The COVID-19 pandemic represents a unique challenge for maintaining residential education and campus community in a time of social distancing and abrupt transitions to online and hybridized learning format. The role of residential education, however, is more critical than ever. Aiding students in identifying support networks, making connections with others, and the sharing of timely and... Continue Reading →
Webinar Recording and Resources on: “How RAs and Student Staff Can Build Community Digitally During COVID-19”
On Friday, April 3, ACPA and Roompact co-hosted a webinar to discuss ways residence life departments were utilizing RAs and student staff members to enrage with students and build community while residence hall operations are either closed or otherwise disrupted. The posted recording of the webinar is available for free below, after an initial registration... Continue Reading →
What do you do when Google Forms isn’t enough?
We’re big fans of Google Forms here at Roompact. We use it ourselves for meetings and whenever we’re gathering feedback from our team members. It is a really user friendly and simple tool that gets the job done. Within residence life and residential education, it has become more apparent that Google Forms is king. It... Continue Reading →
How Technology Took Over Our Work: The Animated Evolution of the Desk Since 1981
It is amazing how quickly our work has evolved in such a short period of time. As the above animated GIF shows (originally produced as a video by the team at BestReviews), many of our former paper-based and manual processes have moved to digital.  What is perhaps most striking is how so much of our lives have... Continue Reading →
3 Pieces of Advice RAs Should Give First Year Students about Technology and Social Media Use
The start of the academic year means that we welcome a new group of students to campus. It is a seminal time for many students, and their first year, in particular, can bring forward a number of rapid developmental changes. As peer leaders in their communities, resident assistants can heavily influence, and shape these student... Continue Reading →
Teaching College Students To Use The Appropriate Communication Platforms
Technology has always impacted the way we communicate, but within the past decade, this has accelerated. Folks in housing and residence life have witnessed some of these changes first hand, including students not reading or responding to email, roommate conflicts being addresses through chat apps, and bullying occurring on social media platforms. Mobile devices, cloud... Continue Reading →
6 Ways of Building Residence Hall Community Updated for the Social Media Age
Employing a Residential Curriculum entails building a residence life program that is learning-centered. Previous movements within residence life focused more narrowly on wellness or community. Moving towards a learning-centered orientation is often more intentional, more transformational, more holistic, and leads to better outcomes for students. Making this shift, however, does not necessarily entail that one doesn’t engage in education around issues of... Continue Reading →
The Realities of Competing For Student Time in the 21st Century
Roompact "Perspective" posts are opportunities for individual staff members to work out ideas and provide their individual thoughts and opinions on a given topic. Now, more than ever, residence life professionals are competing for students' time. Technological change has brought about a revolution of choice for self directing one's learning and a multitude options for... Continue Reading →
Technology Is A Tool, NOT A Learning Outcome
At Roompact, we love technology. We are, after all, a software company. But we also love learning. Our main mission is to enhance the educational experience in the residence halls and to enhance learning for all students. We do this through providing both student and educator-facing tools. Sometimes our tools help make processes more efficient, so that... Continue Reading →