SCAROWINDS RESIDENT ADVISOR PROGRAM
As part of our monthly Resident Advisor student programs in September of 2015 I had to propose a program for October. It was my second year in Charlotte and I had yet to go to Scarowinds, which is Carowinds’ Halloween park theme for October.
I decided to ask my Residence Coordinator (RC), Clay, about what the process would be like to get a program of that caliber off the ground.
I had no problem accepting constructive criticism and advice about the process for the program demonstrating agreeableness and openness (Goldberg).
At the time, I told my residents about the program’s development and asked them for feedback, further demonstrating traits from the Trait theory, extraversion and openness by going out and asking fellow peers (Goldberg).
I was utilizing a Transactional approach to talk with my residents by asking for their opinions about transportation and the cost in exchange for a better turn out once the program was up and running (Burns).
In this particular situation, After having a general idea of the needs to see the program succeed--obtain funds for the program, acquire transportation and drivers, and let the residents know about the event--I began to prepare to meet with the Resident Student Association (RSA) to get money to subsidize the cost for residents to go to Scarowinds.
I practiced a pitch to propose the program to RSA with the proper cost details and a plan of how the program was to be executed so that they would approve and allocate funding for the program.
After getting the funds from RSA I encountered trouble with the transportation.
There were only two vans available from the UNCC Motor Fleet for the day I needed them, and they could only hold ten passengers each for safety precautions.
On top of this, I could not find drivers that were approved by the school to drive the vans. In hindsight, I believe the program failed because I didn’t have a broad network of UNCC approved van drivers.
Had I involved more people in my program’s development I probably would have been able to fill the spots for driving the van.
At this point in my life I didn’t have many experiences leading a program like this. I know now that I was not versed enough because the program required more experience, a larger network, and much more team help.
The Contingency theory essentially states that a leader’s effectiveness is dependent on how well the leader’s style fits the scenario and in this particular situation my effectiveness was low in the end (Northouse).
This experience is a reference point in time that helps mold my style of authentic leadership (Northouse).