At its Thursday meeting, Campus Council worked to finalize surveys designed to investigate residents' relationships with residence coordinators.
Although Council members were receptive to the survey draft, they discussed ways to shorten its length and expand its scope to cover RCs' effects on neighborhood dynamics.
Council Vice President Ben Rubinfeld, a junior, presented a draft of the survey, which will be administered online next semester.
"It's supposed to be a tool for the RCs-and us as a Council-to see what's going on in the relationships between residents and RCs," Rubinfeld said.
Members were generally pleased with the survey, but some complained that students would be unlikely to complete it because of its length.
"We do want to keep it as short as possible but still get as much out of it as possible," said Campus Council President Jay Ganatra, a junior.
The draft features 15 general questions asking about residents' personal interaction with RCs and any experiences with disciplinary actions.
Despite the number of questions, Rubinfeld said the survey will appear much shorter when finished.
"Once it's converted from this form, the whole thing will be no longer than a single web page," Rubinfeld said.
In addition to general questions, members of selective living groups and house and quad councils will be asked to answer short supplementary sections about their RCs' involvement with their groups and activities.
Some Council representatives expressed concern about the narrow scope of the surveys.
"I wish it addressed the RCs' effect on the quad community more, rather than personal interaction," said junior Ross Katz, attending the meeting as a proxy for Wannamaker representative Spencer Cargill, a sophomore.
Katz's sentiment was echoed by several other Council members.
Despite the length of the debate, no final decisions were made about modifications or combinations of questions on the survey.
Rubinfeld also asked for volunteers to sit on a committee to examine survey responses. He said he hopes the survey will reveal trends and areas for improvement in RC-resident relationships.
Council members will then meet withAssociate Dean for Residence Life Joe Gonzalez and RCs to discuss the results.
In other business:
Senior Brenna Benson, Council communications coordinator, reported on planning for the Council's Sausage Fest, scheduled for Nov. 30, and a brain bowl tournament. The Sausage Fest will feature hot dogs and a raffle.
Ganatra announced that Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs, agreed Thursday to a new plan regulating Council e-mails to the entire student body.
The Council will be allowed one e-mail per month, one annual e-mail about elections and two emergency e-mails each semester.
Ganatra also reported progress on a pilot program for unlocking bathrooms in halls on which residents vote to do so.
"Facilities will be coming up with a proposed policy, as will [Residence Life and Housing Services], so we'll be working up a nice little compromise to bring the change to fruition," he said.
A second pilot program will place educational magazines in commons rooms in an effort to enhance campus intellectual climate. Council members are working with Gonzalez to develop the program.
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