Resident advisors experience training session to help students get acclimated

Pittsburg State University junior Taylor Ritthaler wants to experience college in a way that lets her give back to the university she loves. Ritthaler and 22 other Pitt State students are now in the middle of a two-week training session for new resident advisors that will allow them to do just that.

“I like helping other people, and it’s a hands-on approach where I can be creative,” said Ritthaler, a Wichita native who is studying fashion marketing with minors in business and accounting. “And I’d much rather be an RA in the dorms than live by myself. I like to get out and do stuff, so why not be an RA?”

And living for free is a bonus, too.

“It’s neat to not have to worry,” she said.

The intensive, two-week training is designed to show the RAs how to build a community on their floors and how to make college a positive experience for the residents, said Luis Aranda, area co-ordinator for university housing.

“They get to move in two weeks early, but they’re expected to work hard and have fun,” Aranda said. “We like to use the term ‘role models.’ They’re making responsible decisions like going to class, being social and acting as a guide to campus. They’re also trained to pinpoint students who may need more help.”
To become an RA, the students must have lived in the dorms for at least a year and have a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.5.

“Most of them are way above that,” Aranda said.

Aranda said he typically gets about 100 applications a year, even though there are only about 20 positions that open up.

“We’re very selective,” he said.

Thursday afternoon, the new RAs learned some of the most important lessons of their new jobs. Mike Simons, Fire Marshal and safety co-ordinator for the Pittsburg Fire Department, taught the students the ins and outs of fire safety and prevention. Smoke detectors should never be covered up or have their batteries removed, he said. Likewise, electrical outlets should not be overloaded or covered, and it’s important to make sure that fire extinguishers are fully charged — though maintenance checks every month.

To drive home his points, Simons offered some sobering statistics. Since 2000, there have been 19 severe injuries, two life-threatening injuries and eight fatalities related to fire in Pittsburg. Two of those fatalities were Pitt State students Steven Hayes, 21, and Waylon Boots, 23, who died when an arsonist set their home on fire in 2006; the arsonist is now in prison, Simons said.
“It does happen,” Simons said.

Usually Simons brings a fire truck and several firefighters along to teach the RAs how to use a fire extinguisher — they light a fire in a metal pan and the students practice putting it out. But because the county is under a burn ban, Simons said they would have to wait until it is lifted.

“It wouldn’t be right for us to do it,” Simons said after his presentation was finished. “We have to practice what we preach.”

PSU Police Department Patrolman Dennis Bounds and Lt. TJ Duncan told the RAs about drug, alcohol and firearms policy. One student asked if the officers had ever tazered anyone in the line of duty. Bounds said they had not, because they don’t have tazers.

“We have sticks,” he said.

Later, Devin McCall, area co-ordinator for university housing, spoke to the RAs about conflict management.

“It’s important to have confidence and authority,” McCall said. “It’s OK to get a backup, but always work on it yourself and practice.”

That was one area Ritthaler said she could prove sticky.

“I have a couple friends on my floor, so that’ll be a challenge,” she said. “I may have to have another RA come help because it would be hard to stay neutral. I’ll have to balance authority with being friendly.”