This document provides an overview and examples of community development methods for resident advisors (RAs) during their fall 2016 training. It outlines the programming model which includes requirements for different types of programs each semester. It also discusses area-wide programs, door decorations, bulletin boards, welcome letters, and examples of each. Additionally, it lists things that should be avoided in community development efforts and notes that more details will be covered during training.

1. Level Up RA Training Fall 2016
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT MODEL

2. Overview:
• Community Development Methods
– Meant as a quick snapshot
– Details will be covered in training
• Programming Model & Examples
• Door Decorations & Examples
• Bulletin Boards & Examples
• Welcome Letter & Example
• Things we DON’T want to see…
• More details will be in your RA Manual!

3. 7. Roommate Agreements
8. Building/Floor Meetings
9. Bulletin Boards
10. RA Hours
11. Health & Safety Inspections
12. Norman Dollars
 Take a quick look and familiarize you with some of the methods.
 We’ll discuss more details in training.
1. Programming Model
2. Area-Wide Programs
3. Personal Interactions
4. Welcome Letters
5. Door Decorations
Community Development Methods

4. • 6 programs per semester
– 1 per semester must be collaborative with an
outside office/person
– 2 per semester must be assessed
– 1 per semester must be a supportive
program, must include a reflective/debrief
component
• Program Theme Ideas
• Self-awareness/interpersonal
– Welcome, Transition, Meeting New People,
Communication and Active Listening,
Interpersonal Relationships, Sleep and Stress
(Part 1), Changing Relationships, Personal
Wellness, Promoting Resilience
Programming Model
• Professional and Personal Readiness
• Academic Integrity, Campus Exploration, Personal Goal
Setting, Planning, Prioritizing, Time Management, and
Procrastination, Library Literacy, Professionalism, Self-
Advocacy, Test Strategies, Test Anxiety, and Stress
Reduction, Exploring Research Opportunities, Majors
Exploration and Motivation, Preparing for Mid-terms,
Academic Advising and the Registrar’s Office, Career and
Co-Curricular Planning
• Professional and Personal Readiness
• Leadership Styles and Campus Involvement, Alcohol and
Other Drugs, MLK Celebration, Extracurricular
Involvement on Campus, Global Education

5. Program Categories:
• 2 Community Building
• 1 Health Relationships
• 1 Post College Readiness
• 1 Civic and Social Responsibility
• 1Program of your choice from the following topics: Healthy
Relationships, Post College Readiness, and Civic and Social
Responsibility
Month January February March April May
Number of
Programs
TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
Programming Model
Month August/September October November/December
Number of
Programs
2 2 2

6. Question Jenga
Supplies – 2-3 Jenga games and markers
What – Write a “get to know you” kind of question on every Jenga piece.
Set the game(s) up in a lounge and let the residents play. Each resident
answers the questions on the pieces they move.
Learning Outcomes – Residents will get to know other members of the
community
Puzzle Piece
Supplies – puzzle, art and craft supplies, magazines, etc.
What – Pick any puzzle and hand a piece out to everyone on the floor.
Tell them to decorate the blank side in a way that represents them as an
individual. Bring everyone together to put the puzzle together and talk
about individual identities. Frame the puzzle after and put it in the hall.
Learning Outcomes – Residents will get to know other members of the
community and be more aware, understanding and appreciative of
difference and how they come together.
Programming Model: Examples

7. College Eating
Supplies – Recipes, examples of the
food talked about, microwave/oven
What – Give everyone a mini recipe
book of easy and healthy recipes to
make in a residence hall. For
example, there are a lot of single
serve dishes that can be made easily
in a coffee cup in a microwave.
Serve sample portions of some
recipes in their booklets
Learning Outcomes – Residents
will learn easy and healthy recipes
they can make themselves in the
residence hall. Also have a better
understanding of the responsibility of
cooking on their own.
Programming Model: Examples
My Stash
Supplies – Jars, painters marker, stencils, oven
What – Give everyone a jar and let them pick a stash
stencil. Draw on the jars and cook in an oven.
Supplemental to discussing about budgeting tips for
college, healthy spending habits, credit cards, etc.
Learning Outcomes – Residents will learn helpful
financial information while also having an additional
way to save a little along the way.

8. Cultural Sensitivity
Supplies – Examples of insensitive costumes; We’re a culture, not a costume campaign information;
other researched information.
What – Around Halloween, discuss cultural sensitivity and appropriateness surrounding costumes in
regards to traditions, stereotypes, etc. Ask for assistance from Multicultural Affairs. Utilize resources
from campaigns like We’re a Culture, Not a Costume.
Learning Outcomes – Residents will gain more understanding of different cultures, traditions,
stereotypes, and perspectives. Have a greater sense of respect and knowledge when choosing their
costume for the holiday.
Programming Model: Examples
Jared Boxes
Supplies – Shoebox sized plastic storage boxes and resources from Jared Box
website (labels, cards, etc.)
What – Ask residents to participate in filling a box to be given to a chronically
ill child in the hospital. They can do them solo or work in groups. Fill the box
with age appropriate toys and items like crayons, matchbox cars, coloring
books, silly putty, etc. Donate the completed boxes to a local children’s
hospital (Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital in Portland participates in the
program).
Learning Outcomes – Residents will learn how easy and fulfilling it can be to
take part in helping others in the community.

9. Area Wide and All Campus Programs
Area Wide Programs:
• Each RA team must complete two area wide programs during each semester for
their respective areas. These programs are at the discretion of the RA team and
supervising AC. Area wide programs should be designed to build overall community
in the area. Each RA team must complete one campus wide event per year.
• 2 Area Wide
• 1 Campus Wide
Campus Wide programming
• 3 programs in the Fall & 3 in Spring
• Each RA participates in the Creation
of 1 program during the academic
year
• RAs will work in self chosen teams
that are signed off on by the ACs
• Attendance at peers’ events will
count as part of Professional
development

10. RA Room Hours
• RA availability is one of the most important factors in creating a cohesive and caring community. While RAs are
expected to be both available and visible in their buildings and on their halls, identifying specific days and times
where residents can find them in their rooms/suites is important. RAs will identify 5 hours per week where they will
be in their rooms/suites for the sole purpose of assisting their residents and completing position related tasks. A
minimum of 2 hours must be held in the evening after 5pm. RA Hours cannot be all on one day, must be spread over
at least three days, and may not contain more than one weekend day. These hours are posted on the RAs door and
made available to all of their residents. These hours will allow the RA to always have time set aside for residents to
know when to find the RA. If an RA cannot hold their scheduled RA room hours they need to make up that time later
in that week. RAs should inform their AC and residents ahead of time if these hours change for any reason at all
(temporarily or permanently) and these changes will be updated on their doors in a timely manner.
• An RA’s first priority during scheduled room hours is to be available for residents to stop by. However, RAs can also
utilize these hours by doing a round of their floor to check in with residents (indicate on their room’s dry erase board
if they are doing a round of the floor), completing weekly Personal Interactions, completing programming prep work,
working on bulletin boards/door decorations, completing administrative tasks, etc.

11. Door Decorations
• Welcome residents to the community
• Personalize them!
– Hand-made, creative, well-designed, eye-catching
– Incorporate themes related to the floor/hall
– Challenge yourself!
• Make extras!
– Replace ones that get torn down or go missing
– Have them ready when new students move onto your floor
• Door decorations will be done once per semester with the understanding that if a student
loses a door decoration or students enter a space (room changes) it will be replaced by the
RA within a timely manner.
• Door decorations must be approved by your AC.

12. Door Decoration: Examples

13. Door Decoration: Examples

14. Bulletin Boards
• Communicate relevant information to residents
– University information
– Dates & deadlines
– Upcoming programs & events
• Interact with community
– Resident of the Month, Resident Birthdays, recognition
– Floor/hall issues and concerns
• Plan ahead!
– Think about upcoming months
– Talk with your staff about themes and ideas to use
• Bulletin boards are to be done by the 1st of the month with the understanding that if it is damaged or torn
down, it is to be replaced by the RA within a timely manner.

15. Bulletin Boards: Examples
• Best Practices:
– Hand-made
– Relevant to residents’ needs
– Use many colors
– Enough content to fill board
– May extend beyond frame of
bulletin board

16. Bulletin Board: Examples

17. Bulletin Board Examples
• Best Practices:
– Catch attention with humor
– Limit text on each paper to be
readable at a glance (unlike this
one )
– Get creative!
• Don’t consider yourself the “creative
type?” Talk to your staff members and
AC to brainstorm ideas 

18. Intentional Interactions
• Personal interactions are RA-to-resident
conversations/discussions/observing behaviors that take place
in an informal setting. These interactions can take place walking
to class, in the building, or in any community space. RAs should
log all interactions in a Google Form. RAs are required to do the
following:
1st Year Area Interactions
Minimum of 1 interaction per
resident must be completed by
September 29th
Minimum of 2 total interactions per
resident by November 10th
Minimum of 3 total interactions per
resident by December 8th
Upper Class Interactions
Must have a total of 100 interactions total by the end
of the semester
Minimum of 1 interaction per resident must be
completed by September 29th
Minimum of 2 total interactions per resident by
December 8th

19. Welcome Letter
• Welcome residents to the residential community!
– Introduce yourself to your residents
– Familiarize residents with the building
– Inform them of upcoming events and administrative tasks
• Floor meeting
• Room Condition Report
• Roommate Agreements
• Work ahead!
– Start your draft now, & you can finish it during RA Training

20. Welcome Letter: Sample
Hello Everyone!
My name is Abbey, and I am your Resident Advisor here in Dunlap-King Hall! I am a music major and am currently in my third year here at UNE. As an
RA, I am here as a resource to help integrate you into the DK community and the larger campus community as well as to ensure you have a safe, healthy, and
fun experience at UNE!
For those of you who are looking to get involved here on campus, there are so many opportunities to find your passion! We have over 80 student
organizations on campus ranging from Intramural Sports to the Gamers Guild, from Orientation Leaders to Knit Wits! We also have opportunities for you to get
involved in UNE’s Residential Student Life Association (RSLA) to represent and advocate for our hall and our larger residential community on campus. Doing this
not only gives you leadership experience but also helps the entire hall get things we need. If you are interested, come and see me!
If you notice anything that is out of place, missing, or damaged in your room while you are moving in or within the first week, please document it on
your Room Condition Report (RCR) and let me know. It is important for us to keep track of damages on your RCR so that you are not charged when you move
out for things you did not damage. It is also important to report any damages that occur during the year so that we can get them fixed and keep the building in
tip-top shape! Within the first week, I will also be coming around to help you with Roommate Agreement, which is meant to start you and your roommate
talking about personal preferences within your room. This Agreement will set the community standards for your room that you and your roommate follow and
can refer to during conflicts.
Specifically for DK, you will need your UNE ID to swipe into the building and your room key to access not only your room but also the door to your
hallway. Never leave your room without both your ID and your room key! If I am not around and you need to contact me, send me an email at
abbey.hirt@une.edu or leave me a message on my dry-erase board. We also will have signs posted around the hall with contact information for the RA on duty,
and you can call or stop by with any questions.
I look forward to meeting you all, and let’s make this an amazing year!
~Abbey

21. Community Development: Things we DON’T want to see…
• Bulletin Boards:
– All content is printed pictures and text
– Minimal content, board not filled
– Too much content, overloaded with
paragraphs of text
– All pictures & fun, does not address a
relevant need or issue of residents

22. Community Development: Things we DON’T want to see…
• Door Decorations:
– Printed and pixilated pictures
– No effort put into it
– Plain, bland, non-creative
– Exclusive & non-welcoming
– Sloppy handwriting/finishing

23. Community Development: Things we DON’T want to see…
• Programming:
– Last-minute planning
• Asking another AC to sign your cash advance the day of your
program
• Putting in your program proposal the day before your program
– Poor implementation
– Plain & non-creative programs
– Repetitive and/or duplicate programs in the same staff
– Paragraph(s) of text on advertisements

24. Community Development: Bottom Line?
• Plan Ahead
• Challenge Yourself
• Use your strengths, and
• Don’t be afraid to lean on each other!

25. Questions?
Bring them to RA Training!
(Or ask Tony!)