Residential Life Staff Program

To assist the Assistant Dean of Students for Residential Life and the Assistant Directors of Residential Life in implementing the Residential Life Program, approximately 90 undergraduate student leaders fill positions in Residential Life as dormitory staff members. The Residential Staff, consisting of four Head Proctors, together with the 35 Proctors and over 50 Assistant Proctors, serve the student residents in a number of specific functions. Dorm staff presence is intended to help establish a respectful, warm, disciplined, and collegial tone in the dormitory. 

Together, this dormitory staff helps to create a positive tone in the residence halls through dormitory programming. The staffs of each dorm are required to provide a minimum of four programming events per semester. At least one program is to be educational or instructional and one is to be a community service project. Many of the activities are developed and presented by the dormitory staff alone or with the assistance of a myriad of campus resources. Several departments such as Health Services, Career & Leadership Development, the Sewanee Outing Program, and the University Counseling Center have created various programs that are available to residence halls.

Headed by the Assistant Dean of Students for Residential Life and Assistant Directors of Residential Life, with the aid of the Head Proctors, the dorm staff program builds a unique and charged community of residents and residential halls. With primary responsibility for community development, dorm staff members also assist in rule enforcement, peer counseling, and coordination of creative activities for all residents. The dormitory staff at Sewanee includes proctors, assistant proctors and head residents.

Directors of Residential Life

Mary Beth Bankson Williams, Ph.D., Associate Dean of Students for Residential Life

Kristin Weyman, Assistant Director of Residential Life for Housing and Programs

Bentley Cook, Assistant Director of Residential Life for Facilities and Sustainability

Jania Collins, Residential Life Office Manager

Area Coordinators

Our Area Coordinators have the dual responsibility of supporting and promoting essential educational programs on campus while also helping to establish a respectful, welcoming, safe, and collegial tone in a group of residential facilities. Residential responsibilities include: living in a residence hall within an area of 300+ residents, offering informal counseling and referring student(s) to appropriate University personnel for assistance as needed, serving in an on-call capacity with other staff members, preparing the residence halls for the opening and closing of each semester, and helping uphold the residential, social, and academic traditions of the University. In addition to the residential responsibilities, each area coordinator has additional student life responsibilities.  We currently have an Area Coordinator for Communications (Danielle Dreeszen), Area Coordinator for First Year Programs (currently hiring), and an Area Coordinator for Second Year Programs (Marney Babbitt). 

 

Head Proctors

Head Proctors are senior leaders of the dorm staff. Each of the four Head Proctors has a specific focus:

Caroline Rogers, Head Proctor
Mary Margaret Winn, Head Proctor for First Year Programs
Kaitlyn Breiten, Head Proctor for Second Year Programs
Cameron Graham, Head Proctor for Programming and Community Engagement

Proctors

The position of a University Proctor is both an honor and a great responsibility. Proctors are student staff members who work under the supervision of the Assistant Dean of Students, the Assistant Directors of Residential Life, and the Head Proctors to create civil and respectful residential environments that enhance student academic experiences. Proctors promote educational and social programs in their dorms, enforce dorm policies and regulations, oversee the Assistant Proctors, and serve as leaders throughout the campus community. Students are eligible for the position of Proctor in their junior and senior years.

Find out more information here about applying to be a Proctor.

Assistant Proctors

The Assistant Proctor is an integral part of the first-year student orientation process and the residential life system. Working throughout the year with faculty advisors, the Assistant Proctors help first-year students adjust to the academic and social life at the University of the South. In addition, the Assistant Proctors support the Proctors in creating and maintaining a comfortable and positive dormitory atmosphere and in enforcing University policies. Assistant Proctors work under the supervision of the Deans of Students, the Assistant Directors of Residential Life and the Head Proctors.

Find out more information here about applying to be an Assistant Proctor.

Head Residents

Head Residents, affectionately known as Matrons or Patrons, are mature, full-time residents of the University dorms who are responsible for the general management of their assigned residence hall. Head Residents also assist and advise the other dorm staff with rule enforcement and program development. Head Residents are a time-honored and important part of life at Sewanee. Dating back to when students boarded in the private residences of citizens of the Sewanee community, matrons have been an established and important institution at the University. Most University dormitories, with the exception of a few smaller dorms, have a Head Resident.

Resident Chaplains

Resident Chaplains are a brand-new addition to the Residential Life Staff. The Resident Chaplains are currently enrolled students at Sewanee's School of Theology who act as live-in staff in our dorms. They are able to offer support and encouragement to all students regarding academic, personal, social and religious matters. The Resident Chaplains host regular, weekly, and open meeting hours for students to come and talk with them about any issue. Additionally, Resident Chaplains host an assortment of programs and events in their residential halls that focus on a number of topics.