Dorm Assistants serve as upperclass liaisons

Compared with the constant presence of residential college advisers during students’ freshman years, dormitory assistants — students who act as liaisons between upperclass dorms and the administration — are much less well known.

With the deadline to apply for next year’s DA positions upcoming, several current DAs spoke to The Daily Princetonian about their current roles as liaisons and working with students.

“Unlike RCAs, we are not responsible for ushering students through the year, providing academic and personal advice,” said Abi Adenikinju ’13, a DA in 1903 Hall.

Most upperclassmen have already established relationships with other people who they would be more likely to approach with their problems, Adenikinju explained.

Kathy Qu ’13, a DA for Dod Hall, echoed the sentiment. “We still deal with roommate or personal issues if any arise, but because upperclassmen have been here for two or more years, these problems are very rare.”

DAs have significantly fewer responsibilities than RCAs do: They are concerned with ensuring the dorms they oversee are running smoothly and that any student concerns are shared with the administration and vice versa.

Serving as liaisons between dorm residents and both the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students and Housing Services, according to the website, DAs also deal with maintenance concerns, report damage and generally ensure that spaces are livable.

About 20 dormitory assistants are selected each academic year by ODUS and Housing Services to serve in the various upperclass dorms.

Because it is a facilities-based position with few responsibilities involving interpersonal problems with the upperclassmen residents, there is no need for many DAs, Dean Maria Flores-Mills stated in an email — and upperclassmen do not need as much “handholding” as the many RCAs provide for their ’zee groups, said senior and Laughlin Hall DA Lindsey Brown. Most people only reach out when building issues arise, she said.

According to Pyne Hall DA Catherine Ettman ’13, an RCA may have anywhere from 14 to 40 ’zees while one DA may have over 100 students in their zone.

While most DAs apply after seeing advertisements for the position as sophomore or juniors, Qu said she had more personal reasons for becoming involved in the DA system.

Qu explained that chose to become a DA because she wanted to become more involved on campus than just academics and athletics.

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“I was also very close with the janitor in my building during my freshman and sophomore year, so I wanted to have that same relationship with the custodial staff, and help them in the best way possible,” she said.

Dean Flores-Mills noted that the caliber of dormitory assistants has been increasingly strong.

“They have been students who are looking to actively engage in the community,” she said. “I think collectively they have an exceptional sense of humor, and while addressing serious issues, we always manage to have a good time. It’s been a privilege.”

As Associate Dean in the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students, Dean Flores-Mills works closely with the Manager of Undergraduate Housing Angie Hodgeman to select, coordinate training of and supervise the dormitory assistants. Each academic year, about 20 DAs are selected by her office and Housing Services to serve in the various upperclassmen residence halls.

The applicant pool typically contains a large percentage of juniors who seek to be reappointed, Dean Flores-Mills wrote.

Students selected to serve as a DA will receive two half-days of intensive training in August.