Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Ethics, Professionalism & Being a Role Model RA Training 19Aug03 Presented by Justin Daniel Meyer Please set all beepers & cell phones to silent.

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Overview Professionalism Who? Role Modeling How? Ethics What / when? P E R

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Who is professional? Name names! Why do you regard each as such? What is professionalism?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Who is professional? Name names! Why do you regard each as such? –Justin, Trina –Bill Clinton / GWB, Jr. / the President –Peter Jennings, Tom Brokaw, Bryant Gumble What is professionalism? –How a person performs in a position of responsibility –(inherent) not the outcome but the approach –Actions and preparedness

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer What is Professionalism? The way you dress How one approaches others (not offending others with appearance, attitude, or dress) Living up to your word Following through on commitments Preparing for responsibilities Demanding more of yourself and those around you (striving)

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Characteristics Required Genteel not using profanity Consistency Polish appearance and enunciation Education application of knowledge Experience the ability to learn from it Trust others the foundation of all long-term relationships Credibility so others will listen to you Preparation chance favors the prepared mind Respect treating others as they desire (or at least equal to you Teamwork & Communication

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Role Modeling Working definitions?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Role Modeling Working definition? –Leading by example –Being visible –Visible consistency

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Role Modeling My working definition: exemplifying through action those characteristics to which you expect others to live up. At least 2 required attributes in this dynamic: –The desire to better oneself (your resident) –Follow through in leading by example (you) Examples? –First, is imitation is the sincerest form of flattery? –Examples of obvious influence: former residents on whom you made an impression?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Common Role Models in our Society Parents and other senior family members Political, religious and social leaders Professional colleagues / mentors, teachers Coaches, team captains Friends Celebrities and other public figures Who are your role models and why? (5 examples) All these people have something in commonwhat is the common element?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Role Models Have Something We Want! Dignity Selflessness Goals and Aspirations Accomplishments Respect Power / Authority Ambition Principles (strong) Leadership Motivation Decision-making power Honesty Influence Courage Love Charisma Success Altruism Accountability Responsibility

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Exercise: Picking a New Role Model for Yourself Imagine for a moment that you are traveling abroad and are planning on stopping in one country for a few years. Since you wish to enter this society, how do you figure out how to pick a mentor or guide (who may not know they are being scrutinized) to emulate?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer How One Might Go About It: Someone who is respected by others Someone who is where you want to be Someone who reaches his/her goals fairly quickly Look for social infrastructure

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer What About Residents Who Dont Want to Improve So you have what they want or need (at least for now)…now what? Without a drive for self-improvement in your residents, it will be very difficult to reach them through your actions alone. How can we reach these residents (they may be few… but the squeaky wheels are the most noticed… and the most likely to get an RA feeling down)? Ideas?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer What About Residents Who Dont Want to Improve How can we reach these residents (few… but the squeaky wheels are the most noticed… and the most likely to cause oneself consternation)? Ideas? –Use a roommate or someone else on the inside to find out what they need (asking others for help often leads to success) –Get them involved in what you are doing –Be reasonably supportive (dont commit all your time to one resident) –Delegate small tasks & increase responsibilities over time to inspire by challenges –Persevere –Demonstrate potential negative consequences –Being feared vs. being loved (Machiavelli) –If you are not the right role model – help them find someone else!

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer You Are Not Setting Yourself up to Fail! You need to reach them on a different level than that on which you have been trying… intellect, sports, classes, hobbies, et cetera. You will not reach everybody… keep your perspective. As a voluntary role model, you are willingly jumping into your very own fish bowl, however small.

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer The Fish Bowl Effect (living under a microscope) You are… An RA first, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Held to a higher standard (though we follow the same policies). Expected to help RSOs / others at a moments notice. Directly responsible for the condition of the hall. Recognized by non-ORL staff only when a need/incident arises. Expected to know everything. Assumed to be always available. Continually imposed upon from many directions and people! How do you deal with all this?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Coping with Your Responsibilities Compartmentalize your personal life and the RA job as possible People are always observing and unconsciously judging you: residents, peers (on and off staff), administrators, and even family & friends. Make sure you provide yourself some downtime from all Never compromise your values, what you believe in Maintain a sense of professional self-accountability Always remain loyal to your residents and confidentiality reqs. To thine own self be true and then it follows as night the day, thou canst be false to no man. -W. Shakespeare

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer What is Ethical? Working definition…

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer What is Ethical? Working definition… –Doing what you consider good –Upholding the (societal?) code of conduct –Believing in and standing up for your beliefs –By definition: not always logical or common sense –Set of standards on which individuals build Ethics go beyond the law: they are not a mandatory element as in the law non-choice. When there is a choiceno law/policy/etcethics come into play.

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Application of Values to Voluntary Behavior = Ethics! My working definition: the application of ones values to determine right & wrong action in a given situation. This requires either judging others or responding to ones environment. Draw upon your frames of reference –Religion –Family –Culture –Country –Previous experience

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Ethical RAs Respectful Trustworthy Judgmental (reservedly?) Full of integrity Consistent and Fair Honest Compassionate Firm Willing to admit fault and take corrective steps. Fair and consistent in policy enforcement training info

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Teach Your Residents About Your Position: Set clear expectations at your first meeting (take suggestions!) Show NO favoritism Maintain confidentiality as required by law & Stevens policy Always be honest, never hedge THINK before you answer a residents question (they tell 4) Be available when feasible (non-duty night open-door hours)

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Common Scenarios: 1.Some of your residents invite you to go out to a bar. 2.You observe students cheating on a test. 3.You overhear freshmen planning to go drinking at a fraternity. 4.You observe a non-burnt candle in another RAs room. 5.A friend asks to borrow a CD so s/he can copy/rip it.

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Wrap-up… Carry yourself in the manner you expect your residents to act. Provide your residents with your best qualities and work from there. Remember to keep your perspective when dealing with a situation Questions?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Additional slides

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Discussion Questions 1.Who are your top 3 role models? Why? 2.What makes an effective role model? 3.Whom do you respect, professionally? 4.How do you define your ethics? 5.What makes you an ethical person? What about someone else?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Common Scenarios: You are over 21. Your friends invite you to go out drinking and dancing. Earlier you overheard some of your underage residents making plans for the same venue. What do you do? The RA on duty knocks on your door to investigate marijuana odors. The police have been called. You find a room, knock, and the door is answered. Then the officers arrive and tae over. One of the officers seems to know one of the residents and steps into the room for a few minutes. When the officer emerges, it has been taken care of is the only response you receive. One of your residents comes to talk to you about an experience they had last night. Their description suggests attempted date rape. The resident does not want to do anything. When you learn the alleged perpetrators name, it is someone who has been accused of similar aggressions before. How do you proceed. At the next staff meeting, your RD instructs you that the Institute is implementing a new policy. Despite your strong objections, no compromise is possible. How do you reconcile your job with your belief that the Institutes policy is wrong, possibly morally so?

Office of Residence Life August ??, 2003Stevens Institute of TechnologyJ. D. Meyer Further Thoughts Separating yourself from others due to responsibility & conflict of interest. (this is what makes you human!) If you didnt do it, you would have to be an emotional amoeba in order to avoid breaking down! The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell (examples of social epidemics which started small and grew quickly) Truth Credibility – the reputation you come in with will work for or maybe against you, you build from there – no illusions, here. Consistenty ICFs in fairness/consistency, etc Pronoun selection one for we, s/he for they, etc