At the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, our Residence Directors provide critically important services to our students, the department, and the institution as a whole. As an RD, you assist in our ability to best serve the needs of our students and ensure all students have a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment to live and learn. RDs form meaningful connections and provide support to our student staff and our residential students. In many ways, our success as a department is connected to the individual successes of our RD team.
Functionally-speaking, the Residence Director position is a full-time, live-in role that has primary responsibility for managing the daily operations of one of our residence halls on campus. Key functions of the position include student staff selection and supervision, occupancy management, policy enforcement, student leadership development, and community building through implementation of our residential curriculum. The RD reports to an Assistant Director of Residence Life and serves on a team of about 35 Residence Life professional staff.
Specific job responsibilities of the position are listed below.
Supervision
| Supervise 4-12 Resident Assistants and 1 Senior Resident Assistant. |
| Coordinate weekly staff meetings to provide relevant information and clear communication. |
| Conduct weekly or bi-weekly one-on-one meetings with staff members. |
| Provide formal and informal evaluation and feedback regarding performance and expectations. |
| Monitor and maintain in-hall duty rotation system. |
| Oversee and review staff performance on the residential curriculum. |
| Facilitate staff development, professional development and on-going training for the staff. |
| Oversee management of programming and staff development budgets. |
| Assist with the selection and training of student staff members. |
Community Development
| Monitor and assist student staff with implementing the Residential Curriculum. |
| Support the programming and policy-making efforts of Residence Life to create a positive living environment and facilitate the development of students. |
| Incorporate the mission, vision, and values of Residence Life into our residence hall communities. |
| Create and maintain a developmental environment. |
| Support the academic mission of the institution. |
| Assess and evaluate program outcomes. |
| Attend programs and events and maintain visibility in the hall/community. |
| Advise the local hall or complex government, including advising the government's executive board and general assembly. Attend all local/complex government meetings. |
Administration
| Serve on various committees as requested or approved by supervisor. Committees may include: Professional Staff Development, RA Selection & Training, Residential Curriculum, IDEAS (Inclusive Dialogue for Equity, Allyship, and Social Justice), and others. |
| Attend Residence Life staff training, as well as related professional development opportunities within University Housing and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. |
| Attend and participate in weekly Residence Life and weekly Complex meetings. |
| Meet one-on-one weekly with Supervisor Assistant Director of Residence Life. |
| Coordinate hall openings and closings. |
| Facilitate room and contract changes. |
| Maintain essential office records including rosters, student conduct files, room inspections, etc. Maintain accurate accounts of spending in the hall. |
Facilities Management
| Conduct fire drills in the residence hall once a semester. |
| Maintain open communication with hall support staff (Housekeeping, Facilities, etc). |
| Coordinate pre-break room checks. |
| Assist in emergency situations as needed. |
Crisis Management
| Provide leadership during crises in the residence hall and in the greater campus community. |
| Participate in a rotating weekly on-call system providing emergency assistance to staff and residents. |
| Provide duty coverage during one university break. |
| Become familiar with and follow institutional and departmental guidelines regarding emergencies. |
| Assist agencies such as University Police, Fire Department, Health Center, etc. in the case of an emergency. |
| Provide student staff with thorough emergency response training. |
Student Conduct
| Clearly communicate, interpret and enforce department and university policies to staff and students. |
| Ensure staff members are appropriately confronting and documenting behavioral issues and concerns. |
| Review all incident and police reports and communicate with the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards when necessary. |
| Provide programs and other proactive educational interventions to minimize behavioral issues. |
Student Relationships
| Make effort to get to know residents and maintain a high level of visibility. |
| Serve as a resource or referral for information concerning university life. |
| Promote student involvement in residence hall activities, hall governance, and general co-curricular campus life. |
| Provide counseling or referral for residents with academic, personal, or career concerns. |
| Serve as primary liaison to your residents' parents. |
Role Model
| Act as a positive role model at all times (on and off campus). |
| Maintain a professional attitude and manner while employed by the university. |
| Monitor and maintain a professional online presence (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, etc). |
| Maintain a high level of ethical standards. |
| Know and abide by local, state, and federal laws. |
| Maintain confidentiality for sensitive and FERPA protected information. |
Professional Development & Presentations
| Coordinate presentations for fall and spring resident assistant training as well as on-going staff development and in-service trainings. |
| Facilitate periodic professional development sessions for professional University Housing staff. |
Summer Responsibilities
Residence Directors have multiple options for summer work that involve the following:
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| All options will include some on-call duty responsibilities. |
| Summer assignments are determined based on the need of the involved departments and work to take into consideration RD preferences when possible. |