The Office of the First-Year Experience and The Archer Center for Student Leadership Development are unveiling a new program this spring for first year students. The Emerging Leaders program is intended to support student development of leadership skills and knowledge while preparing for the sophomore year. A similar program, the Professional Leadership Program, currently exists for juniors and seniors and is run by the Archer Center. According to Dean of the First Year Experience Lisa Trahan, Emerging Leaders is an extension of the Tuesday Night Toolbox Student Success Series, a program run by the Office of the First-Year Experience designed to help students during the first few weeks of classes and to expose them to the different offices on campus, such as the Career Development Center and the Advising and Learning Assistance Center.
Thirty-two freshmen will be able to participate in the program, which starts on January 30 and runs for four weeks. The program is a new initiative in the Fiscal Year 2007 Performance Plan and actively seeks to fulfill several goals of the Renaissance at Rensselaer Strategic Plan, such as engaging students in collaborative learning experiences and providing information proactively to students. Class topics will include leadership, values, and decision-making.
The program was developed and will be facilitated by Scott Adams of the Archer Center, and Janelle Fayette and Marna Redding, both of the Office of the First-Year Experience. Redding describes the experience as coming from a need for their office to provide programming during the spring semester. Speaking about the program and the two student life offices, Redding felt that it was a “good way for our offices to team up and offer a non-credit experience that will hopefully give some of our first-year students some leadership skills.” Students who applied for the program were required to provide a personal definition of leadership and their demonstration of it in everyday life.
Lisa Trahan, dean of the First-Year Experience spearheaded the effort for these new programs and has also recently been appointed as the acting director of Residence Life. Trahan has been involved in the RPI community since 1997 and has previous experience working in residence life during both her undergraduate and graduate education, as well as five years in the field at SUNY Albany. When asked about her new position and balancing the two offices, Trahan remarked that she welcomed “the opportunity to work with professionals in both teams.”
According to Eddie Knowles, vice-president for Student Life, there are several reasons why he chose Trahan as the acting director of ResLife: not only for her substantial professional history in residence life, but also for her leadership on campus in Student Life programs. Knowles also stated, “In the transition, we would continue to have more senior leadership among the management team.” Within her spring assignment as acting director, Knowles expects Trahan to conduct a Strength, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats assessment of the Residence Life program to best understand the state of the organization and to find a new director.
Trahan’s tasks as acting director of ResLife include overseeing the annual Residence Life Spring activities, such as Spring Fling, resident assistant selection and planning for housing of the next freshman class. She is also responsible for overseeing the of fiscal issues and managing people and programs. Trahan remarked that part of why she stays involved in student life at RPI is that she feels that “the student body is remarkable.”
As for her duties in the Office of the First Year Experience, Trahan is excited about the new Emerging Leaders program as well as the other FYE activities. FYE is starting to prepare for the class of 2011 and is calling for programs from clubs, organizations, and departments to prepare for the next Navigating Rensselaer and Beyond.
