General On-Call Protocols
What time does the Duty Phone need to be turned on?
By 7:55pm (AT THE LATEST)
If one outlet is not working, what do you do?
You can flip the breaker one time.
Also, find out the source of the trip.
Have they completed a roommate agreement? If not, you can complete one with them!
If they have completed the agreement, you can ask your coordinator for a copy of it to have a follow up conversation with the room.
The main door to your hall is not shutting properly creating a security issue. What information is needed when you call the COD?
The Door number, the hall, a description of what is happening.
Note: The door number is usually in a top corner and looks something like 123.01
You smell the foul smell of Cannabis in your lovely residence hall. What are you doing?
Calling UP and the COD. (Preferably in that order)
What time does the duty phone need to be PICKED UP by?
By 12pm on your duty day.
An elevator is not working; it's empty and no safety threat exists. What do you do? (Another elevator in the building is operational)
Post signage that the elevator is out of order and notify the Coordinator on Duty.
A resident calls the duty phone reporting that someone wrote on his door "Go back to your country loser". The resident calling is an international student. How are you responding to this incident?
Bias Motivated Incident. Primary concern is the health and safety of the student. Notify COD and DO NOT clean the graffiti.
TIMELY WARNING TIME: Where do the timely warnings usually go?
At all of the exterior doors with card swipe access. There is usually a bulletin board or a window cling that the Timely Warning goes on/in.
If you knock on a door and see alcohol in the room, what are you doing?
Collecting ID information, asking residents to bring all alcohol into the middle of the room, verbally explain you are documenting it, and then have them dump ALL alcohol into the closest sink/toilet.
RAs should NEVER be touching the alcohol containers.
What is the phone number for University Police?
814-863-1111
A bat was just seen on the floor; what are your responsibilities?
Do NOT attempt to catch or release the bat on your own.
What is QPR and when do we use it?
Question, Persuade, Refer. We use it during situations involving mental health or suicidal ideation.
Last elevator just broke down in the hall. What is some key information you are passing along to the COD?
Is anyone in the elevator? The elevator number & location. Is the elevator level? Are the lights on in the elevator? Are the elevator doors open?
At an alcohol incident, a 21-year-old student argues that they should be allowed to have alcohol in the residence hall because they are of legal drinking age. How should the Resident Assistant respond?
Residence hall policy prohibits alcohol, regardless of age. The resident will need to dispose of any alcohol.
If the student is not complying, contact COD.
How should the duty phone be answered?
"[Community] RA on duty, this is [Your Name]"
Ex: "Beaver Hall RA on duty, this is Nick"
A resident calls claiming they believe they have bed bugs. What are we instructing the resident to do?
Ask them to remain in their room and have any other roommates return to the room.
For a bonus 400 points: Why?
A resident comes to you and reports that their roommate has not showered in 2 weeks and is starting to make the room smell. The resident also mentioned that his roommate has been wearing the same suit for those 2 weeks. What could this be a sign of?
Hazing.
This could be a sign of some Mental Health challenges as well, but strange habits like this could potentially be a form of Hazing.
What is your main role in a fire/building evacuation?
Crowd control & keeping students away from the building.
Also: Spacing yourselves at different card access doors. And report any conduct violations or safety concerns.
If there is a large quantity, RAs should call COD. What is considered a "large quantity"?
48 cans of beer OR three 1.75L bottle of alcohol.
What time do Courtesy Hours begin?
TRICK QUESTION: We have a 24-hour COUTESY hour policy in all residential buildings.
The sprinkler system went off on in Porter 517 because a student thought it was okay to hang their uniform from the sprinkler in their room, what could be your responsibility in this situation?
Going to all of the floors below to connect with any residents who could have been affected to collect their information. Also, crowd control or helping with the evacuation.
Note: this is not the only things that could be asked of you in a situation like this.
A resident calls you reporting that their roommate just tested positive for COVID and they no longer feel safe in the room. What are we communicating to the resident?
We have no isolation spaces available and can't move students due to sickness. If they have a place to stay off campus, we can encourage that. We also can encourage them to contact UHS if they begin to feel sick.
If the student states they are immunocompromised, call the COD.
A resident comes to you with a bruise on her head and reports that she just broke up with her boyfriend in her room. He got angry and threw her laptop at her head and also broke a potted plant in her room before storming out of the room. What are some things that we can say or encourage in this situation?
Help make the resident feel safe. Encourage her to preserve all physical evidence such as the laptop and plant. Encourage her to contact University Police. Offer resources including UP, EMS, preparing for a coordinator. OSMRR.
Follow up the next day. Tell her that you are a mandated reporter and doesn't have to share anything she doesn't want to share
Also obviously: Notify COD
You knocked on a door because of noise. When the resident opens the door, you notice on the desk the following items: spoons, needles, lighters, white powder, bongs. What are you doing?
Stepping away from the room and calling UP & COD.