Contact Info / Letter
This is a letter I'm giving to family and friends, letting them know what exactly I'm up to, trying to explain to them what an RD is, and also giving them my contact info (as of July 5th). Some of you may want the contact info too (write it down now, it may not stay up forever)...and there's also some prayer requests at the end.
Family and Friends,
Greetings! As you likely know, this past April 30th I graduated (with a music major and a psychology minor) from Indiana Wesleyan University. In an effort to give you some of an idea about what I’ll be doing, I’ve put together this Q & A sheet.
The question you're probably wondering first is "so what's next?" After applying for a Resident Director position at colleges across the country, I have been hired (as a Resident Director) at Palm Beach Atlantic University (PBA). On July 5th I will be moving down to West Palm Beach, Florida and into my 3rd floor apartment in Rinker Hall at PBA.
Tell me more about this place.
PBA is a quickly growing Christian University founded in 1968. The campus is located in an urban area of West Palm Beach, FL, a city located on the East Coast of Florida about an hour north of Ft. Lauderdale and 1.5 hours north of Miami. The east edge of the campus is bordered by the intercoastal waterway, and after crossing the intercoastal on a road bridge, the Atlantic Ocean and beach are a 10 minute walk away (yeah, tough life isn't it?).
Rinker Hall is one of the residence halls on campus, housing about 130 male students. In addition to Rinker, I will also be responsible for supervising two other, smaller residence areas (Pembroke and Weyenburg), which both house about 40 students each. In Rinker Hall there is a lobby area (including my office) on the first floor and suite-style living areas (8 people per suite) for students on the 2nd through 5th floors. My apartment is located on the 3rd floor to create more interaction with the students.
Ok, got that. So what exactly are you going to be doing??I will be working as a Resident Director (RD), which is a staff member under the department of Residence Life/Student Development at the college. To be honest, unless you've lived in a residence hall in recent years and worked closely with an RD, you won't really have a good understanding of the true dynamic of the job. However, I will do my best to explain it to you.
At a basic level, I am the primary/"go to" person in charge of a residence hall/s. I communicate and coordinate between resident students and the Student Development staff/administration. The general goal and role of the "Student Development" department at a college is to complement the academic learning of students with other aspects of learning (physical, social, spiritual, etc.). These experiences are gained through such things as Residence Life living, athletics/intramurals, evening/weekend activities, etc. that are all driven by the goal of nurturing what's called "holistic development" in students.
That's the framework, now I'll explain some specifics of the RD job. During the year, most of my time will be spent with the Resident Assistants (RA), who are students in charge of different floors/living areas. I will be meeting with them weekly both as a group and individually for 1 on 1 mentoring. In addition to mentoring/discipling these RAs and other students, I will also handle the general administration of the residence halls I'm responsible for, coordinating with other departments on campus, handling some discipline of students, and creating programming activities with the RA staff for the residents. The RD job is primarily relational. I consider it to be a ministry opportunity as I challenge, listen to, encourage, and build relationships with resident students, some of whom may not be Christians...though the faculty and staff are all Christians, the school has open enrollment and therefore allows non-Christians to be students.
I think I have the picture of the RD job, but there’s one thing I was wondering...what happened to being a music teacher?
That still may be in my future. Right now though this is my calling. I plan to continue my education and pursue a Masters and likely a Doctorate degree. Thinking long term, I plan to spend my life working in a college setting, either working in some form of Student Development, or teaching music and/or conducting choirs at a college or university. As for the short term, I would imagine working as an RD at PBA for 3-5 years, while also looking into grad school.
So you're moving to Florida...how do we stay in touch?I will have a schedule a bit similar to a normal college student and will have 2 weeks off at Christmas, a 1 week Spring Break, and 5-6 weeks off during the summer, so I won't be a complete stranger. My contact information down at PBA will be:
Jeff Timmer
Palm Beach Atlantic University
P.O. Box 24708
West Palm Beach, FL 33416
Home: 561-803-2496
Office: 561-803-2493
Email: jeff_timmer@pba.edu
or: swimincircles@hotmail.com
If you're making your way through Florida and want to stop in we can make that happen too. Just let me know in advance. (I'd avoid August and September though...due to my busy schedule in those months and the always possible but very unlikely hurricane).
That's all the information I wanted...now is there anything I can do for you?
Yes. If you think of me...pray...specifically for:
• An outpouring of the Spirit - This job and the relationships I establish with others have a greater purpose and reach a greater level when they are led by God. Pray that He will speak and guide and that I will seek and listen.
• Transition - Despite being familiar with what goes on in Residence Life (thanks to my undergraduate experiences at Indiana Wesleyan), this will be a new job at a new school, which brings a new way of doing things and new staff members to work with. Pray for clear communication and a smooth transition, as well new friendships.
• Hall staff - Pray for the RA staff I will be working with. These people will be a crucial part of my ministry and life at the school. Pray for unity and a sense of brotherhood among the staff. If you would like to pray for them specifically, their names are: Aaron Henley, Drew Dolinger, Scott Sawyer, John-Michael Gonzales, Erik Columbia, and Sean Loomis.
Hopefully that gives you a picture of what I'm up to and where I'm going. Thanks so much for your continued support and prayers.
God Bless, Jeff
Family and Friends,
Greetings! As you likely know, this past April 30th I graduated (with a music major and a psychology minor) from Indiana Wesleyan University. In an effort to give you some of an idea about what I’ll be doing, I’ve put together this Q & A sheet.
The question you're probably wondering first is "so what's next?" After applying for a Resident Director position at colleges across the country, I have been hired (as a Resident Director) at Palm Beach Atlantic University (PBA). On July 5th I will be moving down to West Palm Beach, Florida and into my 3rd floor apartment in Rinker Hall at PBA.
Tell me more about this place.
PBA is a quickly growing Christian University founded in 1968. The campus is located in an urban area of West Palm Beach, FL, a city located on the East Coast of Florida about an hour north of Ft. Lauderdale and 1.5 hours north of Miami. The east edge of the campus is bordered by the intercoastal waterway, and after crossing the intercoastal on a road bridge, the Atlantic Ocean and beach are a 10 minute walk away (yeah, tough life isn't it?).
Rinker Hall is one of the residence halls on campus, housing about 130 male students. In addition to Rinker, I will also be responsible for supervising two other, smaller residence areas (Pembroke and Weyenburg), which both house about 40 students each. In Rinker Hall there is a lobby area (including my office) on the first floor and suite-style living areas (8 people per suite) for students on the 2nd through 5th floors. My apartment is located on the 3rd floor to create more interaction with the students.
Ok, got that. So what exactly are you going to be doing??I will be working as a Resident Director (RD), which is a staff member under the department of Residence Life/Student Development at the college. To be honest, unless you've lived in a residence hall in recent years and worked closely with an RD, you won't really have a good understanding of the true dynamic of the job. However, I will do my best to explain it to you.
At a basic level, I am the primary/"go to" person in charge of a residence hall/s. I communicate and coordinate between resident students and the Student Development staff/administration. The general goal and role of the "Student Development" department at a college is to complement the academic learning of students with other aspects of learning (physical, social, spiritual, etc.). These experiences are gained through such things as Residence Life living, athletics/intramurals, evening/weekend activities, etc. that are all driven by the goal of nurturing what's called "holistic development" in students.
That's the framework, now I'll explain some specifics of the RD job. During the year, most of my time will be spent with the Resident Assistants (RA), who are students in charge of different floors/living areas. I will be meeting with them weekly both as a group and individually for 1 on 1 mentoring. In addition to mentoring/discipling these RAs and other students, I will also handle the general administration of the residence halls I'm responsible for, coordinating with other departments on campus, handling some discipline of students, and creating programming activities with the RA staff for the residents. The RD job is primarily relational. I consider it to be a ministry opportunity as I challenge, listen to, encourage, and build relationships with resident students, some of whom may not be Christians...though the faculty and staff are all Christians, the school has open enrollment and therefore allows non-Christians to be students.
I think I have the picture of the RD job, but there’s one thing I was wondering...what happened to being a music teacher?
That still may be in my future. Right now though this is my calling. I plan to continue my education and pursue a Masters and likely a Doctorate degree. Thinking long term, I plan to spend my life working in a college setting, either working in some form of Student Development, or teaching music and/or conducting choirs at a college or university. As for the short term, I would imagine working as an RD at PBA for 3-5 years, while also looking into grad school.
So you're moving to Florida...how do we stay in touch?I will have a schedule a bit similar to a normal college student and will have 2 weeks off at Christmas, a 1 week Spring Break, and 5-6 weeks off during the summer, so I won't be a complete stranger. My contact information down at PBA will be:
Jeff Timmer
Palm Beach Atlantic University
P.O. Box 24708
West Palm Beach, FL 33416
Home: 561-803-2496
Office: 561-803-2493
Email: jeff_timmer@pba.edu
or: swimincircles@hotmail.com
If you're making your way through Florida and want to stop in we can make that happen too. Just let me know in advance. (I'd avoid August and September though...due to my busy schedule in those months and the always possible but very unlikely hurricane).
That's all the information I wanted...now is there anything I can do for you?
Yes. If you think of me...pray...specifically for:
• An outpouring of the Spirit - This job and the relationships I establish with others have a greater purpose and reach a greater level when they are led by God. Pray that He will speak and guide and that I will seek and listen.
• Transition - Despite being familiar with what goes on in Residence Life (thanks to my undergraduate experiences at Indiana Wesleyan), this will be a new job at a new school, which brings a new way of doing things and new staff members to work with. Pray for clear communication and a smooth transition, as well new friendships.
• Hall staff - Pray for the RA staff I will be working with. These people will be a crucial part of my ministry and life at the school. Pray for unity and a sense of brotherhood among the staff. If you would like to pray for them specifically, their names are: Aaron Henley, Drew Dolinger, Scott Sawyer, John-Michael Gonzales, Erik Columbia, and Sean Loomis.
Hopefully that gives you a picture of what I'm up to and where I'm going. Thanks so much for your continued support and prayers.
God Bless, Jeff
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home