Section 8.2: Setting Community Standards

RAs develop communities that foster fun, safety, and inclusion by setting expectations for residents and holding people accountable to those expectations. In addition to College policies that set expectations, some floors may choose to adopt additional standards for behavior and interaction.  As the RA, you help individuals understand their role and responsibilities within the community, as well as the impact their choices have on others. RAs help ensure the community is a safe and comfortable environment for students to live, learn and grow by holding everyone accountable to these expectations.

When working with your residents to develop community expectations, please consider:

• Be clear about your expectations of members in your community. Your area meetings and individual conversations are a great time to communicate this information.
• Get resident input on what they want to see out of their community.  You can then use this information to help guide them toward meeting these expectations.
• Be familiar with The Compass and the residence life policies so you can share information from these easily with residents. 
• Be consistent in confronting policy violations. Setting the tone early in the year will help residents set and enforce boundaries for the rest of the year.
• Find ways to relate how the resident's actions could impact the community while still being encouraging and positive.
• Work to create an environment where your residents feel empowered to address issues and concerns they notice.