In the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings, this Board called on the University to expand the role of dormitory assistants (DAs) in fostering a sense of community in upperclass dorms. The Board reasoned that having people responsible for upperclassmen as RCAs are for underclassmen would reduce feelings of isolation for students who are not members of eating clubs or other campus organizations.
Because of the programming offered by RCAs, underclassmen are able to meet and befriend their peers in a way that is not often replicated in upperclass living arrangements. Since upperclass dormitories are more socioeconomically diverse than upperclass eating venues, the University should redefine the DA job to include promoting social interaction in upperclass dorms. The Housing Office currently tasks DAs with ensuring that standards of proper maintenance and living conditions are met within their dorms. If, however, the University were to increase the number and visibility of DAs and expand their job descriptions, they could make a significant impact on the way upperclassmen associate with one another.
DAs could hold study breaks that would likely be very well attended: Upperclassmen, busy with independent work, are not always inclined to make the trek to their eating clubs or former residential colleges to take advantage of nighttime snacks, but they would be happy to take a break in the convenience of their own dorms. Furthermore, if DAs were to assemble listservs for the entryways within their zones, other upperclassmen would be better equipped to take the initiative necessary to organize their own events at which they could meet their neighbors.
There is a host of other ways in which DAs, if given the appropriate resources and mandate, could increase cohesion within a group of students from economically diverse backgrounds who live in the same dorm. But it could also lead to more interaction among members of different eating clubs and different campus organizations. And that would bring the whole campus closer together.
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