Me and RA Training! Feels so right!

Hi friends!

I'm saddened by this, but it's almost the halfway mark for my summer internship with UGA. Sigh. All good experiences must come to an end. But I must return to the Gator Nation and get that Masters degree.

Enough sulking. Let's smile SPHE-sters! A few weeks ago, I was asked to present to the Freshman College RAs on several topics for their training week. Needless to say, I jumped at this opportunity. For the past few days I've been either presenting something to the RAs or keeping tabs on what goes on during the RA training process at UGA. On Monday, I presented "Preparing Your Wing" with their graduate supervisor, Jane Lee. It was mostly a presentation about generating creative ideas when making Door Decs for their residents, understanding the versatility of bulletin board and floor themes, and gaining knowledge of the paperwork that is needed to get their rooms and floors ready for Move-In (which is this Sunday!).

Tonight, actually, I'm talking about RA Duty and Rounds with my internship supervisor. I do have a good bit of RA Duty and Rounds experiences, and I'm sure some of the RAs would like to hear my 2 cents about the topic, but I, too, am very interested in learning how RA Duty is run within the Dept. of Housing at UGA. So let's see how it goes!

Lastly, I should be assisting in what's called "A Day in the Life", which is actually another name for "Behind Closed Doors" (at Clemson) or "Crisis Street" (at UF). All RAs, new and returning, participate in a series of scenarios that may take place on their floors during their year as an RA. Scenarios range from parental disagreement, roommate conflicts, noise violations, alcohol and drug violations, sexual assault, wild parties, suicide, eating disorders, etc. RAs are challenged to enter the scenario and used their training knowledge and best judgment to act accordingly. Staff and their fellow RAs are always there to assist and support them throughout this process.

Oh yeah! NACURH 2010 should be coming to a close in UC San Diego. I wanted to go like BAD, but alas I was unable to because of the internship obligations. All the more reason to make absolutely sure that working closely with RHA and Hall Governments is a big or semi-big part of my entry-level position description next year. (Note: NACURH is the National Association of College and University Residence Halls. It's a national conference held every summer at a member college or university of higher education for students in Residence Hall or Resident Student Associations (RHAs/RSAs) as well as National Residence Hall Honoraries (NRHHs). In UF's case, IRHA, the Inter-Residence Hall Association, is a member.)

And one small change to a previous blog post. My programming idea "My FCSE Project" was not taken well by a few folks, so I've decided to tweek it a bit and make an electronic yearbook for the FCSE folks to take at the end of the summer. Let's see if I can sharpen my computer skills with this new project. Plus, my supervisor's new dog's name is Wendy, not Emily. I was a lil' mistaken. (Still wanted Vuitton, though.)

Oh! And one more thing. I'm kinda hooked on HBO's True Blood, thanks to my supervisor and her BFF. It's about time HBO picked itself back up after dropping The Soprano's, Six Feet Under, Arliss, and of course Sex and the City. See you next week, loves! *hug*