Alexandra Putwen
- Director of Residence Education
- putwen@mtu.edu
- 906-487-2682
- 153 Wadsworth Hall
Building Resilience through the Residential Learning Model
The division of Student Affairs aims to celebrate, support, and inspire all of our
students. Residence Education, through the Residential Learning model further expands
upon the idea of supporting students through our focus on assisting students in building
resilience. One of our learning outcomes states, students will embrace an adaptive
mindset, which helps students to understand the differences between a fixed and growth
mindset and identify opportunities for adaptive thinking.
One key example of how we engage with this concept regularly in Residence Education is with roommate conflicts. For many students, living in a residence hall may be the first time they share personal space with someone. Some of the roommate groups start as complete strangers. Having a roommate can be exciting and terrifying. There are moments of joy, anxiety, and plenty of uncomfortable situations. When those challenges come up, students may ask for a room change. The first reaction from our staff is likely to tell a student, “no”. However, “no” does not mean we aren’t going to support a student.
Supporting the student will likely mean an in-depth conversation with a professional staff member about the issues at hand, as well as inquiring about how the student has tried to solve those issues. “One of the central elements of resilience…is perception: Do you conceptualize an event as traumatic, or as an opportunity to learn and grow?” (Konnikova 2016). Students who approach situations like roommate conflicts with a desire to learn new skills and actively participate in the process tend to resolve the issue and no longer need to move. We are trying to help students develop a growth mindset in those moments. While their roommate may be doing things that make them uncomfortable or frustrated, they still have control in the situation and can learn to advocate for themselves by having a one on one conversation, or a mediation with a staff member present. These conversations help students gain the confidence to have difficult conversations in the future.
Many times these issues can come up during stressful times - around breaks, before exams, or when a student has other things on their mind. Our department is here to support those students through their roommate conflict, or any other stressors. If you know a student who may need assistance with their living situation, please connect them with one of our staff for some outreach.
Source:
Konnikova, Maria. How People Learn to Become Resilient. The New Yorker.