Coming from a smaller high school, I remember getting to college and thinking: there are more people who live on my floor than were in my graduating senior class of high school. A thought that absolutely terrified me. However, I quickly fell in love with my residence hall and all of the people who lived there. On my first day alone I met people from across the world who all had different backgrounds and interests. One of the first people that I was introduced to was Haley, my residential assistant or RA. Haley helped me meet the other people on my floor, figure out where my classes were, assist with the transition to college, and so much more. As one of the twelve RAs that lived in Elder, Haley also helped organize programming in our dorm. These programs ranged from munchies in our dorm to group events across campus and even in Evanston and Chicago. Throughout the year I got to not only enjoy the different programs that they put on, but through these programs got to meet people throughout my dorm.
Our first official residence hall event was the very first Sunday of college and it was called “Sunday Night Cider”, an event that I still wish I could go to now as a senior. Every Sunday night at 9pm everyone in Elder gathered in our first floor lounge for cider and snacks. Anyone who has ever met a college student knows that nothing gets to a college student’s heart faster than free late night food so it’s not surprise that the excitement for Sunday Night Cider was there week after week. Every Sunday I looked forward to catching up with friends who lived on other floors and enjoying Oreo cookies.
In addition to the weekly Sunday night cider, the RAs also organized events throughout the year. These events ranged from movie nights in our dorm to outings in downtown Chicago. One of my absolute favorite events was on Halloween when we had a screening of Halloweentown. A bunch of us gathered in the first floor lounge to watch the film and eat Andy’s Frozen Custard, which is a local Evanston favorite. Another event that I really enjoyed was an organized dinner downtown right at the beginning of Winter Quarter. It was fun to have a big welcome back to campus event right after break and get to catch up with people who lived in Elder. Additionally, as someone who was new to Chicago, it was really fun and exciting to explore downtown and learn more about the city. It was really nice to have an evening completely planned out for us and was a great way to become more comfortable in the city.
–Eliza Abramson