ACPA & NASPA Professional Competencies Snapshot
• Communicate with others using effective verbal and nonverbal strategies appropriate to the situation in both one-on-one and small group settings.
• Describe campus protocols for responding to significant incidents and campus crises.
• Explain the basic tenets of personal or organizational risk and liability as they relate to one’s work.
• Engage in policy and procedure development, implementation, and decision making that minimize risk to self, students, other constituents, and the institution.
In my time advising the University Activities Organization (UAO) at BGSU, I have had a range of experience working with and developing programming liability and risk management procedures. One exemplary experience was working closely with a student programming team to develop and implement an effective bus trip liability and risk management plan. Specifically, I worked on getting liability waivers signed and filed, and talking students through possible risks of the trip and creating
Bus Trip Liability and Risk Management
With experience advising a student programming board and supervising a student staff in the maintenance and safety of residence hall, I have gained valuable experience in the last two years in working with and maximizing human and organizational resources. I have assisted in the selection process of executive student programming board members as well as resident advisors. I prepared agendas for and conducted weekly one-on-one meetings with my students. Budget management and fiscal stewardship were also large components of my experience. In this section I briefly discuss my experiences working with liability, risk management, and budget management.
Student leaders and myself in Chicago on the
UAO Chicago bus trip. December 2012.
plans to address these possible challenges if they were to arise. As a result of these conversations, we created bus captain information sheets, compiled emergency contact information and telephone numbers, created a list of things to do at the location, developed a missing student phone contact policy, educated students on these policies and information before they left the bus, and worked with administrators to understand our roles of responsibility.
At all times, the main concern of our policies was the safety of our students and student leaders, as well as the education of safety measures to allow our students to make informed decisions while on the trip. By implementing these policies, we helped minimize risk involved for the University, student organization, and students attending. By including my students in these conversations, I was able to educate them on the University policies and help them better understand risk management strategies.
Budget Management
UAO leaders working the cash register at the selling of the Homecoming concert tickets. August 2012.
ACPA & NASPA Professional Competencies Snapshot
• Articulate basic accounting techniques for budgeting, monitoring, and processing expenditures.
• Demonstrate effective stewardship and use of resources (i.e., financial, human, material)
• Use technological resources with respect to maximizing the efficiency and effectiveness of one’s work.
• Communicate with others using effective verbal and nonverbal strategies appropriate to the situation in both one-on-one and small group settings.
• Effectively develop and manage facilities, policies, procedures, processes, human resources, and materials.
• Implement advanced accounting techniques that include forecasting, efficient use of fiscal resources, and interpretation of financial reports.
As a Head Resident at Cornell University and advisor to UAO, I have extensive budgeting experience, specifically with regards to programming. This year I advised the Vice President of Finance for UAO, resulting in a hands on approach with balancing and rectifying the $210,000 budget. I worked with this student and my supervisor to collect and file receipts, forecast expenditures to inform programming decisions, identify unknown expenditures, and develop an Excel spreadsheet to balance the budget. One example that demonstrates appropriate budget management occurred in the spring of 2013. A programming team wanted to bring a speaker to campus that would involve a significant financial commitment. To decide if the organization could afford the speaker, the Vice President and I created a spreadsheet that detailed our current spending and our financial commitments for the remaining events that semester. With this information, we were able to forecast how much money the organization would have at the end of the year, revealing that we had the financial resources to support this speaker.
Furthermore, I advised the Vice President in the education of general organization members on the budget, responsible financial stewardship, and how to budget and pay for their events. At Cornell University I managed a significantly smaller budget of $300, but was able to work with my students to produce twenty-five hall programs with this budget. This entailed paying careful attention to resources, spending money wisely, and seeking sources of collaboration to supplement our resources. Through both experiences I gained valuable experience in financial stewardship, particularly with balancing the budget and forecasting expenditures.