The Spectator The independent student newspaper of Valdosta State University
Many freshmen were surprised when they answered a knock at their door and were greeted by one of VSU’s House Call volunteers on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
The newly implemented House Calls program is made up of faculty, staff, and graduate volunteers and is designed by the Housing and Residence Life as a way to reach out to new freshmen.
The mission of House Calls is to go door to door throughout freshmen dormitories and check in on the new students and see how they are doing so far.
Volunteers are open to answer any questions the students may have about campus happenings and offer the students somebody to just talk to if they ever need anything in the future.
“Our main focus is to just knock on doors and see how folks are doing,” Sarah VanKuiken, assistant director of residential education, said.
“We are currently piloting the program and hope to see it prove effective enough to continue using in the future.”
Each night of the program, volunteers went to the various freshmen dorms across campus, and led by residential advisors, split up amongst the different floors and halls to commence their rounds of greeting.
Many students welcomed the idea of the volunteers coming around to greet students while other students found it a bit odd to see math and science professors, library workers, student counselors, and many other VSU personnel walking through dormitory hallways at 7 p.m.
General feedback from the program was positive though.
“I was not expecting to find a teacher at my door,” Andrea Hollingsworth, 18 year old sociology major, said.
“ The program seems like a good idea and a nice way for students to establish a contact that may prove useful to them someday.”
The volunteers gave a lot of positive feedback from the two nights of the program.
“I really like working with new and fresh students,” Ginger Williams, reference librarian, said.
“It is nice to get the chance to show students that all faculty aren’t scary and that there are some people around campus that are available to them if they need anything.”
Please try to reference the halls as residence halls, and not dormitories. That is one thing that makes VSU different. We don’t have dorms, we have residence halls! Residents do more than just sleep there. Not to mention, they aren’t locked down at a certain time. Residents play, have fun, & hang out in the residence halls. Moreover, the resident assistants do an awesome job of programming and engaging the residents to get them involved. I realize it’s mostly a choice in words but it is the perception that those words carry. Dorm carries such a negative connotation for so many, and residence hall does not. And from a Housing & Residence Life stand point is one thing they are trying to change, the language used and the perceptions that so many have when it comes to that particular field!