Being a community assistant can be a challenging but rewarding college job, current CAs and Taylor Place officials said Tuesday.
The information session called “The Life of a Community Assistant” included the responsibilities and requirements of the job for students interested in becoming a CA at Taylor Place for Fall 2009.
The meeting was hosted in the Taylor Place conference room by student coordinators Ronald Briggs Jr. and Jennifer Doty, current CAs. Briggs, Doty and the current CAs gave tips about becoming a CA to four interested students.
“One of the best skills you can have as a CA is time management,” human and family development junior Sabrina Wedin said.
Taylor Place currently has openings for 24 CA positions. Doty said the number of positions is subject to change depending on how many residents sign a lease for the fall, budget cuts and a few other factors.
The CAs at the meeting talked about the pros and cons of the job.
“One of the rewards of being a CA was having my residents finally get it — that they’re not here to party, but to go to school,” elementary education sophomore Laqualla Craig said. “Helping residents figure that out made me feel like I was doing my job.”
Briggs and Doty said another reward was the fact that CAs, with all their benefits, were earning about $12,000 per academic year.
“That’s about $50 an hour, which is more than we make,” Doty said, laughing.
The benefits that Doty and Briggs used to calculate the $12,000 include a single room, a partial meal plan and a stipend.
But being a CA comes with challenges as well as rewards.
“You have to not take stuff personally,” Craig said. “When you write someone up there’s going to be tension. Not everyone is going to like you.”
Wedin agreed that CAs walk a thin line.
“There is a balance. There will be residents who love you and come to you for everything,” Wedin said. “But there will also be residents who see you as the bad guy out to wreck your fun. Being a CA means helping both kinds of people for their individual needs.”
CA applications for Taylor Place are due by 5 p.m. Friday, and more information is available online from the ASU housing Web site.
Reach the reporter at sheydt@asu.edu.
