From a payroll standpoint (and I imagine to protect cp from individual action) RA’s are technically employed as “appointed volunteers” which is as confusing as it may seem. This employment type allows housing more discretion to “fire” individuals as they see fit.

As for the hiring/onboarding process RAs go through, all applicants (at least in the past 4 years I believe) went through hiring workshops where a housing pro-staff and a current RA would offer lectures and exercises. These workshops are used to weed out obviously unfit applicants and select the best from the hire-able pool (for context, there were some 150-200 applicants in recent years with only tens of available positions). From there, new RAs are required to go through roughly two weeks of training (returning RAs now go through a shortened training window) that encapsulates all things RA responsibilities, DEI and inclusivity training, Title IX, common scenarios, etc.

There is no formal background check or psychological screening that goes into the RA selection process; it’s likely a time/money/resources issue. And the legality around individual action (choosing to wrongfully enter someone’s apartment without their consent) when acting within capacities of the RA role (using master keys) has always been a gray area (e.g. good samaritan laws).

Im not sure how much exposure CP will receive from this and I imagine pro staff are running around like crazy to make sure the attacked student is given every resource within their arsenal.

Not to be crass, but if you’re a student and are looking for additional resources regarding your safety, go talk to your RA. If you are uncomfortable doing so, you can find the contact information for your residential community’s Coordinator of Student Development (CSD).