Recent LU graduate Rob Ryan isn’t mad that he’s still at Lawrence. In fact, he thinks it’s kind of cool. Except he gets a lot of emails and they aren’t letters from fans desperate for him to release a rap CD.
Rob gets up every day at 8:30. He has two supervisors– Amy Uecke, the Associate Dean of Residence Life; and Rob Bradley, the Associate Dean of Multicultural Affairs-from whom he gets lots of emails and messages detailing all the little things he needs to take care of. After finishing these he usually has meetings with head RLA Kristen Workenauer, the Plantz custodian, or other hall directors. When asked if he was nervous to be in charge of so many people, he noted that he has been the Residence Director at a camp so he’s pretty prepared for Plantz hall.
Rob also works as the program coordinator at the Diversity Center. He says this is a fun job because he gets to interact with speakers and comedians behind the scenes. His other duties include supervising student organizations within the Diversity Center such as GLOW, Greenfire, and BOS.
So far, Rob’s schedule has been all over the place. With RHD training, RLA training, Welcome Week (Plantz houses about 25% of the freshmen class!) and the return of upperclassmen, Rob hasn’t really found a predictable agenda. This week he starts working at the Diversity Center regularly and he hopes to start having his Plantz residents come down and check out his apartment.
So what is it like being a Lawrence alum working here? Rob still sees a lot of friends and still gets to eat at Lucy’s but he says the social scene is different. Most nights his schedule consists of a quiet game of Monopoly or a movie. He has friends that are still here and friends who come to visit.
An RHD’s job, according to Rob, is to foster a sense of community and be a part of that community by being open and friendly. His goal is to meet all his residents and get to know them. So if you live in Plantz, or the affiliate small houses, or if you just really like Monopoly, you should stop in and say hi to Rob.
What do you DO all day?
