Alana Liebenthal
Journal Contributor
“We Do It In The Halls.” Students living on campus have seen these signs all around Suffolk’s residence halls. It has become the slogan of Suffolk’s Residence Hall Association (RHA), and is one of the better known posters lining the hallway walls.
Last Saturday, Suffolk’s RHA hosted the 2010 sub-regional North Eastern Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls, a program designed to enrich the experience for students living on campus. Student delegates from schools in the New England region gathered at the 150 Tremont residence hall to discuss the campus-established policies, rules and regulations, share and create ideas for activities and programs within the building, and to invent new ways to bring students together. The conference is annual, but the first time Suffolk has hosted.
Alvin Nguyen, assistant director of Residence Life and Summer Programs, expressed his excitement to show off Suffolk’s unique urban campus and share with other schools all the things the RHA has done to make living on campus as safe and fun as possible.
The RHA has been an organization at Suffolk for only three years; to already be established enough to host the sub-regional conference is an achievement. Including more than 60 members with over 33 Resident Assistants and nine professionals, Nguyen believes the Suffolk RHA is making a name for itself. The program is getting more active in the region, as Suffolk now houses 90 percent of freshmen and 25 percent of all undergrads, the most the university has ever housed.
Paul Bresnahan, president of the RHA and a junior at Suffolk, is proud of all the hard work members have put into making life at Suffolk the best it can be. “We’re here, trying to do big things, not only regionally but nationally too,” he said.
According to Brehnahan, the expansion of the 10 West Street dorms has allowed a lot more people to be involved with the RHA, and he admires all of the students getting involved and taking on leadership roles. Nguyen also acknowledged the involvement of the freshmen who have stepped up to be active members on their campus.
The sub-regional conference is a time to reach out to other schools and share ideas and opinions. Nicole Gakenheimer, a junior at Western New England College, said, “being a part of RHA gives you a sense of community with the residents” and that she “likes to see what other schools do, that’s why I’m here.”
Courtney Anderson, a sophomore at Salem State University, said she likes being part of a RHA because “you become a face, not a number.”
“I love everything about [RHA], it’s been one of the best experiences I’ve had in college,” said Ashley Franco, a senior at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.
Schools represented at the conference spent the day touring Suffolk’s campus, playing games, and attending lectures and meetings in which they discussed important procedures and guidelines to make residence life better for the students.
“We’re ready to go and grow, to be bigger and better,” said Bresnahan regarding the future of Suffolk’s RHA.
