This document discusses effective workplace practices in student affairs. It emphasizes that everyone contributes valuable roles and that building rapport is necessary. It also discusses respecting different points of view, having compassion for others, and resolving conflicts peacefully rather than with anger. The goal is to be forgiving of errors while protecting the rights of others to a peaceful environment.

1. Managing Across
Employing Effective Workplace Practices
STUDENT AFFAIRS

2. EVERYONE IS VALUABLE
and the role they play
NECESSARY

3. Building Rapport
KA D V

7. Knowledge Community Discussion
You have a Resident Assistant who tells you that “everyone knows” that another Resident Director is
engaging in unethical or unprofessional behavior. This leads the RA to be cynical about the Resident
Director staff and the Office of Residence Life. How might you respond in the moment, and what
conversations do you need to have next? How might your response differ if the other person is in a
Graduate Assistant position? How might your response differ if the other person is in a full-time
position?
• What story are you making up?
• What additional information to you need?
• What, if anything, are you inclined to do?
• What can you use from this session to help you respond to this situation?

8. Knowledge Community Discussion
You “friend” or “follow” a colleague via social media. You like the idea of getting to know people
outside of work and think that social media is a good way to start forming meaningful relationships.
After a few weeks on the job. you notice that this colleague keeps posting items that seem
incongruent with the values that they espouse in the workplace. The post an opinion piece is that is
stark contrast to your beliefs. You wonder what type of impact their beliefs have on their ability to
effectively serve students.
• What story are you making up?
• What additional information to you need?
• What, if anything, are you inclined to do?
• What can you use from this session to help you respond to this situation?

9. Knowledge Community Discussion
You are assigned to work on a project with another member of the Office of Residence Life. You and
your colleague/classmate make a plan to meet regularly until the project is completed. You also
agree that you want to have the project done a few days early, so that you’re not under pressure to
finish it as the last minute. Your colleague/classmate has canceled your last last two meetings. You
feel like you’re falling behind on the project and won’t have it done in time.
• What story are you making up?
• What additional information to you need?
• What, if anything, are you inclined to do?
• What can you use from this session to help you respond to this situation?

10. STUDENT AFFAIRS
The Office of Residence Life wants to engage others with a desire to understand others’
points of view and respond appropriately. This does not mean we always agree with
those points of view. Our value to respect others, have compassion for others, and act
in peaceful ways should not be interpreted as an aversion to conflict. Rather, this value
dictates the manner that guides our interactions with others and how conflict is resolved.
We strive to be peacemakers. We know our students err as they live with us, and we
want to be forgiving to the extent that we can, with our orientation to forgiveness
tempered by the rights of others to live peaceful lives as well. We strive to not meet
anger with anger and open our ears before our mouths. This may be the hardest value
for us to live each day, given that we, too, are human and subject to human error just as
others are.
Respect, Compassion, and Peaceful Relationships