the committee.
My individual role on my staff team is to provide help and guidance for all team members as well as cultivate a harmonious working environment. I answered questions from the team and offered my help whenever available. I encouraged communication among the team members and brought their feedback to professional staff whenever needed with Jenny and Lo-K. Being a leader doesn’t mean isolate myself from the rest of the team at a “power position”. Instead, respect, listening and communication are how I establish myself as a leader.
Due to the pandemic, I didn’t have an opportunity to collaborate with departments outside the Residence Life. However, collaboration within the staff members became more significant. The SRAs in 162 communicated and worked closely together and provided our best support for the staff members, new or returning. We offered advices form our own past experience on the tips and tricks to communicate with residents and schedule onesies, and on how to generate ideas for bulletin boards and programs. Together with the other returning members of the team, SRAs in other buildings and professional staff, we formed a robust support and advice network to make sure whenever someone has a question or a concern, they are able to choose their preferred way of getting advice.
Communication and bonding are what I value the most for mentorship and leadership. Mentorship is not just about checking-in with my mentees, and leadership is not just a role that gives out orders. Both communication and bonding are important aspects of mentorship and leadership, which is why I have implemented them in my mentorship group as well as my role as a leader. They help me get closer to my mentees and my team members, which made each mentorship meeting fun and made us work better as teammates.
I have been a member of Staff Devo for my first year of being an RA, and I’ve been the SRA of the committee for the past semester as well. I love working for our own Residence Life team to facilitate the planning for our important meetings and events. My past knowledge of the committee also enables me to work more efficiently and helps me to better lead the committee.
I have spent some time with Belle and the RHE team during the preparation phase of two of the RHE shows in fall 2019, and it was a great experience. For the past semester, RHE had to resort to virtualized and social-distanced events due to the pandemic, and my expertise in technology would also be helpful implementing more creative ways of putting on exhibitions. It would also be another opportunity to learn something new and challenge myself if I were to be the SRA in RHE the next academic year.