Thoughts from Brian Want...
In the summer of 2000, I graduated from college, packed up my little blue car, and drove from Pennsylvania to Wisconsin, beginning my time as a residence hall director at Lawrence University. The two years that followed were exciting, challenging, and fulfilling.
First, Lawrence is a very special institution. The hybrid of the liberal arts college and the conservatory of music creates student body that is talented, bright, inquisitive, and inspired. Taking this group of 1300 or so diverse students and placing them together in a residential community -- where almost everyone lives on campus -- sets the stage for active learning both inside and outside the classroom.
As a hall director, I built strong relationships with students while forging and refining my own skills as a supervisor, advisor, counselor, and administrator. Lawrence gives its hall directors an opportunity to wear many hats and encourages them to be a full part of the campus community. The hall director position provides many of the vital experiences one would expect from a job in residence life -- working with a staff, developing community within a hall, handling discipline and crisis, and counseling students.
But what really makes hall directing at Lawrence a well-rounded experience is that the in-hall part of the job is paired with a collateral assignment outside the hall. I worked as the coordinator of the volunteer center for one year, and I worked in academic support services for my second year. In both of these collateral roles, I improved my organizational and leadership skills, learned to interact with students and staff in new ways, and helped make connections between the residence halls and the many offices that provide services and activities for students.
This sense of collaboration runs throughout the entire division of student affairs at Lawrence. The deans of students and the other seasoned professionals set a positive tone: they are accessible, they serve as mentors, and they are supportive. Lawrence is a place where new ideas, projects, and perspectives are encouraged and explored against the backdrop of existing traditions. People like to say “YES!” whenever they can. The hall directors and other student affairs staff folks don't simply sit in their respective offices waiting to help students who wander in -- they actively collaborate to plan unique programs, to intervene and help students in need, and to make improvements to campus life. There is an honest sense of commitment and dedication to each individual student that I found inspiring. At the same time, the team knows how to keep a sense of perspective and how to have fun.
Brian Want
A.B. Lafayette College