The number and acuity of crises experienced by college students is increasing, and for those campuses with on-campus housing, entry-level Residence Directors (RDs) often oversee and implement institutions' initial crisis response. RDs conduct this crisis response work while being faced with competing institutional pressures and stress on their…

The Resident Assistant (RA) position is the foundational role in the student affairs staffing structure. RA job description has expanded exponentially since the earliest iterations (Boone et al., 2016). The selection of RAs presents unique challenges because it is costly, requires a lot of staff, typically draws a large candidate pool, and…

This dissertation explored the current perceptions and preferences for residence hall construction lifespan standards among campus master planners and housing administrators in higher education. Historically, universities have built residence halls with the intention of spanning many decades (Guckert & King, 2004). However, there has been a…

The purpose of this mixed-methods study is twofold: to examine the professional development and supervision of live-in and live-on housing and residence life professionals for crises response and management on colleges and universities. The literature review consisted of empirical research for crises, professional development and supervision. The…

This study was an explanatory research design that utilized a correlational approach to explore the relationship of residential factors with academic variables explained by first and second year grade point average (GPA), behavioral variables explained by incidences of student conduct violations, and engagement explained by involvement in…

Entry-level student affairs professionals play a significant and influential role in the growth and development of college students. Despite the value of these entry-level professionals, attrition from the student affairs profession is a pressing issue (Renn & Jessup-Anger, 2008), primarily because 55% of student affairs professionals leave…

Numerous research and literature available on residence life are centered on students' experiences from the United States. Available literature indicates residence life is an important step in building a solid foundation for success in and beyond college. Success in college is a way of building lifelong relationships and finding one's place both…

Gender inclusive housing (GIH) is widely viewed as a best practice to include trans* students within collegiate residence halls. Because of this insistence that GIH is an inclusive strategy, GIH has become a national trend across universities. Yet, in spite of GIH's increasing popularity, there is a dearth in the literature on the effectiveness of…

With the increasing cost of attendance and concerns regarding incoming student preparedness (Jackson & Kurlaender, 2013), administrators of U.S. colleges and universities are seeking ways to help more students be successful and persist to graduation. Although research has demonstrated the contribution of psychosocial factors to student success…

Faced with the most drastic economic downturn since the Great Depression, public institutions of higher education have been increasing tuition, cutting programs, and finding creative ways to generate more revenue since 2008. Higher rates of housing occupancy lead to greater financial stability for colleges and universities (Mitchell &…

The current study investigated the relationship between supervision, job satisfaction, and burnout among "live-in" and "live-on" Housing and Residence Life professionals. The literature review consists of empirical research for each construct presented (supervision, job satisfaction, and burnout). The study sample consisted of…

The researcher identified a gap in the knowledge of competencies needed for midmanagers that work in housing and residence life at the southeast colleges and universities in the United States. The purpose of this study was to identify and develop a consensus on competencies needed by mid-managers. The review of the literature describes and…

As funding for institutions of higher education becomes tighter, state and federal entities have turned to student retention and graduation rates as measures of success to determine levels of financial support. A concept, supported by student development theories, used to increase retention and graduation rates is creating living learning…

Student demographics on college campuses continues to change. The globalization of the student population brings challenges to providing optimal services from staff throughout higher education and particularly from professional housing and residential life (HRL) staff, who may be the first level of support for many students. The purpose of this…

There are over 700,000 international students currently studying in the U.S. (McMurtrie, 2011) contributing close to $12 billion yearly to the U.S. economy (Altbach, 2004). Universities cannot take for granted that international students will choose U.S. institutions. While great attention and research efforts have been given to support programs…