Virginia Tech’s Aspirations for Student Learning are mentioned time and time again on my Housing and Residence Life Page, and those in the HRL community might be intimately familiar with what they may entail, the normal student might only be aware of them subconsciously. This is largely due to the way we as Resident Advisors have chosen to present them to our residents.
Over the course of a school year, I am charged with the task of introducing a set curriculum to my residents. They are expected to leave their Freshman year with a better grasp of five challenges:
1. Committing to unwavering CURIOSITY
Virginia Tech students will be inspired to lead lives of curiosity, embracing a life-long commitment to intellectual development.
Virginia Tech believes that all environments of the college experience provide students with opportunities for learning. From Student Organizations to cultural and recreational events, these planned and spontaneous encounters represent a place where students can constantly learn. Encouraging that curiosity with my residents ensures that they will continue to make the most of their college experience.
2. Pursuing SELF-UNDERSTANDING and INTEGRITY
Virginia Tech students will form a set of affirmative values and develop the self-understanding to integrate these values into their decision-making.
As students better understand themselves and align their values with the decisions that they make, they will be able to adopt a set of principles from which to live by for the rest of their lives. Allowing them to develop their own standards and principles helps my residents understand themselves as individuals and professionals.
3. Practicing CIVILITY
Virginia Tech students will understand and commit to civility as a way of life in their interactions with others.
The idea of Hokie Respect is something that every Virginia Tech student is exposed to during their time at this university, and we believe that pursuing and embracing the value of civility is something what can be carried through life. Interacting with those who are different is a given when it comes to living in a residence hall community, and practicing civility when it comes to situations where residents are presented with those who are different is a necessary factor.
4. Preparing for a life of COURAGEOUS LEADERSHIP
Virginia Tech students will be courageous leaders who serve as change agents and make the world more humane and just.
Being willing to challenge the status quo in pursuit of a more humane and just world is what will ultimately make the difference in our society’s future. My job is to communicate the idea that courageous leadership is something that’s possible whether or not someone is in a position of responsibility.
5. Embracing an UT PROSIM way of life
Virginia Tech students will enrich their lives through service to others.
Ut Prosim is our University’s motto, and unlike most college institutions, our students leave at the end of their time here with a cognizant understanding of what it implies. Creating and serving communities allows my residents to develop a value system that guides their decisions and enables them to continue on in life as responsible citizens of the world.
As our residents aren’t Kindergarteners, and have a basic understanding of how to be a good person, a barrier RA’s face often is being able to present these ideas in a manner that isn’t patronizing or preachy. We choose to do so through programming that subliminally introduces the aspirations in a way that resonates with our residents instead of lecturing them until they can recite each outcome by heart.