A presentation by Amanda Nasso and David Grimes, St. John Fisher College Presented at a NEACUHO Conference www.neacuho.org

1. NEACUHO
DEVELOPING A FALL DRIVE IN
201 2
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT MODEL Presented by:
David Grimes
FOR RA STAFF R e s i d e n c e D i r e c t o r,
St. John Fisher College
Amanda Nasso
R e s i d e n c e D i r e c t o r,
St. John Fisher College

2. GOALS & LEARNING OUTCOMES
 Understand St. John Fisher’s G.R.A .D.E program and why it
was created
 Develop ways to integrate a professional development model
into your campus/of fice structure
 Find ways to address student staf f issues through professional
development programming and outside of all staf f training

3. WHAT IS G.R.A.D.E.?
 G.R.A .D.E. is an acronym that stands for Gaining Resident
Assistant Developmental Experience
 Was developed in response to RA frustration with old
committee model

4. G.R.A.D.E.’S GOALS
1. Give the RAs more opportunities to shape their
own RA experience and determine what they want
to gain from it
2. Make sure committee responsibilities were still
taken care of
3. Better utilize existing campus resources
4. Provide RAs with skills that will help them be
successful after graduation

5. CORE REQUIREMENTS
 In-Services
 Events
 Electives
 Monthly Motivator
 RA Recruitment & Selection
 RA Training Evaluations

6. G.R.A.D.E. REQUIREMENTS
 In-Service Learning
 New and Returning RAs must attend all 4 in-service sessions (2 per
semester that will take the place of a staff meeting)
 In-service sessions are co-sponsored with other campus departments
 Tuesday, October 9, 2012: Mental Health Counseling
 Tuesday, November 13, 2012: Alcohol and Other Drugs
 Tuesday, February 19, 2013: Safety and Security
 Tuesday, April 2, 2013: Office of Multicultural Affairs

7. G.R.A.D.E. REQUIREMENTS
 Events
 All RAs must complete 1 event per academic year
 Events include:
 Six Week Celebration
 Thanksgiving Dinner
 Holiday Brunch
 ResLife Appreciation Day
 End of the Year Banquet
 RA Senior Week Activities
 RA Mentor Program*

8. G.R.A.D.E. REQUIREMENTS
 Electives
 Elective Requirements are dependent upon the RA’s level of
experience in the RA position
 Returning RAs
 (1 semester or more at start of Fall training) – 6 points
 New RAs
 (new to position at start of Fall semester) – 3 points
 Mid Year RAs
 (new to the position at start of Spring semester) – 2 points
 Returning Mid Year RAs
 (RAs with past experience who are returning for the Spring semester) – 2 points

9. G.R.A.D.E. REQUIREMENTS
Elective Examples: (NOTE: All electives are not created equal)
 RA Training  Ser vice
 Curriculum Development  Food and Clothing Drive
 Presenting  Spring Into Service
 Staff Development Team
 Campus Wide Committees
 Conference s  Safety Committee
 Diversity Student Summit  A&OD Committee
 RD2B  Day of Celebration Committee
 Brockport RA Conference
 Cortland RA Conference  Conflict Management
 Mediation Team
 Sustained Dialogue
 RARA’s
 Recruitment
 Marketing  Miscellaneous
 Shadow an RD
 Freshman Experience
 Open Houses

10. ELECTIVE HIGHLIGHTS
 RA Training
 Curriculum Development
 Staff Development Team
 Conflict Management
 Mediation Team
 Miscellaneous
 Shadow an RD
 Freshman Experience

11. G.R.A.D.E. REQUIREMENTS
 RA Recruitment and Selection
 All RAs must provide availability to ResLife
 If assigned, they will be assisting with individual and group interviews
during Fall and Spring RA Selection process
 Monthly Motivator
 RA Training Evaluations

12. RETURNING RAS
(1 SEMESTER OR MORE OF JOB EXPERIENCE)
 All 4 in-services
 1 Event
 6 pts of electives
 Assist with Monthly Motivator
 Help with RA Selection (interviews)
 Complete RA Training surveys

13. NEW RAS
 All 4 in-services
 1 Event
 3 pts of electives
 Assist with Monthly Motivator
 Help with RA Selection (interviews)
 Complete RA Training surveys

14. MAKING THE G.R.A.D.E.
 Yearly Process:
 During RD Training, divide up event, elective and in-service
committee responsibilities
 Host an Introductory session during RA Training
 Registration process for Resident Assistants
 Host a Registration night
 Preference Form
 Based on experience, fit, don’t guarantee first preference
 RAs evaluate using a reflection form

15. EVALUATING G.R.A.D.E.
 After an RA completes an event, in-service or elective, they must
complete a G.R.A.D.E. reflection form via Qualtrics in order to get
credit for them.
 G.R.A.D.E. Reflection forms are due within one week of completing
an event, in-service, or elective.
 Questions that are asked include:
 What were your specific responsibilities for the elective?
 What were your overall impressions of the elective?
 What went well for the elective that you would recommend for the future?
 Is there anything you would like to suggest we change for the future?

16. EVALUATING G.R.A.D.E.
 Feedback from the evaluation forms goes to the G.R.A.D.E
Coordinator, who then tracks that RAs have completed there
individual job responsibilities
 Additionally, the G.R.A.D.E Coordinator provides the feedback to the
Pro Staff member who coordinated the committee, so that
improvements may be made for the future.
 G.R.A.D.E. Tracking Sheet
 Evaluation Form

17. REVAMPING G.R.A.D.E.
 G.R.A .D.E. began in 2007, at St. John Fisher College.
 In Spring 2012, we were tasked with evaluating its success,
including:
 Eliminating electives that were no longer relevant
 Making changes to increase the success of specific electives
 Looking to other campuses for their RA Professional Development
Models

18. APPLYING G.R.A.D.E. ON YOUR CAMPUS
 At your institution, do you have a similar program or
professional development opportunities that your staf f can
take advantage of?
 Is this a job expectation or volunteer opportunity?

19. THINGS TO CONSIDER
 Are there Of fices or Departments who are asking for your
assistance or collaboration from your student staf f?
 What role does your student staf f play in RA Training or RA
selection? In what ways can you increase their involvement?
 What challenges could you face in implementing G.R.A .D.E. on
your campus?

20. QUESTIONS?
 We are more than happy to share any and all of our G.R.A .D.E
resources.
 Contact us at:
 David Grimes: dgrimes@sjfc.edu, (585) 385-7236
 Amanda Nasso: ajnasso@sjfc.edu, (585) 385-8105