Returner Orientation Advisor Selection

Proposal
Situation: Currently, the process of selecting Orientation Advisors who are
returning to another summer of being an Orientation Advisor is the same as
the selection process they have already experienced. Therefore, the
interview process is repetitive and easier for these applicants.
Solution: I believe the interview process for those applying to be an
Orientation Advisor should be more involved and challenging. Specifically, I
propose that along with an individual interview with the Director of New
Student Programs involving behavioral-based questions, the Returner
Orientation Advisors should be selected based on a group interview with
other Returner applicants, in which the group must solve a case study.
Steps Involved:
Applicants would have ten minutes to review a fictional scenario.
They must:
Address specific action they would take in the
moment, throughout the rest of the Summer, and in the following
year to avoid issues such as these.
Organize how they would present their solution to
their supervisor
Then, the group would have ten additional minutes to
present their solution to a set of judges who would then evaluate
the experience
Examples of the case study scenarios as well as how they would
be evaluated are provided below:
Scenario 1: Cliques on the team
Its the first week of training at Orientation this summer and you begin
to notice that multiple cliques are forming amongst the team. Specifically,
Orientation Advisors that already know each other are not branching out,
causing some feelings of disconnection and a lack of inclusiveness. One of
the Orientation Advisors come to you and express feeling lonely and isolated
when a group of other OAs plan an off-campus trip without inviting the entire
team. The OA mentions feeling concerned with the position for the duration
of the summer and is questioning quitting. You know your responsibility as a
Returner involves setting a good example for other Orientation Advisors and

making others feel comfortable, especially when dealing with situations like
this. Please come up with a presentation outlining and discussing the best
course of action to take to solve this problem. Specifically address what
action you will take now, throughout the summer, and for the following year
to avoid issues such as these. You and your team have 20 minutes to plan
your presentation which should be approximately 10 minutes. Good luck!
Scenario 2: Orientees not taking Life on Campus, the play addressing
sensitive college issues, seriously and laughing during inappropriate scenes
You are in the middle of performing Life on Campus, specifically the
scene regarding LGBTQ+ issues. All of a sudden, you hear an orientee shout
a derogatory term from the audience, followed with laughter from other
students. The staff tries their best to ignore the joke and continue to perform
the rest of the play. Afterwards, you and all of the other OAs break up into
your Group 3 to discuss the sensitive college issues presented in LOC. You
begin to play the Great Divide game and ask how the students felt about the
LGBTQ+ scene. One particular student responds in an inappropriate way,
expressing that the Lesbian girl deserved the awful treatment she received
and further arguing that these types of people should not be allowed on
campus. You know your responsibility as a Returner involves setting a good
example for other Orientation Advisors and conveying the open, accepting
community we have here at Geneseo. Please come up with a presentation
outlining and discussing the best course of action to take to respond to this
problem. Specifically address what action you will take now, throughout the
summer, and for the following year to avoid issues such as these. You and
your team have 20 minutes to plan your presentation which should be
approximately 10 minutes. Good luck!
Scenario 3: Inappropriate behavior amongst the OA Team
Its the end of training and youve just finished your 2nd summer
bonding activity with the OAs. You are beginning to notice the cohesion and
friendships across the team and are proud of the work you put into planning
these events, as they were well received by the staff. However, the next
weekend you hear talk about many of the new OAs planning a big drinking
event taking place off-campus. You also just witnessed some new OAs going
out one night to smoke marijuana. Although you are not partaking in this
activity, you still know it is your responsibility to keep the new OAs on track,
safe, and well aware of their actions on campus, as their role of liaison to the

Office of New Student Programs. Please come up with a presentation

outlining and discussing the best course of action to take to respond to this
problem. Specifically address what action you will take now, throughout the
summer, and for the following year to avoid issues such as these. You and
your team have 20 minutes to plan your presentation which should be
approximately 10 minutes. Good luck!

Rubric
Returner Rubric

Excellent
(4)

Above
Average
(3)

Average Meets
Expectations
(2)

Below
Average
(1)

Does not meet

requirements
(0)

Clarity/Coherence

Went above and

beyond to make sure
the audience
understood the 3 plans
of action to take. One
idea flows into the next
seamlessly.

Put in extra effort

to make sure the
audience
understood the 3
plans of action to
take. Ideas needed
support in order to
connect.

Made clear 3
separate plans of
actions to take
however did not
connect these ideas
together.

Did not clearly

explain the 3 plans of
action to take. Did
not flow well.

Jumped back and forth

between ideas leaving the
audience very confused
about the 3 plans of action.

Problem Solving
Skills

Went above and

beyond to address
steps to take to solve
the problem
throughout all 3 plans
of action, providing
multiple, creative
solutions to the
problem.

Provides creative
steps to take to
solve the problem
throughout all 3
plans of action.

Addresses steps to
take in order to
solve the problem
throughout all 3
plans of action.
More critical thinking
could have been
used to solve
problem.

Addressed some
steps to take to solve
the problem for a few
of the plans of action.
Lacked some key
elements to resolve
the situation.

Vaguely attempted to
address a solution to the
problem however the
resolution provided was
questionable.

Collaborativeness

Went above and

beyond to work
together with other
teammates throughout
the planning process
including building off
one another's ideas.

Worked with other

teammates very
well and accepted
one anothers
ideas.

Worked with other

teammates during
the planning
process but could
have acted as more
of a collective unit.

Did not all contribute

to the planning
process and failed to
accept everyones
ideas.

Poorly attempted to
collaborate with one another.
Did not all offer ideas or
argued against group. Made
other members of the group
feel uncomfortable.

Organization

Went above and

beyond to organize the
planning process as
well as the
presentation of the 3
plans of action.

Organized the
planning process
as well as the
presentation of the
3 plans of action
very well.

Organized the
planning process
and the presentation
of the 3 plans of
actions.

Lacked some
organization
throughout the
planning process and
the presentation of
the 3 plans of action.

Very confusing and chaotic

organization of the planning
process and presentation of
3 plans of action.

Overall Presentation

Presentation WOWED
the judges!

Presentation
impressed the
judges.

Presentation was
what judges
expected.

Presentation could
have been more
impressive.

Presentation failed
expectations.

Total

Benefits:
This new interview process would cause applicants to use skills
such as critical thinking, organization, presentation, collaboration, and
listening. Due to the limited time and group of 5 individuals, this
simulation would create an high-pressure environment, common during
Orientation.
This case study experience would also allow observers and the
Student Orientation Coordinators to discover which applicants have the
skills it takes to solve serious issues that are likely to happen
throughout an Orientation summer.
Potential Obstacles:
Finding a time that at least 5 applicants are all available to
participate in not only the individual interview but also the case study
may be difficult, due to scheduling conflicts.
Evaluators might have a hard time judging for every
characteristic of the presentation.