Orientation Graduate Assistant
Office/Department: Office of Orientation & Transition
Supervisor: Zack Beasley
Number of positions: 1
Mission Statement: The Office of Orientation and Transition engages students in the JMU learning experience by preparing them to be active and authentic members of the university community.
Functional Areas: Orientation & Transition
Students who participate in this experience will gain an understanding of student affairs as a profession and the influence student affairs has on contemporary higher education through the following tasks and activities:
- Assist with the development and implementation of student staff recruitment, selection, and training for OPAs.
- Participate in departmental/divisional meetings, planning, and projects
- Apply student development/counseling theory to everyday practice
- Understand new student and family needs
- Support Weeks of Welcome
- Participate in the review of assessment objectives, instruments, and results
- Contribute to the planning and implementation of Orientation and Transition programs
- Work collaboratively on special projects within the Office of Orientation & Transition and with other university departments
- Participation in professional development opportunities
Students who participate in this experience will be exposed to the purposeful application of the following student development, career development, counseling, and/or organizational theories:
- Psychosocial Developmental Theories: Chickering and Reisser
- Identity Development Theories: Racial, Sexual, Gender, Ability, Religious, Social Class,
- Transition Theory: Schlossberg
- Generational theories regarding students and their parents
- Typology: Myers-Briggs, True Colors, Leadership Compass, Enneagram
- Leadership Styles and Theories
Students assigned to this site will be able to participate in the following assessment and/or evaluation projects:
- Orientation Team Workshop Evaluation
- Mid-Summer Evaluations of OPAs
- Weeks of Welcome program evaluation and assessment
Students who participate in this experience will be evaluated and provided on-going feedback in the following ways
- Weekly one-on-one meetings with the supervisors
- Periodic assessment of learning outcomes from learning contract
- Formal written performance evaluations at the end of each semester
Specific expectations of students assigned to this site include:
- Observe and assist with the training and supervision of OPAs during Weeks of Welcome
- Assist with Weeks of Welcome programming
- Assist with the recruitment and selection of OPAs
- Plan, lead, and facilitate leadership workshops and training sessions for OPAs
- Assist the Leadership Team with planning and implementation of teambuilding activities
- Collaborate with the Transition Graduate Assistant to plan and organize the OPA Retreat (February)
- Option to attend NODA Region 8 Conference (March/April)
- Assist with the recruitment and selection of First yeaR Orientation Guides (FROGs)
- Assist with the planning and implementation of FROG Spring Training
- Communicate effectively with supervisor, co-workers, staff, and faculty
- Role model professionalism, ethical decision making and being responsible for confidential information
- Be willing to work evenings and weekends, when necessary
- Create and maintain a schedule to meet assistantship requirements
- Support the mission of the Office of Orientation & Transition, Student Affairs, and JMU
- Perform designated tasks in a timely, organized, and professional manner
- Attend all professional staff meetings/retreats
- Assist with special projects as needed
- Other duties as assigned
